Can I make a simple graver with 1084?

M

Maelstrom78

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Sep 21, 2013
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I'd like to inlay a brass letter "K" into heart shaped mild steel for a backpack charm.

Can I make a graver out of 1084? Just to carve grooves and undercut them? Then the plan is to bash in some brass and grind flush.

Thanks!
 
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Yes, depending on what you are cutting with it. Mild steel should cut OK.
Harden it and try cutting with it, if it chips readily, anneal very slightly.
 
Yes it should cut mild steel like butter, but if you have a hypereutectoid tool steel scrap around (o1, o2, w1, w2...) it would work even better, requiring less frequent resharpening.

Anyway be very careful not to overheat it during heat treatment, and left some meat to grind after HT. The small dimension lend itself to overheat and decarb. Keeping attention will make a difference on the final tool quality
 
if you are going to make and use this sort of thing often, I suggest getting a cheap Crocker-style graver sharpening fixture. You can get one for very little, and they work with stones or with sandpaper glued to glass.

Geometry really is everything with gravers, as said above. I personally can't hold a graver flat enough, or consistently enough, to get a good geometry and good sharpening. The sharpening fixture will take care of that for you (it did for me). Also, get a magnavisor or some other sort of magnification that you will use for sharpening and engraving.

This is the jig I have http://www.amazon.com/Crocker-Grave...=8-1&keywords=crocker-style+graver+sharpening

once you get the geometry right, having the ability for simple engraving is really nice.

I also have a magnagraver I got from ebay. It drives the gravers with control, sort of like a grs, but less expensive. It is driven by a low-speed, high-torque Foredom flex shaft. I prefer to the grs because of cost and utility. I got the ngraver and foredom for less than $500 total, and I can engrave and also drive all of my burrs and discs and all that. It isn't as precise as the Lindsey air-powered engraving tools, but it is a huge step above tappy-tappy. Just a thought, if you really enjoy it.

Hope this helps, and is not just a ramble. The sharpening fixture is a big, big, big help.
 
I, too can recommend the Magnagraver. I was one of the first users of it's predecessor ( the N-Graver.) I still use them and they work very well.
There are also pneumatic engravers made by GRS that work pretty well.
 
Intriguing guys. I get the sense that I might have to shake out the ol' piggy bank for some new toys!!!

-Thank you very much for your thoughtful answers.
 
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