Etching D2

Hankins

Hankins

Joined
Dec 7, 2008
Messages
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Well so far today it is SLOW going as wanting to put some texture on a Pre_HT D2 blade
Using Sulfuric acid as I figured it would work relatively fast Nope just sits there laughing at the acid bath
Even in the soft state this steel has awesome stain resistance...
Suggestions?
 
How about a crock pot? Not being a smartass I have one dedicated to cooking funky knife crap
Guess I could put it in a glass jar and put that in the crock
 
You might have to do it after HT. I can get muriatic acid at 32.4% to etch 154CM, Elmax, s30v, and whatever mystery stainless steel some cheap Chinese knives used.
 
Try PCB etchant from your local radio shack. Bout $11 for 16oz. It did this to 440c steel in 25 minutes.
image_zps087ce639.jpg


You might consider temperature with your sulfuric. Acids are less effective at low temps. I heat my PCB ferric chloride to 100 degrees while i etch. works much faster. Be careful! Sulfuric acid produces more caustic vapor as it heats! DO NOT heat to the point that it steams!

Also the PCB ferric chloride worked VERY fast on a piece of 1084 i tried in it. Several hundredths of an inch were oxidized in 3 minutes! Test on a scrap of the metal you wish to etch.
 
Hengelo_77 said:
D2 etches dark gray in FeCl3
Click to expand...

Very tempted to use that instead of HCl on my Morpho, then. A dark etch and a rougher stone wash to give a well-used look might look pretty cool with the black G10. Of course, if EDCKnives ever sells their Ti scales for the Morpho separate from the knife, I'm not sure how good it would look.

I would love to see what difference there might be in darkness of different steels etched with various acids.
 
So far the best I've got is a Grey...
Casswell sells a Stainless Blackening kit May have to give it a try
 
Hengelo TOXIC is right Just got thru reading the MSDS on the solution pretty much Super Blue on steroids really nasty stuff.
I am going to stay with either hand sanding or a tumbled finish
 
I use a mix of nitric and muriatic acid to etch all my steel, including D2. And yes ‘Toxic’ is it’s middle name. It’s like saying you want to reload ammunition and wondering if it sounds a tad explosive. I did it indoors once, and the fumes killed every plant in the house . Imagine what it does to eyeballs, lungs, and fingers. Part of the beauty is what it cost to get there. Part of why not just everyone does it, why you do not see it around a lot, and why it cost when you buy the finished product and need a nuclear permit to mix it. Yes. I suggest everyone else choose the easy way (smile). I wear a mask, use a fan. But suspect some nerve damage after 40 years. Rats. But probably done more damage to my eyes looking at women. I got no complaints. How can anything eat steel and be safe? I mean geez. Yes the radio shack PCB etchant works, but not as well. Yes, I suppose I expect dead silence at my comments, but figured I’d toss in how I do it.

here is a link to the etching part of my web site http://www.milesofalaska.net/Custom_knives/custom_etching.html
01%20raven%204%20512.jpg

Above is etched D2
 
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