Getting the laser etched logos deeper into the steel.

G

GrizzlyBear

Joined
Dec 5, 2009
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Hey guys. After buying my BK9 and falling head first into the BeckerWorld, I did countless hours of searching and looking at pictures of customized knives. The one thing that I noticed was that most of the knives pictured have the roll-stamp for the logos, which, after removing the coating, remain on the blade and in my opinion look great. I had only seen a couple of pictures that showed a stripped blade and the faint laser etching that remained.

I did a google search and found that some of you guys were using multiple runs of Ferric Chloride to etch the logo deeper. So I bought some and tried it but I just wasn't seeing the logo get much deeper. Of course, I couldn't expect the depth of a stamp, but I wanted it deep enough to not lose it over the years.

So, I decided to build a quick electro-chemical etcher. Using a AC/DC power adapter I attached an alligator clip to each wire then attached the POSITIVE wire to the blade. The NEGATIVE clip holds a QTip close to the end. This is your etcher. Make up a solution of salt water, as much salt as you can get to dissolve. Dip the Qtip in the water then onto a piece of paper to remove most of the excess. Now, press the tip to the laser etched logo and work it back and forth. You will see bubbles and hear a hissing sound as the steel is burned away also creating steam. If the hissing stops, rewet your etcher tip. After a bit you will have to discard the qtip and get another due to black buildup. Just keep working at it evenly. You can also clean the spots after a couple rounds with soap, water and a toothbrush. This removes any carbon residue and allows for a better connection.

Alternately, you can finalize the etch by getting an AC transformer and hitting it again. The AC voltage will blacken the etching provided by the DC voltage.

Here are mine after I stripped off the coating after etching:



It's deep enough I can easily catch my fingernail in it.

Hope this works for you guys, if you have any questions I'll try my best to answer!
 
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Great post and thanks for the info! I need to etch the logos on a couple of knives and your method looks and sounds pretty simple.
 
No problem! Hope it works well for you!

One thing to look for in the AC/DC adapters, the more output power...the better. Theoretically, you can etch with a AA battery but it takes a loooooooong time. Just remember that a hotter adapter, makes a hotter etch. You don't want to inadvertently melt your coating/stencil. Several on/off passes to allow cooling will work better.
 
an old cell phone charger does a good job. Weird, I have always clipped the positive to the blade and etched with the negative. I also do a salt/vinegar mix. Either way, it gets the job done!
 
Nice! I may need to try that out next time I do a design on a blade. It would be much faster than the PCB Etchant.
 
for designs both of them work good. It all boils down to what you use as a resist. I have been leaning heavily towards acid lately but still use electric current on occasions

voltage:

2621EEE6-orig_zps598f9bff.jpg


acid:

C6D83BED-orig_zps1f885460.jpg
 
Zulu- Thanks for catching me on that with the polarities! I thought I wrote something wrong but could not figure it out each time I read it. LOL. You can wire it up with the NEG to the blade and POS to etch, but it doesn't do anything...sizzles a little, maybe darkens the mark a tad.

Also, on your acid etchings. How long are you leaving the acid on and how many times are you doing the etch? There are some blades on here that have words etched on which I think look really good. (The "do not go gentle" knife rings a bell here.) How are the larger items resisted for the acid?
 
for the acid I do a 2-hour dunk on a vase filled with it after having covered the blade with acid-resistant ink and scratching out the design. Search ebay for photoresist ink, it's a thick blue ink that can be diluted with acetone. For the etch I do 2 passes, after everything gets dark and frothy I clean up and repeat. DO NOT use the ink for the etches, carpenter's tape works pretty good for me.
 
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