how to etch a full tang Damascus blade

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440-c

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Apr 21, 2012
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I have etched my full tang blade,drilled holes and have put on my handle material. Now I have to grind the material down to the steel blade which in turn will grind the etch off the blade. After the handle is shaped and sanded how is the best way to etch the blade back to the original etch? Am i missing a step here or not. Thanks
 
I have seen YTers paint ferric chloride on the spine and exposed tang with a Q-Tip and then keep applying until they get their desired darkness. Then deactivate the acid with baking soda and any glass cleaner with ammonia in it.

I've also seen others do all the shaping of the handle scales before glueing so they can avoid sanding off the etching.

I am brand new, so I've never done this myself, but has seen this many times on YT. And, I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night. :D
 
I pin the handle on a full tang Damascus blade and do all the shaping. Then I take the handle off and etch the blade. Then re-pin the handle on this time with epoxy. You need to keep an eye on the handle as the epoxy cures and wipe off any epoxy that comes up between the scales and the tang.

I have used a Qtip to put the etchant on a tang if the etching has been ground off, but I much preferer not to.
 
As Tom said, attach scales with sacrificial pins, finish the scales all around the blade, remove,etch and reattach. Just finish the faces.
 
FWIW I have found that etching solution applies more evenly with a sponge than with a qtip
 
Tom Lewis said:
I pin the handle on a full tang Damascus blade and do all the shaping. Then I take the handle off and etch the blade. Then re-pin the handle on this time with epoxy. You need to keep an eye on the handle as the epoxy cures and wipe off any epoxy that comes up between the scales and the tang.

I have used a Qtip to put the etchant on a tang if the etching has been ground off, but I much preferer not to.
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Eggzackly how I do it as well. It’s a genuine pita, but it has to be done this way to be “right”. I hate it when I see makers selling full tang Damascus knives and just about everything ground down. Horrible look.

I also use 24 hour epoxy, qtips soaked a bit in WD40 to wipe off the excess. The 24 hour epoxy works much better than five or thirty minute glue since there is no mad rush to get it off.
 
What I've done to avoid any "blotchyness" by applying with a q-tip is to use fingernail polish to paint over what needs to be protected fromthe acid, then etch as normal. The fingernail polish will resist the acid. I've even done this once with a full tang damascus blade after the scales were attached.
 
Use temporary wooden dowels to attach the handle scales. A TINY drop of CA on the tang helps, too. Make sure the tiny dot of CA is not close to wooden dowels. When done shaping and buffing, drive out the dowels, stick in the freezer for 30 minutes, tap the scales with a soft mallet, and they will fall off. Etch the blade, and reassemble with the final pins.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Use temporary wooden dowels to attach the handle scales. A TINY drop of CA on the tang helps, too. Make sure the tiny dot of CA is not close to wooden dowels. When done shaping and buffing, drive out the dowels, stick in the freezer for 30 minutes, tap the scales with a soft mallet, and they will fall off. Etch the blade, and reassemble with the final pins.
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Genius info here, thanks much. I've specialized in hidden tang for a long time, so trying to etch my full tang Damascus blades has been a bugger. This really helps. I primarily use 1/8inch pin stock for all of my blades including my full tang knives, so using the dowel trick, I'm guessing I may need to bump it up to 3/16 in order to manage working with the dowels without them breaking? Or have you had issues with that?
 
I don't see why 1/8" wooden dowels would not work. They are only there to hold things in place while shaping.

On handles that have Corby bolts, I use a set of bolts that I have cut deeper slots in them so the slots won't grind away in shaping. I unscrew the bolts after the shaping and put in new ones. Just be careful in grinding down and polishing the heads of the new bolts so as not to hit the etched metal tang areas.
 
Alaskan Bladesmith said:
Genius info here, thanks much. I've specialized in hidden tang for a long time, so trying to etch my full tang Damascus blades has been a bugger. This really helps. I primarily use 1/8inch pin stock for all of my blades including my full tang knives, so using the dowel trick, I'm guessing I may need to bump it up to 3/16 in order to manage working with the dowels without them breaking? Or have you had issues with that?
Click to expand...
Why you would not use 1/8inch metal pins ? I recently finished Damasteel knife with a full tang handle. I used metal pins when i was shaping the handle. Very tight fit /need force to push them out / so scale can t move while I shape them on tang.
 
Natlek said:
Why you would not use 1/8inch metal pins ? I recently finished Damasteel knife with a full tang handle. I used metal pins when i was shaping the handle. Very tight fit /need force to push them out / so scale can t move while I shape them on tang.
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So, that's actually what I ended up using. I cut brass pins extra short so that I would grind them down and it worked great combined with a dot of super glue on each scale. Putting it in the freezer after shaping the scales also worked great to make the glue break easily when tapped lightly with a mallet.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
I don't see why 1/8" wooden dowels would not work. They are only there to hold things in place while shaping.

On handles that have Corby bolts, I use a set of bolts that I have cut deeper slots in them so the slots won't grind away in shaping. I unscrew the bolts after the shaping and put in new ones. Just be careful in grinding down and polishing the heads of the new bolts so as not to hit the etched metal tang areas.
Click to expand...
Your suggestions worked great, thanks again.
 
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