ID Stamps

medtech

medtech

Joined
Mar 5, 2006
Messages
100
I was wanting to order a knife stamp from Evers and was wanting to see what letter height would be good, 1/16 or 3/32. Most of the knives are small 3-4 in. hunters.

Thanks,
Steve
 
My letter height is 1/8" and it fits well for most small and large knives. My sig is what my stamp is. Not sure what you're going to have on yours, but I'd go with 3/32" unless you plan on getting into folders, then the smaller might be better.
 
If it were me I would go with the 3/32 at least . I think mine is a 9 point font and the length is 3/8 DYKES bold . Most of what I make are folders and have had no problem with the 3/8 length. I would advise you to spend the extra money for the holder . I had fits with double stamping. Then I got a holder for my stamp and it works perfect . I recently bought a TUS etcher and use the same size stencil as my tang stamp and actually like it better. I use it on my fixed blades and very seriously considering using it on my folders. Correct me if I am wrong Bruce but I think he Bruce Bump ABS Mastersmith is etching his name on some of his work . And for what its worth check out his knifegun's , they are works of art !
 
I had just ordered 2 sets of stencils for etching my logo / name from TUS. Theyr'e the same but the larger one is 3/16 lettering, which will be used for non-knife smithed things, and the smaller is 3/32 lettering which seems about right for most knives. I'm not sure how much difference it makes if you're stamping as opposed to etching as to the legibility of the smaller letters though.
 
I guess I should've have said I plan on using my last name SCHANTZ.
Thanks for the help!!!!

Steve
 
So you can order the stensils to use in your etch machine????

Where?
 
I got mine from a local company that people recommended, TUS, at www.TUStech.com I sent them a high resolution image of the logo which I mark my work with and they made me a set of etching stencils. 22$ setup fee 13$ for a sheet of 5 stencils and just 13$ each time i need to reorder more, should be able to mark a LOT of pieces for cheap, and high quality.
 
So you can reuse the stensils from them????
 
Evers makes the high carbon steel stamps. That's what I'm planning on using. I don't how to do the other way yet. I might try that in a couple of years.

Steve
 
Good to know. Very informative thread. I've been told its time to get off my ass and get this done....


Thanks guys.
 
Go with the 3/32 at this time. But later on get 1/16. I use 3 here in my shop. But use the 3/32 most of the time. Hope this was of help. And by the way, Evers make mine as well. Good people to work with. If you tell them you talk to me they can tell you what I am using here. God bless and have a safe day. :thumbup:
 
I have been using a 1/16" stamp from Evers for many years and I use it on both my fixed blades and folders. Definately get some kind of holder, makes life alot easier.Dave:)
Here's a holder I made from an Arbor press.I milled the ram to fit and hold the stamp in with set screws.I also added a piece to the top of the ram to keep it from getting damaged by the hammer.

Stamper.jpg
 
Justin.Mercier said:
I got mine from a local company that people recommended, TUS, at www.TUStech.com I sent them a high resolution image of the logo which I mark my work with and they made me a set of etching stencils. 22$ setup fee 13$ for a sheet of 5 stencils and just 13$ each time i need to reorder more, should be able to mark a LOT of pieces for cheap, and high quality.
Click to expand...

I just ordered my stencils from TUS also. I got them in two different sizes. A small size for smaller knives and a larger size for my camp knives and bowes. There will be 5 stencils on my sheet. 3 of the smaller font size and 2 of the larger font size.

Eric at TUS told me that if you bend and or flex the stencils around corners and/or don't wipe them clean after use they will last 500+ etchings. If you only use them on flats and clean them of the etching solution they can last up to 2000 etchings per stencil.
 
I fully expect to kill a stencil or two learning how to etch with my machine most effectivly, but that still means that 13$ (after setup fee) should get me at minimum like ... 4000 markings >_< Not a bad price at all. I've made a few test marks on things so far, and the only thing i've found is that my stencil is curling after i wash it off and let it dry, not sure offhand how to prevent that.
 
Guys, don't be disappointed if you don't get that kind of lifetime out of your stencils. The type of deep etching we do shortens the lifetime compared to what the vendors are used to typical customer use in industry. The first thing you will notice is that the edge of the cut is not as sharp and the look of your etch degrades a bit. Eventually you will see irregular depth. One thing you can do is hold them up to the light and look at the pores with a magnifier; you can tell that the oxide is starting to clog the stencil.

Some years back I adopted a tip by Don Fogg: buy one of those cheapo ultrasonic cleaners for jewelry and sonicate the stencils after each use with a little of that soap that comes with the sonicator. Under running water, GENTLY rub between thumb and forefinger or use the little brush that most kits come with. Blot the stencil dry and either put it back in the pack or cover with a paper towel and put a light weight on top to keep flat. That'll keep the gunk out of the pores for a little longer than any other cleaning method I've tried.
 
Not to hijack the thread but all of the talk about etching is interesting. I was wanting to try it but not sure really where to start. How did you get your art work done, or what type of program did you use to do it with?
 
It sounds like etching may be a good way to go. The marker from Evers is about $120. How much does a basic etching machine cost. I know nothing about etching, so this might be a good time to learn. Thanks for all the help and the good ideas.

Steve
 
fitzo said:
Some years back I adopted a tip by Don Fogg: buy one of those cheapo ultrasonic cleaners for jewelry and sonicate the stencils after each use with a little of that soap that comes with the sonicator. Under running water, GENTLY rub between thumb and forefinger or use the little brush that most kits come with. Blot the stencil dry and either put it back in the pack or cover with a paper towel and put a light weight on top to keep flat. That'll keep the gunk out of the pores for a little longer than any other cleaning method I've tried.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip Mike I have one of those ultrasonic cleaners :thumbup:
 
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