Knife with slotted guard - when to etch a blade?

[lel]

I am making a knife with a slotted guard. I plan to pin the guard and then solder it for better fit and look. The blade is made from 1095 and clay quenched so I am going to etch it and hope to see a hamon . The question is, should I pin and solder the guard before etching or after it?
In the first case (solder first) I am afraid that ferric chloride will damage the guard and soldering, although theoretically it should not because the guard is from 416 steel.
In the second case (etch first) I think that I might have a problem with soldering because solder will not stick to the darkened area under the guard. Also cleaning the ricasso area after soldering might lead to some scratches.
So, how do you guys do it?

--
Sergiy

 

[M.Griffin]

When I etch for a hamon, I don't just etch and leave the oxides on the blade. I finish the blade up to a very fine 2000 grit finish, etch, sand with Windex and 2000 grit again until all the oxides are removed, etch again, sand with 2000 again, then do my finish passes with 1500 or even 1000 depending on what I am going for. What I am trying to say is that if you remove the oxides, the hamon will still show and soldering should be fine after the etch. If you are going for a really dark etch.....I'm not sure. Good luck.

-Mike

An example:

 

[lel]

Thank you, Mike. I will try etching first. I probably was not cleaning the blade enough between etches, so I will also add Windex to my precess.