Muriatic Acid Etching Stainless Steel Blades

[ThomStewart]

So I have mixed 1 part muriatic acid and 2 parts hydrogen peroxide and using acrylic paint as a mask. I tried it with a coupon made of 1095 steel and it etch great, but just tried it on AEB-L and after 20 minutes just barely creating a coating on the steel. I put the blade back in and and letting it sit longer. I made the acid bath 2 days ago. Can the mixture go bad after 2 days?

 

[Stang Bladeworks]

I use ferric chloride and it etches cpm154 no problem after 5 minutes. Its similar to aebl so I imagine it would work well for you. I just run it straight but i heard you can cut it with water