Source of tool steel for metal gravers

[bladeartist]

Can anyone recommend a cheap source of tool steel thin enough to make engraving tools (gravers) from it without a lot of stock removal first? All of the online sources I've found sell only gravers or graver blanks that cost between $5.00 and $8.00 apiece. When you add the price of shipping and handling for 20 or 30 gravers, that's pretty spendy for my blood, especially considering you have to buy handles for each of them.

 

[mete]

Do you really need 20-30 gravers ? www.brownells.com is a source.

 

[bladeartist]

That's a good question. Maybe I don't need that many, but being a beginner, I've done some research, and have gotten the impression that to do high quality work, one needs several different kinds of flat gravers and three or four sizes of most of them. And if I want to do professional-level work, I think I will need some line gravers of several gradations. Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself?

 

[mete]

Yes I think you're getting ahead of yourself. As a beginner you have a lot to learn .Part of engraving is the artistic part .A course or two of drawing would be helpful ! As you learn you'll also learn what type of tools you prefer. Professionals today often end up with a power tool [but earn the basics first] .Will your engraving be just knives ? What materials ? Soft , hard ? Hardened steel is very different than soft brass . Get a basic set of about 10 gravers and learn.. Most of my limited engraving has been on steel .My gravers include a carbide graver for the hard stuff !