For anyone finding this great tutorial for the first time, here's some tricks I picked up after initially learning how to electroetch from this video. 1. A small, firm Q-tip will give different results than a larger, softer one. The smaller and firmer the tip, the more defined the area it etches will be, leaving a more uneven finish. Using a larger, fluffier or softer tip will give a "fuzzier" edge and a more consistent etch. By using one or the other, you can make a rough, worn-in design or a smooth, clean one, depending on what you want. 2. Cotton balls work really well for consistent etching of large areas. Fluffiness matters. 3. Practice before trying it on anything you don't want to mess up! Cheap paint scrapers are a great sacrificial piece of metal to practice on, and usually have enough space to test multiple techniques. 4. What you use for a resist/stencil is important. Thin packing tape works, but thicker would be better. Masking tape, the cream-colored stuff, tends to tear and bunch slightly when I cut a design out, giving a messier edge. Sharpies are great, if you have the artistic talent to freehand a design, but it leaves softer edges when etched. Glossy sticker paper, the kind you print on, seems to give the best results when used as a stencil, with sharp, clearly defined edges and no tearing as long as it's cut cleanly. I haven't tried it yet, but painter's blue tape as used in the video would probably be great as a stencil/resist. I've heard good things about vinegar, but haven't had the chance to try it myself yet either. EDIT: Vinegar+salt works great. Better than water+salt, and it seems to give a shinier etch too.
It's more involved and a bit more expensive, but I've seen someone spray a couple coats of primer onto a blade for a nice solid resist, put down a pattern and go over it with an engraver (maybe $20 on amazon to start with) The engraver went through the pattern and primer to clear up the metal beneath and then it was gone over with this kind of electro etching to really set the pattern into the steel. Like I said, more involved, but I remember it looking great when he was done. Unfortunately I watch so many knife making videos I'd probably be hard pressed to find it again.
Thank for the feedback. I might try using some of that super glossy blue tape that screen printers use. It seems nice and rigid, thick enough, doesn't leave furry edges when cut, it's very crisp, so I have a feeling it might work decently.
@@hyperhektor7733 I don't think it would do anything without the salt. Salt makes the vinegar/water more conductive, which is what you want when you're electro-etching.
Ten years later, this video is still teaching! I used this method and it works beautifully. I have since built a small etching machine with a 20 volt train transformer. Thanks for a great video!
You could get different effects with different electrolytes. Vinegar would be the obvious addition, but lemon juice concentrate might work as well. In the old days, some plating solutions used buttermilk to change the formula a little bit. If you get just the right formula, you can produce an electropolishing effect after electroetching. That will improve the look even more.
@@uninspiredrambler I don't remember the exact formula. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the plating shops refused to give their recipe. I suspect that buttermilk slowed the process a little bit and produced a better surface finish. Small differences in the rate at which things happen can produce big differences in how the metal goes onto the part.
I had heard about this process a while back. Recently I've been playing around with pure vinegar as an acid bath to etch metal. Works decently well, just requires a load of time. This was a method I had been interested in trying and the clear tutorial is really appreciated.
Your etch video is my favorite....hands down.....clear and simple.....and your knife design turned out perfect! Mine did also, following your instructions.... Thanks you !
you gotta be kidding me! been researching on this for hours, almost went for eye-lung-burning acids, and the solution was right here. THANKS! enormous THANKS! Will give it a try tomorrow.
Okay M8 Like a total charm, even on stainless steel it etched perfectly. Gotta be patient and give it time, used like 8 q-tips per blade. But 5 minutes was enough.
Daniel GoSilent lol i used really strong hydrochloric, the guy in the chem shop even offered me hydro-flouric! anyhoo, so how did you end up going through 8 qtips? did they burn away or something? also did you use a battery or a 9v dc adaptor?
Ochipwa Greenspider no i just used it neat in the end, mixed results, it etched using nail varnish as the pattern, ive got all of those materials and i need to clean up some castings ive done in aluminium so ill have a bit of a play next week hopefully
+thepoultrypeople I've been Etching a Hex Nut that i'm turning into a Signet Ring, and been through at least 20 q-tips (a total of ~40 tips) and more than 2 hrs, and it's still not done. I wonder if its a different amount of time since i'm using 3 6volts batteries? (18 volts) Or maybe it just longer because i want a deep cut for the ring.. But this video is very helpful, Maybe by tomorrow it will finally be engraved well enough :)
Great idea but keep eye in battery that it does not over heat from shorting it out. If got to hot it could explode. While changing 9v batteries in smoke detectors i put one in my pocket. My keys Shorted battery out. They laid against positive and negitive. Burnt my leg pretty good.. I will try this idea though keeping eye on the heat. The way shes doing it there may be no problem..just a heads up..have fun. Bob
great job! you were concise and informative. I make knives and you made one of the most relative videos compared to some of the complicated long winded ones I've suffered through. thank you
I just tested this method on stainless steel (which is supossed to really take an effort for etching), and it worked perfectly! Took 4 q-tips (both ends so 8 tips)... And after rubbing nail polish off, I figured maybe using double the q tips would've made a deeper etch. Anyway, it's a very noticeable etch, that won't go away in a 100 years, so very happy with the result. Thanks again!
great short tutorial. Most show etching with vinyl decals and battery charging machines but I appreciate the simple low tech and budget friendly method used here.
This is soooo cool!! I too was looking for some sort of acid etching materials and it's nothing more than a 9 volt batter, q-tips and salt water. Ingenious, thank you for saving me some big $$'s
I have a stainless steel plate that I mounted my switches and gauges to for my boat and was trying to decide how to label them that would be weather proof and wouldn't rub off. You just solved my problem, thanks!
Thanks for this info. Have been looking at etching a couple of my kitchen knives, and all the other videos had car battery chargers hooked up. Just a 9V battery, awesome! So simple to do. Thanks
This works really well!! I use vinegar instead of water, and have used this to etch several of my hunting knives. Definitely Macgyver style, thanks for the video.
Nice job and video. Very easy and simple. I like your symbol it looks like a religious one I’m familiar with. You made this video so much easier than other people.
I'm a huge fan of Knights Templar, Christ, and the first Christogram. I applaud you for this, and I will be doing this to "ALL" of my cutlery and other Items I can etch! Kudo's to you.
OMG that is crazy cool was just surfing around about engraving stuff and stumbled on this wow, just cool WTH?!?! Thanks for sharing this is soooo cool!!!
When I first saw a similar video I thought "Ya. Salt. reeeeeealy agressive..." Then I tried it (had to, it would bother me at night!), and it works great! My process is a little different: 12V adjustable power supply, hold the blade horizontal, apply a thick drop of salt water (lots of salt, the solution should be near saturated I think), and just move the negative end around in the drop (not touching the metal of the blade). Same effect, maybe a bit faster. And this is way safer than messing around with acids. Thanks for sharing!
Great video. It takes genius to do a job simply with readily available materials. Anybody can do it with $10,000 of gear. but it takes cleverness to KISS. I liked your other video, but this one gets me subscribed. Thanks for a very good video.
+tom jackson buy your custom stencils on ebay www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Custom-vinyl-lettering-fully-personalized-vinyl-decal-stickers-graphic-30x20cm-/291651092141?
AWESOME! I wouldn't have thought a battery would have enough juice to do that. I wanted to buy a plug in etcher but it was like $100+. This will be a nice alternative.
i saw alot of FAQ in this videos comments. i'll answer them. - doesn't matter what tape as long as it comes off when your done. - i wouldn't do over 9v to get a faster job done. its dangerous -9v doesn't take more then 30 mins to do - my balisong is stainless steel, if your doing this on stainless steel you dont have to worry about putting protection ontop of it since stainless steel is rust prevention all the way through. - doesn't matter what wires - no you dont have to use aligator clips but its a PAIN IN THE ASS without them to get them to stick to what you etching/ to the battery/ qtip etc -about 1 salt and 3 parts water should do , of whatever your doing. tbh as long as the water is salty. doesn't matter how much salt you use. its just gotta have some salt in it. i used a baby food glass container and filled it all the way up and put about 2 table spoons of salt in - salt type? not sure. i'll get back to you on that - yes you can use vinger or lemons, anything thats acidic and safe should work DONT USE CHEMICALS! how i did it: i put insulation tape on my balisong knife and took apart a bic razor blade and just cut my initials into my balisong (I.N are my intials) and lifted up the tape pieces with my blade razor blade. i found a 9V battery and cut off 2 wires from a old hotglue gun that stopped working recently. i stripped the ends about 5 inchs then i took a small baby food container and filled it up with water. i added 2 table spoons of salt. i took 1 wires and wraps it around the + terminal and secured it with tape and then i took the other end and wrapped it around my knife ( this is why i stripped it about 5 inchs, so you can get a good wrap) then i took the other wire, wrapped it around the "-" side and to the end of the qtip bud. i stuck itin the liquid and mixed it around and started etching. you can barely hear anything but when the qtip starts turning a green and black colour, you will know its working. it also smells like a metal smell,, almost like your tasting pennies. I hope this all helped you. and if you got questions just ask me. i'll try to reply
i been experimenting wth this & although i get a blackened surface im not really getting the deep etching all the differnt vids talk about can u help the only difference in what im doing is my power im using a adapter with the ends cut offf and the clips attached its a 12v 1.5 amp output could that b the problem
@@duffhole6304 You might want to check before spreading misinformation. Steel consists of Carbon as a component, it'll be around sub 2% depending on what type of stainless steel, but it's still there. It rust prevention is down to the ~10% chromium content. Not all stainless steels are non-magnetic, again it depends on which type you're looking at, but Austenitic stainless steels are the ones that aren't magnetic, and are the kind you'd find in MRI machines for this reason.
This method is genius, Perfect for the project I'm working on. Electrolytic etching will work on any metal, but unfortunately only metals. It has to do with the chemistry of the process.
Now THAT'S what I call a very helpful video, thanks! I was planning to use acid to etch IDs on very small parts but this simple method is far better; more precise and much safer. One question: how long do the little 9volt batteries last (PP3)? How many etchings like this one would you expect to get from one PP3 battery?
Great DIY as I believe someone said that tool takes hundreds of dollars $$$$$ and that busted my thoughts of having one I'm a BlackSmith Hobbyist and this is for me
