Diy drawing on the knife blade. Etching on a knife for the lazy. Artistic electrochemical etching

Agree, metal products (knives, blades, amulets ...) look much more beautiful if they are decorated with patterns, ornaments. But how do you apply a pattern to a metal surface? Engraving? It is possible with this method, but there are several more. One of them is called - artistic electrochemical metal etching.
In this article, you will learn how to decorate a knife blade. The entire process from sketching to metal pickling at home is described below.

Development and drawing of a picture

Sketch

A plot drawing, floral ornament, a logo or just a phrase - this is just a small list of drawing ideas that will be beautifully captured on the blade. Choose which pattern you want to see on the blade and start sketching. You can draw it yourself or ask the professionals.

Then you need to transfer the drawing to the blade. To do this, we place the blade in the scanner, transfer the image to the CorelDraw program, where we outline the contours of the blade. Next, add a suitable ornament. The result should be duplicated in mirror image and sent to print.

Blade varnishing and drawing transfer

The blade must be varnished in advance. You can use a matte varnish for plastic replica models. The varnish must be diluted with a nitro thinner to dry faster, and applied with an airbrush (you can also use a brush). The varnish is used because it retains its plasticity during the day and does not crumble under a scrubber.

Cut out the sketch to make it easier to fit to the blade, "blacken" the reverse side with a pencil, attach it to the blade with masking tape. After that we draw the ornament with a thin pen. The result is a drawing on the varnish.

Scratching the picture

We scratch the drawing on the surface of the varnish using scrubbers with different sharpening. It is important that the metal of the scrubber is not harder than the metal of the blade, otherwise there will be scratches.

Features of the drawing

In our example, the "field" is etched (this is the most difficult option, since the drawing is harder to scratch), although a more accessible option is also possible when only the contours of the drawing are etched.

Metal pickling

You can use a variable transformer, for example, from a toy railroad... It will be an adapter for a mini drill, which is indispensable for delicate work. The maximum voltage is 12V, which is more than enough. Shrink sleeve serves as insulation.
Flannel: Copper / brass plate - approx. 100/7 mm.

We begin electrochemical etching of metal by putting the cloth on a plate and soaking it all in a saline solution (do not spare the salt). Then we begin to poison - with quick touches, you should not hold it for a long time, because the varnish may overheat.

Result

The described method of etching metal at home is good in that it is easier to control the process here, in contrast to etching in a vessel "entirely". You just need to walk through the drawing several times (previously we advise you to practice on rough blanks so as not to spoil the blade). When the drawing is finished, turn off the unit and wipe the blade with solvent. Actually, this is the method of artistic metal etching.

Based on materials from the site: namuradan-k.se-ua.net

Drawing on a knife (etching). On request.

The young man brought a jackknife. He said: "I want ...".
Hochuha meant:
- remove scratches;
- harden (if necessary);
- grind;
- polish;
- sharpen;
- to put an inscription or drawing on the blade.

It was originally a Magnum folding knife. Quite a well-known and "promoted" brand. This is how it looked when folded.

Photo of the other side of the knife.

This is how the Magnum looked in the open position.

View of the second side of the knife.

We start to fulfill the customer's wishes. We disassemble the knife.

There are much fewer parts in a folding knife than in an automatic knife - blown out. This has a positive effect on its reliability. In addition, the knife has its own brand, is made more accurately than the Chinese "non-names". Grinding is cleaner. Heat treatment of the blade, in my opinion, is not required. The blade of the knife has sufficient hardness. And adding a couple of Rockwell units on a folding knife, and by the same to increase the fragility of the blade, is unreasonable. Therefore, we do without hardening and immediately proceed to coarse and fine grinding. This process is detailed in other articles on the site. For example: or How to improve a Chinese-made knife (part 2).
There are plenty of photos with comments. I post only the result.

In the photo, the blade is already polished. This is necessary for further etching the pattern. The better the steel is polished, the less undercut will be. That is, acid during etching of the pattern will not seep along the unevenness of the blade or poorly polished risks under the protective coating. In addition, high-quality polished steel resists corrosion better.

Next stage. Coming up with a drawing that will be on the blade.
I came up with an eagle, the customer came up with a commemorative inscription, then I came up with a fire, and the customer came up with a panther ... Sketches, sketches, Email, telephone dialogues ... Quite a lengthy and exciting process ... As a result of joint inventions, a fiery eagle was invented.

We outline the blade with a pencil, take aim with a drawing and ...

... in time we pay attention to the fact that the side of the blade is not the right one. The photo shows that next to the hole for the axle screw, there are two more holes with a smaller diameter. They are needed to attach the pocket clip to the knife body. It will cover the drawing in this part of the handle. The eagle on the blade is flying somewhere. Here is a picture of this "somewhere" clip and could close it. Well, at least I noticed in time ... The drawing should be done on the other side of the blade.

We cover the "right" side of the blade with a protective coating. This is a tricky varnish with a tricky name. Inexpensive, but quite decent quality.

After the varnish has dried, we scratch an eagle drawing on it.
But before that, we practice on paper again. I paint without carbon paper or gadgets. Slightly the hand trembled - and the drawing is ruined. I would have to start all over again. Therefore, it is better to practice. In addition, he noticed his mistake again in time. The eagle's beak is longer and more angular. And on the back of the head there is a small crest. In the previous drawing (on the wrong side of the blade), I lost sight of it ... It was not a proud fiery eagle that could have settled on the blade, but an angry burned dove.

We completely cover the blade with construction tape and varnish, so that the acid will only etch the pattern without spoiling the wedge itself. Then we will send the blade to the jar of acid.

I did not take photographs of the etching process. First, it was necessary to take off rubber gloves (no one canceled safety precautions). And secondly, while jumping around the can with a camera, you can miss the right moment and the acid will “gobble up” too much, the pattern will turn out to be too deep and loose inside the grooves. Here is the etching result. The blade has already been washed and cleaned.

But the photo shows one of the flame petals (closer to the tip) with a yellow coating. Before etching this blade (from of stainless steel), I etched brass with the same acid. The dissolved copper from the brass sat on the steel of the blade. Photo not very good quality but visually - the effect was pretty nice. Why copper sat down on only one petal - I don’t understand ... If anyone has come across such an interesting effect and will share his thoughts, I will be very grateful. It would be very beautiful if the tips of all the petals of the flame had the same golden hue. I will experiment ...

Now we etch the very "somewhere" on the handle of the knife, where the eagle is flying. The fiery element into which he aspires ... Or returns ... I did not ask him.
The process is similar. Degreasing, varnishing, drying, scratching with a cunning scratcher, etching, cleaning. Here is the result.

Now we remove the copper plaque from the petal with very fine sandpaper, grind the blade, grind the butt of the blade, grind the handle, grind the entire knife around the perimeter. In the future, it will look something like this.

We polish the wedge, the handle, the knife itself around the perimeter, and in general everything that can shine.
Let's see what happened.

We partially collect the knife. Straighten the cutting edge. Decrease its angle. We sharpen it. We make the knife vicious and sharp. If you go back a few images, you can see the difference in the cutting edge before and after sharpening.

We collect the knife finally.

We bring it "to the razor."

Admiring the polishing of one side of the knife.

We consider the reflection in the figure from the other side.

We fold the knife.

Compare: what he is now and what he was before.

Everything.
The knife is ready.
Shaves her hair.
I want it done.
The customer is satisfied.

Greetings to those who like to craft and work with metal. This instruction will focus on the simplest homemade knife that you can easily do with your own hands. It is not difficult to make such a knife, it is even very simple. Of the most complex and expensive machines that the author has used, this is a belt sander. But it is mainly needed to make bevels. In general, this procedure can be handled with files, and sanding is done manually with sandpaper.

This knife is interesting for its unique pattern, it is made by etching. This pattern will be durable, it will make your knife unique. You can make an inscription or any pattern of your choice. And in order for the knife to turn out to be of high quality, you need to use good steel, it must contain as much carbon as possible, then it can be hardened. A similar steel can be found among various cutters, tools, and so on. A key feature of this steel is that it produces very thick sparks when cutting. If you work with ordinary steel at low speeds, you may not see sparks at all, but carbon steel will generate sparks in this case. Abroad, craftsmen use steel O1, 1095 and others like that. So, let's take a closer look at how to make such a knife!

Materials and tools used by the author:

List of materials:
- carbon steel;
- wood for linings;
- brass rods, tubes and so on (for pins);
- epoxy glue and dye;
- oil for wood impregnation.

Tool list:
- grinder;
- belt sander;
- grinder;
- marker;
- drill;
- vice;
- clamps;
- drill;
- power supply unit, saline solution, etc. (for etching);
- sandpaper;
- files;
- a tool for sharpening knives.

Knife making process:

Step one. Cut out the main profile
We simply cut out the main profile using a grinder. We cut out the concave places in pieces, making transverse cuts. If you have a band cutter, it can handle this task much faster.

Well, then we proceed to grinding those places that we could not cut off. For these purposes, we again work with a grinder. This time we need a thick disc for sanding work. With the help of it, we bring the contour to an almost finished form.
For finer processing, we use a belt sander. We also grind the plane of the blade.

Step two. We drill holes for pins
In the area of ​​the handle we drill holes for the pins. They should be of such a diameter that the pins enter with a minimum clearance, then the handle will hold as securely as possible. The author clamps the blade in a vice and drills holes with an ordinary drill. The steel must not be hardened, otherwise it can only be drilled with a special carbide tipped drill.

Step three. We form bevels
Now we have to form the bevels on the blade. This will set the basic cutting characteristics of the knife. For the knife to cut perfectly, the bevels must be as smooth as possible. But to teach the stiffness of the blade, they can be done at a more right angle. For such work, the author uses a belt sander, on which it is done simply and conveniently. First, take a drill of the same thickness as the thickness of the workpiece and draw a centering line along the blade. And so that it can be clearly seen, the metal can be pre-painted with a marker. We will use this line as a guide to make the bevels symmetrical.

Now we fasten the blade to a wooden block or use a special clamp, that's all, you can start grinding. When grinding, the metal heats up, just holding the blade in your hands will be problematic. We try not to overheat the metal during grinding. If the blade is hardened, the blade is not sharpened, its very minimum thickness should be 2 mm. Otherwise, alloying additives can burn out of the metal, and the steel will turn into ordinary raw material.

Step four. Heat treatment of metal
Heat treatment includes two stages, quenching and tempering. We select temperature conditions and environment for hardening depending on the steel grade. In most cases, knife steels are oil-hardened, and they need to be heated to a red or sometimes yellowish glow. If the hardening is successful, the blade will no longer be taken with a file, while the metal will be brittle.

Tempering is followed by a procedure called tempering. To understand the temperature to which the metal is heated, it is advisable to grind the blade before letting it go. When its color changes to straw, this will indicate that the vacation was a success. On average, the blades are heated for about an hour at a temperature of 200 degrees using an oven. The steel should cool down smoothly, along with the oven.

Step five. Grinding
After heat treatment, a dark coating forms on the metal, which is the result of oxidation. The whole thing needs to be cleaned up. To do this, we use sandpaper dipped in water. You can also walk the blade on a belt sander. As a result, the blade can be polished, thereby preparing it for etching.

Step six. Assembling the handle
The handle is dominated by dark tones, as the author intended. To make it look interesting, we take a drill and make cuts along the handle on the blade. When these parts are filled with black dye epoxy, everything will look great.

You can also come up with interesting pins. You can take a copper or brass tube, come up with an interesting filler, and then fill the tubes with epoxy and a dye.

Cut out the overlays, for this we use a dark wood. You can use a dark stain or oil if desired. The lining should be two pieces of approximately the same shape. That's all, you can assemble the pen. We carefully clean the surfaces to be glued so that the glue adheres well. Metal can be treated with coarse sandpaper, so the glue sticks much better. As a glue, the author used epoxy with the addition of a dark dye.

We clamp the handle with clamps, this will allow the overlays to evenly stick together along the entire length. Well, then we wait a day, after that it will be possible to confidently handle the handle.

At the end, we start grinding the handle, form the desired shape. This can be done with a grinder, with a drill, or even by hand using files and sandpaper. We make the handle perfectly smooth. Finally, the handle needs to be soaked in oil, so the wood will be protected from moisture, and the handle will look great.

Step seven. Etching pattern
The design on the blade makes the knife unique. For this procedure, we use a power supply, and you will also need water with ordinary table salt, the concentration should be maximum. We draw a drawing on the blade, paint over everything else with varnish or paint. Etching will occur where the metal surface is exposed.

I share personal experience in this simple case, as it turned out.
Because I am engaged in radio amateurism, then I often do printed circuit boards technique LUT (Laser-ironing technology). Recently I was asked a question by a fellow biker: is it possible to pickle steel to make different tweaks and how exactly to do it. Rush inet, I made sure that the solution ferric chloride in the water eats not only copper on the PCB but also almost any iron. What I was able to be convinced of when it spilled to me on a galvanized balcony sheet and the very next day I saw decent holes there ... In short, I thought purkua wouldn't be pa ...
So we need:
Ferric chloride 200g (70 rubles)
Water 0.5 liters (from the tap)
LASER black-and-white printer.
A sheet of paper with the text and the least number of pictures from the Popular Mechanics or Iron magazine. For some reason, the printer chews paper from Liza magazines and others ...
Iron.
A computer with a Word or any graphic editor to whom what nra. I did it in Word, where the drawing is easiest to stretch as you like.
Sample drawing - taken from tattoo sites.
Technology.
Select the drawing and stretch it as you like.
We take a knife or a piece of iron, we clean it with a sandpaper with a zero.
We print the drawing on the section with the text of the prepared sheet.
We apply it on a knife and iron it with a hot iron until it sticks and the toner slightly comes through the paper.
If necessary, do the same on the other side of the knife.
We put the knife under water (in a bowl or ladle) for 5-10 minutes.
We begin to rub on the paper with our finger. The paper rolls up and the toner remains on the metal.
If the toner is tears, then we skin again and make the drawings again and iron it harder and longer.
After that, we protect the rest of the knife surface where there will be no etching, or by painting it with paint, NC varnish, bituminous varnish. In my immeasurable laziness, I wrapped it up with scotch tape ...
So so. IMPORTANT. If you want the etching to be of high quality, you will have to go over the drawing from above or with a marker with paint. Those. something to "strengthen" it, tk. toner sticks with small holes and there will be undergrowth. The same applies to minor flaws in the translation of a drawing.
We put the object with the picture into a solution of 200 g of ferric chloride in 500 ml of water. (Dissolve not all at once, but in parts - it is heated).
From time to time we take it out and under running water we pass it with a paint brush. After a couple of hours, we get a noticeable etching of 0.3-0.5 mm.
Then we rub everything with sandpaper and polish or not polish ... Depending on laziness

A sample of the result from below. As I said, we got sub-grafts, but it gave the ornament, so to speak, ... something old ...








It turned out so-so, of course, but for the first time it's not bad
P.S / Any etching and writing makes the knife less durable and it usually breaks just along the etching line.
I wish you all success. 73!

Cold steel has always attracted the attention of men. Especially knives from Damascus steel... The Tula blacksmiths not only revived the old secret of making a Damascus blade, but also improved and diversified the drawing on steel. The blade sparkled with unusual wavy lines of various bizarre shapes. A blacksmith, like a woodcarver, thinks up in advance what kind of drawing he wants to make, so that his product would be unique and bring beauty to connoisseurs of cold steel.

I, a Tula woodcarver, was lucky not only to decorate the handle of a knife, but also to acquaint you with my work. On the pages of this site I will show you a master class on finishing the handle of a hunting knife made of Damascus steel. The handle of the knife is made of Caucasian walnut wood, which is distinguished by its strength and specific texture, which gives beautiful colors after processing. The size of the handle has a small tolerance for the embodiment of my idea. But more on that later. To begin with, I came up with a sketch, which I carefully traced on paper. I transferred it to the upper part of the knife handle.

I want to immediately explain my idea. There will be not only threads on the top, but 3 directions will be connected here:

1) Thread

2) Vsechka in silver

3) Inlaid with bulky boxwood inserts.

I put all this in one drawing, but in a different technical performance. It is quite difficult to implement, and therefore the invented bunch of a new connection is rarely used by me.
Well, let's start piercing the thread on the back of the handle. With a semicircular chisel of a small radius, we pierce the carved layout along the back stop. The layout has the same design elements along the entire diameter of the handle.

Since I made the markup in advance, the fragments of the drawing turned out to be the same, which made it easier to puncture the contour.

In the lower part, a fragment of a foliage ornament is drawn; it seems to embody the beginning, the base from which carving and inlay emerge on the upper part of the handle. In my case, the drawing is symmetrical, then I make two identical punctures, changing only the radii of the chisels.

First of all, everything. The groove is punctured with radius chisels to a depth of 1 mm. Since the pattern is symmetrical, the puncture of one part of the pattern repeats the radius of the other part.

As the curl is twisted, the chisel radius decreases.

I will not rush with the whole thing, but I will move on to the inlay of boxwood elements. This will complement the drawing and visually arrange all the inserts in their place. I previously sawed out the leaves from 3mm thick boxwood plates with a jigsaw. I chose this size so that inlaid boxwood leaves in the flat-relief carving would later look three-dimensional with carving.

I turn to the inlay of boxwood elements.

The place for the leaf has been chosen and I carefully try on the element in place. If the inlaid part does not enter immediately, then I cut off the edge that interferes. I do not make any efforts so as not to break the insert, but gradually adjust it in place. With a corkarze, made from a thin file, I clean the bottom of the seating cavity so that the part sinks as deep as possible into the handle array and is flush with the surface.

Again, we return to the silver cut. But as I said earlier, the surface of the cut will be uneven and limited by space. This creates certain difficulties. The complexity also lies in the small size of the surface itself. The constant mobility of the product in operation forces us to focus on safety. As the Russian proverb says: "The eyes are afraid, but the hands are doing." Here are the hands and must be protected! After all, with these hands, holding a flat chisel, I smoothly lower the surface of the notch. And in some places, together with boxwood inserts, tk. inlaid leaves are an integral part of the cut and one connecting element.

Increase

The pattern of the silver thread, which has a thickness of 0.2 mm, is already clearly visible. and a width of 0.76 mm. Now my idea is becoming clearer and clearer to you, where the lines of the groove are smoothly connected, we correct the groove with a straight chisel. I flatten the tip of the silver tape and insert it into the groove close to the silver thread.

Increase

I press the thread into the groove, smoothly twisting it into a spiral curl. Twisting the spiral, I cut off the silver at the end of the curl.

Increase

To give a finished look to the curl, you need to put a full stop. Silver point. To do this, I make a small puncture with an awl at the end of the curl.

Increase

We hammer the protruding piece of wire, but not completely. I do this so that when stripping the silver point has smooth edges, and is not deformed by nippers.

Increase

Choosing the background, I expose the contour of the notches and carvings.

Increase

Only the outline of the notches and carvings was drawn.

The surface should be perfectly flat, without mechanical traces of processing. To do it neatly in a confined space, you have to try. Having cleaned the surface of the handle (except for thread fragments) with a file and emery, moisten it with water.

Increase

When water dries, it raises the pile. This is clearly visible on the surface. After drying, I protect the surface with emery. Again, I urinate and do the cleaning, but this time with fine emery. I do this so that in the future, when impregnating with drying oil, the pile no longer rises, and the final polishing takes less time. After the third impregnation, I do not use emery. The entire surface becomes even and matte.

I take the sample from the middle to the edges. This is in order not to hush the edges of the groove border with a chisel. Having adjusted the insert, I put it on the glue, but so that it rises above the surface. Visually comparing the second insert on the other side and making sure of their symmetry, I outline the contour. I also encrusted the second insert.

I give the elements the shape of the handle surface. Both elements rise above the surface by approximately 2mm. I left this height for the next cut, so that they are voluminous. In this part of the master class, you can see how the handle is being transformed. From above and below, floral ornaments float on it, intertwined with silver and inlaid volumetric inserts of boxwood. The back of the handle is surrounded by a layout of identical plant elements. It remains for all this splendor to give shape. This is what I will do in the third part of my master class.

Part 3

This preparation is essential. It is a definite and important link for the next stage of cutting the plant element. Going further, I use a chisel, the radius of which corresponds to the small size of the different elements of the layout.

I cut each leaf of the layout with a chisel. Starting at the tips of the leaf and smoothly moving to the central part. The beginning of the leaf is cut with the entire radius of the chisel. Moving to the middle of the sheet, I smoothly turn the chisel. With this movement, I adjust the width of the cut and cut narrow places with the tip of the radius chisel. The prepared technology is present for every element, no matter where it is. At the bottom of the handle, having lowered the element, I also cut through the central part of the sheet with a corner.

Many people think: “Why such preparation? It takes time. Immediately passed the radius, and that's it! " But no, when the fragment is not prepared, the chisel radius cuts off the excess on a flat surface, sometimes chipping off the fragment, not having time to give it a shape. The chisel moves along the prepared fragment along the geometry of the sheet and cuts off only what is needed. At this moment, I control the cut itself.

And on the other hand. So the elements of the thread will be the same in cutting and in shape. Boxwood inlaid leaves are prepared and cut in the same way as carvings, although they are inlaid carvings. They have the same volume as the threads.

Having finished with a flat-relief thread, I begin to chamfer the groove, which has fuzzy edges in the process of weaving with the thread.

I immerse the product in drying oil for a day, if the volume permits, or I lubricate it abundantly. After the drying oil is absorbed and dries up a little, I protect the surface with fine emery in order to remove the film.

I repeat this process until the drying oil stops absorbing. During the last cleaning, already used with fine sandpaper, the surface is polished and gets a smooth surface, pleasant to the touch. Well, that's all, my "job report" has come to an end. In it, I told in detail and showed all my secrets, many asked me about it. Maybe other masters do it differently, and this is their right. Each has its own approach, its own technology. I tried both for you and for those people who will hold this edged weapon in their hands, let them feel the tenderness and warmth not only of the wood from which this handle is made, but also a particle of the master's soul.

Sincerely!
Valery Prostyankin.

 

It might be helpful to read:

• Craft from plasticine for the day of cosmonautics;
• School riddles - fun activity for kids;
• How to mold a plasticine bat step by step with a photo;
• Embroidered keyrings Embroidered keychain diagram;
• Station game "fair";
• Games in the summer day camp for primary school children;
• Camp competitions for children;
• Children's riddles about transport;