Custom badge Tech.

I wouldn't try to run a piece of metal through a laser printer, or copier (one that uses powder) it wont work, you will just mess up the machine, possibly in a very bad way. You might be able to get away with this if you use an ink jet printer (one that uses those small liquid ink cartridges) if the paper path is straight through.

30 years in the copier/printer business fixing peoples screw ups.

 

Has anyone tried the vinyl yet?

 

Where do you buy the brass? Can you get this at lowes or home depot? How thick should it be?

 

Got a hobby shop nearby? K&S brass is available almost everywhere. Any thickness will work, but .005" dissolves pretty quick and anything over .020" will take a while.

HTH,
Tim D.

 

This is the nuts . I have to get set up you could make a sick dash board inserts

 

My question is what did you trim your tag with? How did you cut your nonferrous metal so nice. Great tech you guys rock!

 

I also did some surfing after reading this post and decided to try it on aluminum. I also read that you could use Staples brand glossy ink jet photo paper insted of PNP Blue. It took tw trys to make it stick, I added more heat, but it worked. I made a plate for my car. The design was done on Microsoft Word.

 

hr31hr,

Could you please detail the process you used to do this on aluminum (or is it the same as the brass)? I have some idea for some gauge faces that would be really cool in aluminum. Thanks.

 

1. Copied design onto photo paper in reverse using a laser copier
2. Cleaned the plate with acetone.
3. Painted all but the front of the plate to protect it from the acid.
4. Cleaned the front again with acetone.
5. Once the paint had dried I used an iron on it's highest setting and pressed the design onto the plate. It will get hot so protect the iron using a paper towel between it and the paper and whatever is under the plate.
6. I let the plate cool to the touch and then soaked it in water. I would alternate soaking and rubbing the paper off with my fingers. In the photo on the left you can see there is still some paper left but it is on the design and not a problem.
7. I diluted the ferric chloride about 50% but made the mistake of adding water to the acid instead of acid to the water. It makes a cool mad scientist kind of result but probably not best for the process.
8. Given the reaction it did not take long to etch the plate. I pulled it out and rinsed it off with water and ammonia; read that it neutralized the acid.
9. I then removed the remaining mask with acetone and polished the plate.

When I do it again I will:
Polish the aluminum first
Dilute the correct way or try the muratic acid/peroxide mix
Ensure all edges that I do not want etched are covered with paint
<O

Hope this helps…

 

I had bought this to do all my tools with my name

http://www.etch-o-matic.biz/

 

Thank you hr31hr, I think that will help alot.

 

I stand corrected. I coulda sworn I saw a hack for modifying a laser printer to print directly on the metal, but...looked again tonight, and couldn't find anything. Musta been dreaming.

So...what he said. No printing direct. An inkjet won't work, because (most) inkjet ink is soluble in the etch solution.

BUT...if you're a geek (like me), you could get a flatbed plotter and draw the etch resist on that way...

 

this is too cool, who'da thunk... now i have another project to add to my list....


thanx

 

So you use the inkjet paper with a laser copier/printer?

I'm wondering about this too.

I picked up some metal and PCB Etchant today. I think I will try the photopaper mentioned above, since I'd like to give this a shot tonight.

 

Here's an attempt using the staples photo paper. Hopefully the PNP stuff transfers and sticks better. You can see where it lifted in some spots. The lines aren't very crisp either. Also need to find a good way to trim them.

 

Mine was on aluminum and also had areas that lifted. Part of my problem was that I added water to acid, wrong, always add acid t water. The reaction made the mix foam rapidly. My palte was 1/4 " plate and I trimmed ot on a band saw and cleaned it up with sand paper.

 

Originally Posted by GatorO'dell
My question is what did you trim your tag with? How did you cut your nonferrous metal so nice. Great tech you guys rock!


I'm wondering about this too.

I cut the badges about a 1/16" larger than the final edge on a metal cutting band saw. From there I tune the edge with a disc sander to final size. I have found that it is sometimes necessary to back the badge with a thin piece of wood or card stock to prevent the soft thin brass from being bent by the saw. Also drill all your holes before you cut the badge out.

 

I think that part of the foaming may have been due to the ferric acid reacting with the aluminum. I got the same thing. The more I weakened the acid, the less foaming there was.

One think I noticed is that with aluminum it kinda comes off in layers, which I had to kinda pick out.

Is there something else that can be used to etch aluminum?

I picked up some of the PNP blue last week and it very much worth the price. It's so much easier to use than inkjet paper. It took me a while to figure out the transfer process, but I think I got it now. I wasn't heating it enough. Now the designs come out crisp and clean. I'll have to take some more pics, but here are a few.








And here are a few of the older ones that have the 'distressed/old' look to them:

 

neat stuff.

 

Great help on this subject, thanks.

 

Nice work, where did you find your PNP?

 

I found the PNP on ebay. Shipping sucks though.

If I can sell some of the keychains/magnets I made, I am going to buy a case of PNP and probably put some sheets up for sale (without the ridiculous handling/shipping charges) in the HAMB classifieds.

I tried the muriatic acid/hydrogen peroxide etchant. I like it better than ferric chrloride and it's much cheaper. Here are some samples. The brass ones are .064 and I left them in for about 3 hours (it was about 40 degrees in my garage). The alum I left in for about 5 minutes.

Does anyone know if there is a reason to not use this mixture with aluminum (in regards to safety)? I haven't found anyone else doing it. The reason why I ask about the aluminum being dangerous is b/c it etched so fast compared to the brass and it generated quite a bit of heat.

 

Thats awesome, how much for one of those keychains?

 

For you guys looking to etch metals other than brass: look in major art supply stores like Pearl, Utrecht, or Dick Blick and look for the acids used to etch metal plates for printmaking. I have used several acids on copper, brass, aluminum and more for making print plates. Its the same process, it just takes longer to get a deeper ecth. They also have stop-etch solutions that you can brush on. Its more reliable than tape and if applied right it will have a sharper edge.

 

Here's a few I've made the past months.

In solid Brass. (50mm or 2 inches)


In aluminium.




During the etching process.


And a pair for a friends racing team.


And an other for an other friend.

 

Great post more examples please.

 

Couple of more done.

 

very cool old post ! gonna have to try this myself

 

When I got my Street Rod registration the shop said I should get something a little more official looking than the dog tag I made at Pet Smart for the vin number. I thought I would use this technique. I used Microsoft Word to make up the design and used the homemade version of etch using muriatic acid and peroxide. Smudged out the last few digits to protect the innocent

 

Ok im bringing this thread back because i want to know what you guys are useing to design these logos. I really want to try this out but i need to find a way to do the design