Two Indian Knives for interest and/or comment

[Ian]

Miguel:

Apologies for jumping in here, but please do not use HCl. Others may have a better experience than I have, but I think HCl is dangerous to use on weapons. Hydrochloric acid (a.k.a. muriatic acid) in those concentrations is very corrosive and will etch carbon steel darkly. I have had no success with trying to bring out patterns consistently with more dilute solutions of HCl.

Vinegar is an excellent etchant but may take some time depending on the amount of acetic acid present. Vinegar's acidity will deteriorate with age as the acetic acid is converted to other compounds.

Ian.

[Miguel]

Hello Ian, thank you very much for your advice, much appreciated, most likely prevented a catastrophe, white vinegar it is then. I just purchased a new quantity so should be OK Thanks again
Miguel

[mariusgmioc]

Originally Posted by Miguel

Hello Ian, thank you very much for your advice, much appreciated, most likely prevented a catastrophe, white vinegar it is then. I just purchased a new quantity so should be OK Thanks again
Miguel

Hello Miguel,

White vinegar is not likely to work (but it is very good for cleaning the white deposits on the kitchen sink and shower).

You should use either Nital (around 4%) or Ferric Chloride (around 20%).

Diluted Perma Blue will also work but you need to employ the "reversed" process: etch the whole blade to uniform black, then gently wipe the excess blackening with cotton swabs and Pre Lim, until you get the right degree of etching to reveal the watering.

Also please note the surface to be etched should be polished to 2000-3000 grit.

For more details see the link below:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...=etching+wootz

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