Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Federico · 2nd December 2004, 06:40 PM

Make sure when etching there is absolutely nothing on the blade. It should be raw steel contacting etchant. So no Ren wax.

Typically, if the blade is in good condition, you should not have to polish it at all before etching. Just clean it, degrease it, and go.

However, if for some reason it need polishing (lets say the steel grain was sealed because a previous owner had used a buffer on it, or the surface is too un-even for an etch to be applied), I would start with the same grit sandpaper as whatever blemish needs to be removed (eg. if someone had ground the blade with a 220 grit stone, and hence it was too uneven to etch, I would start with 220 grit paper). However, if its just sealed, the about 400-600 grit should be coarse enough to open the pores back up. The you will need to go through the grits till you get a nice even finish. I normally stop at 2500 grit. I do not recommend polishing the blade with a polishing agent, as some contain chemicals that will stick to the steel, and mess up the etch. Also, you are trying to open the grain of the steel, polishing with an agent may close them again.

Anyways, for all new blades that I get that lets say have been stored with bad owners (meaning they are in rough shape). I always clean the blade with acetone. This removes any old oil, cosmoline, dirt, etc... I also recommend washing wood and other natural materials with warm lightly soapy water, dont soak it, just lightly with a sponge. That gives a good base from which to decide what restoration work if any needs to be done.

2nd December 2004, 06:40 PM	#7
Federico Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Minneapolis, MN, USA Posts: 312	Make sure when etching there is absolutely nothing on the blade. It should be raw steel contacting etchant. So no Ren wax. Typically, if the blade is in good condition, you should not have to polish it at all before etching. Just clean it, degrease it, and go. However, if for some reason it need polishing (lets say the steel grain was sealed because a previous owner had used a buffer on it, or the surface is too un-even for an etch to be applied), I would start with the same grit sandpaper as whatever blemish needs to be removed (eg. if someone had ground the blade with a 220 grit stone, and hence it was too uneven to etch, I would start with 220 grit paper). However, if its just sealed, the about 400-600 grit should be coarse enough to open the pores back up. The you will need to go through the grits till you get a nice even finish. I normally stop at 2500 grit. I do not recommend polishing the blade with a polishing agent, as some contain chemicals that will stick to the steel, and mess up the etch. Also, you are trying to open the grain of the steel, polishing with an agent may close them again. Anyways, for all new blades that I get that lets say have been stored with bad owners (meaning they are in rough shape). I always clean the blade with acetone. This removes any old oil, cosmoline, dirt, etc... I also recommend washing wood and other natural materials with warm lightly soapy water, dont soak it, just lightly with a sponge. That gives a good base from which to decide what restoration work if any needs to be done.