Etching or engraving barrel?
- Thread starter 308BAR
- Start date
I am a bit puzzled by what you really want. If it is only to mark the caliber on the barrel, the most common method is to stamp it on using number stamps. If doing that, I would suggest securing a straight edge to the barrel, to keep everything in a straight line, and to stamp from last to first, if you are right handed. I hold the stamp in my left hand and by numbering in reverse, I can see the previous number / letter which allows me to space more accurately (note that I did not say accurately :>) )
cheers mooncoon
- Location
- Whitehorse, Yukon
Acid etching works well.
RC
RC
The best way is to get a stamp made up. The easiest is to use one of the crappy electric pencils from the dollar store.
I suspect what you want is somewhere in between.
Just a heads -up if you are looking at number stamps from PA or the like. They are not very accurately made, and most do not match up very well in height or location on the shank of the stamp, so using a straightedge to rest the stamp's shank upon, is not going to get you good results with any certainty. Do some test runs to get depth and spacing correct. Use shim stock or other thin flexible material to align the numbers along the edge of the actual number on the stamp.
The engraver at the mall may be able to mark it, but it'll look cheap and nasty. Depends what you want, I figure.
The knife makers have figured out how to electro-etch or acid etch their logos and such, pretty well. May suit your needs. Again with the practice run on some scrap.
Cheers
Trev
The best I have seen was a jig an old gunsmith friend of mine had made up. It was made from two flat bars 1/4" thick and 1/2" high, they had been welded with the appropriate gap in between to allow a fairly snug fit to the letter/number stamps, and then milled to a V on the barrel/bottom side. He would position this on the barrel where he wanted it and then tape it in place with electrical tape on either end. The number stamps were held nice and square for stamping and after each letter/number, he would place a stamp upside down to to get his spacing and keep going like that until it was done. He could also monitor his depth and get them all exactly the same even if some needed several taps, because he could remove the stamp and inspect and then replace it precisely to the same place everytime. Those of you who have done this know that a "W" for instance requires a lot more force than does a "1". He also did not use Cdn tire or PA stamps, his were a precision set, sorry don't remember the make, but they were like Starret or Butterfield. He did something else I've never seen another smith do, he placed a very thin piece of paper between his jig and the barrel, almost like cigarette paper so he would never marr the barrel either on blued or polished or SS. He was very much a perfectionist.
All you had to do was watch him do it once and you could see how slick and precise his little jig worked, and I doubt it took him more than 1/2 hour to make.
All you had to do was watch him do it once and you could see how slick and precise his little jig worked, and I doubt it took him more than 1/2 hour to make.
