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Old 07-20-2007, 10:43 AM
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Steve Lindsay Steve Lindsay is offline
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Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Kearney, NE
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Default Re: Lettering Engraving-Shaded line, need help.

Thank you Zernike for the engraved thanks!

The S logo for the flute I was cutting is .300" (7.6mm) high. Did you cut yours larger?
I'll cut the S later today or over the weekend and upload a pic.

I don't know of a perfect way of ending a wide flare cut completely abrupt so it is squared off without using an extra cut at the end. What you did with the triangle cut can work or cutting a line where it will end before hand and then throwing out the flare cut chip right there where it intersects is a way, but even then I don't think it is a perfect clean ending.

Watch the lettering portion of the flute video. First I'm going in with a flat graver without a heel to stab it in at the ends where it would be tough otherwise to have a nice squared off end. After that I go in with the wide V and cut the letter, and at the ends pop the chip out as it enters the stab cut. Before I started using a flat this way to square off ends, I was making a small cut at the ends with the wide V graver before hand. This works too, but I can get the ends deeper with the plunge/stab cut using a flat without a heel. The extra depth helps make it easier when I connect the stab cuts with the wide V. Again, though they still aren't perfect because we have a flat cut meeting a V cut or laid over V cut.

Because of the abrupt ends, block lettering doesn't lend itself to engraving with a V or laid over V. Script lettering is more fun and easier as long as there isn't a place in it that ends abrupt with a laid over cut, like in that S logo.

When taking several smaller cuts instead of one large one especially for these laid over cuts it is good to still take enough of a cut to get a pretty good continuous chip. If light skimming cuts are made the graver may or may not stay in the cut and when it doesn't the cut isn't as even and doesn't look perfect. So try taking the light cuts to make a wide one in two or three passes, but so that each cut is taking out a pretty good chip each time. Later as you get braver, just one big cut works too, but for ending the graver laid way over it might be easier in several passes.

Steve

PS.. I'm not sure I understand why your 120 is slipping on you. If the graver edge isn't sharp it will do this and you'll need to increase the depth to keep it from slipping like you mentioned. Something else that will make a graver slip, is if you are engraving on a thin plate that does not have backing behind it. If your practice plate is thin, make sure it is backed up with something so that it can not flex or vibrate from the impacts of the tool. Try hot glueing it down on a thicker piece of steel. Having the plate solid and ridged can make engraving much easier.
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