At 12:57 PM 12/14/99 +0100, Andrei Stefanescu wrote:
>I was very intrigued at the sight of sandblasted pebbles at an Xmas market
>in Munich. The pebbles - and also larger river stones - had all sorts of
>symbols and little high reliefs on them. One design was a salamander
>enclosing the stone - really good. I was told they were sandblasted over a
>template with a "secret" composition, which survives the process. The
>designs were very fine and neat, with absolutely sharp edges. A close look
>reveals that the template must be soft, because it looks like wrapped around
>the pebble, like a wet cloth.
Probably just standard sandblasting templates- thin rubber with an adhesive
backing. Monument firms do the layout on computer, then have a modified
plotter that uses a knife instead of a pen, it cuts the rubber. The choice
of nozzle and abrasive will control how sharp the edges are. Calling it a
"secret" composition is good marketing :)
____________________________________
Walter S. Arnold * walter"AT"stonecarver.com
Gallery: http://www.stonecarver.com
Gargoyle postcards: http://www.stonecarver.com/postcard.html
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