At 04:19 PM 12/16/96 -0800, you wrote: >I have tried to look at the rec.crafts.metalworking newsgroup which came >highly recomended through this list. After scanning for prolonged periods >of time I get only 2 articles. Is anybody else having problems with this >group? If so, what is the explanation? At least one other newsgroup >behaves in a similar way ( rec.martial-arts). This behaviour seems >independent of the news server (I have tried two - news.netbistro.com and >news.bctel.ca with identical results). > > > Michael,
Sorry to hear you are having so much trouble with rec.crafts.metalworking. I tried and got over 1000 message headers. I posted a query (shown below) about engraving brass sundials and received the following replies. (I asked permission from the senders before posting here) ======== Newsgroups: rec.crafts.metalworking Subject: Re: Engraving brass sundials From: Regis Galbach <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: 14 Dec 1996 13:55:30 GMT [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: >Hi all, > >I've just discovered this newsgroup tonight. It seems to be >full of nice, knowledgeable people. It also seems to have a >good "signal to noise" ratio (good info vs. spam). > >This is the first time I've ever tried posting to a >newsgroup so I hope this works. > >My interest is sundials. Of late, I have been wanting to >make a brass sundial and engrave it by hand. Unfortunately, >I haven't had much success in finding out about the >different kinds of brass or which types of brass are most >suitable for hand engraving. I'm also hoping someone in >this newsgroup can provide me with a source of books, >cassettes or videos that teach engraving. Also, a supplier >of hand engraving tools would be nice to hear about as well. > >Thanks for taking time to read this and thanks especially >for any and all replys I may receive. > >Charles > > What size do you plan on making your sundial? I've seen cast but not machined sundials. You can find hand engraving tools in most of the jewelry tool/supply catalogs like Rio Grande, Indian Jewelry Supply(800)545-6540, or Swest(800)527-5057. Sorry I don't have the Rio Grand # right at hand. Good Luck, Regis ======== Newsgroups: rec.crafts.metalworking Subject: Re: Engraving brass sundials From: Mark Winlund <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: 15 Dec 1996 03:55:14 GMT Try Casmate and Enroute along with a CNC mill. Software by Scanvec. Does a marvelous job of 3d engraving any graphic image. Regards, Mark ======== Newsgroups: rec.crafts.metalworking Subject: Re: Engraving brass sundials From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: 14 Dec 1996 16:25:50 GMT Hey Fitch, this sounds like a job for CNC! :)> Sorry I can't help with engraving brass but as a young apprentice in the glassworks that made bottles I routinely engraved cast iron. We used 3/16 diameter High Speed Steel tool blanks. They were butt welded to 3/16 diameter drill rod making an overall length of about 10". We then ground the HSS to a chisel point or a vee point. Using a small hammer, about 6 or 8 oz we would tap our way around a line left by using typist's carbon paper and an original tracing. Another place to start for more info might be in books that relate to engraving guns. That is still done using the same style of chisels as we used. Costs an arm and a leg to buy the chisels, but perhaps buy a couple of different style and then copy them with the HSS and drill rod technique above. If you have no luck, I can sharpen a couple of pieces of 3/16 steel in the fashion of the chisels we used and mail them to you. You could use them as a visual guide to make your own out of HSS. Private email your address if you like. Peter ======== Newsgroups: rec.crafts.metalworking Subject: Re: Engraving brass sundials From: Dan F Evans <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Sat, 14 Dec 1996 13:03:10 -0700 Consider chemical etching for this too. This is done by coating the brass with a waterproof resist, and scraping it away where you want the pattern. The brass is then soaked in a ferric chloride solution to etch the pattern. If you use a photo resist, you can make reusable patterns that aren't limited by the constraint of engraving tools. It isn't as expensive as you might think. There are a few web sites that describe this. Here's one: http://phoenix.bath.ac.uk/~justinw/two_mm/etch/etch.html ======== Newsgroups: rec.crafts.metalworking Subject: Re: Engraving brass sundials From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (James P. Riser) Date: 15 Dec 1996 02:47:31 GMT Charles; The engraving tools are called "gravers". They come in a wide variety of shapes. Before choosing gravers you might want to read up a bit on the subject. Three of my books are: General Letter Engraving by Whelpley copyright 1890! (I picked this up at a used book store - I'm not really that old); The Jewelry Engravers Manual by R. Allen Hardy copyright 1976; and Engraving on Precious Metals by A. Brittain, S.Wolpert, and P. Morton copyright 1958. The gravers are purchased without handles and usually too long for practical use. Most engravers break off the extra length, then sharpen as needed. You would want to obtain a sharpening fixture. Many gravers are bent or curved to give hand clearance when engraving on flat objects like clock dials. They are used with wooden "mushroom" shaped handles - usually with a flat to keep from rolling off the bench. The last book especially details sharpening and mounting in handles, etc. I've got over 70 gravers; but you could probably do a brass clock dial with just a handfull - depending on how detailed you wanted to be. Many production engravers use a GraverMaster or GraverMax as the motive force. Both are foot controlled miniature pneumatic hammers which chuck the gravers. Since I live in Tucson home of the annual Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, I am able to see vendors of such goodies every February. I do know that Rio Grande in Albq. New Mexico will have everything you need - including the brass probably. Good luck and I hope this helps. Jim > -- James P. Riser Home page: http://www.azstarnet.com/~jriser ======== Newsgroups: rec.crafts.metalworking Subject: Re: Engraving brass sundials From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (darylb) Date: 16 Dec 1996 19:25:02 GMT You could also try the photochemical route. I made an 18" sundial that was very complex and it came out good. There were a few flaws but that was more from handling a 3/8" thick 19"dia plate (heavy) and a corresponding 1/2" thick gnomen. The basic process you make your artwork, coat your piece and dry it under red light, expose it (through your artwork) with UV, develope it, dry it, etch it, paint it then sand/polish it - paint remains in etched lines, sands off everywhere else. Hand engraving is authentic and a *very* nice skill to have but it is a lot of work too. In terms of the brass to use I don't think it matters in terms of engraving, even in etching it shouldn't make a difference. My plate was standard brass and my gnomen was navel brass (visually identical) and both etched equally well/easily. The naval brass was a bugger to machine apparently though (gummy if I remember right). My gnomen had extensive machining however. Cheers Daryl -- - Clouds are high flying fogs. - ³...ethidium bromide is a potent mutagen and carcinogen, and the Merck index lists it as having a somewhat bitter taste² - All waste ultimately becomes food. One source for engraving tools and instructional material is Brownell's Inc. They are primarily a supplier of tools and materials to the gunsmithing trade, but they have a lot of unusual tools besides the aforementioned engraving materials. They also supply a very good book called The Art of Engraving by James Meek. Step-by-step discussion of materials and techniques. This skill is a lot like wood carving, simple to describe but it takes a lot of practice. There are also some good books (reprints) from Lindsay Publishing. CNC stands for Computer Numerical Control. It is the computer control of positioning and movement of machine tools, and has found application on just about every genre of machine tool. Early numerical control was done with perforated punch tape, sort of like the ancient Jaquard looms for lace making. Nowadays, the computer does the calculating and motion control, interfacing with stepper motors and position encoders. If you need specific addresses for the above mentioned suppliers, let me know. I don't have that info in front of me now, and coffee break is almost over :] I think it can be found in the rec.arts.metalworking FAQ. **************************************** * Sundials and The Author * * http://www.geocities.com/athens/1012 * ****************************************
