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TimBakerFX — Acid cutting, etching File
Published: 2008-09-03 19:50:16 +0000 UTC; Views: 4077; Favourites: 26; Downloads: 88
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Description
Several people have asked about the etching I have on my metal work. It's mostly done with acid etching and acid cutting. First, you draw the object, then on another layer draw the etching detail (I use Freehand or Illustrator). You have to print out one copy that gets photo-transfered to the front and one for the back of each sheet of metal you want to cut or etch. One file is only the outlines, and the other is the outlines plus the inside detail for etching. When these are registered and the images put on the metal, they can be run thru an acid bath and the outlines will cut all the way thru and the detail on only one side with only etch halfway thru. I hate to waste metal so I PACK as many objects onto each sheet design as I can
here is a small piece of one of 12 sheets I've done so far for my book project. If anyone wants to try acid etching, i'd be glad to give you more info
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Comments: 53
Thanks, yeah, I've used all kinds of agents to texture and color metals in my work... now a days tho, I usually use paint, I know it's not as nifty but I figure my job is making fake things anyway so why not
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Dear gods. *tilts head sideways* How many separate patterns have you stuffed on that one poor sheet? I can't even tell. The knotwork pieces are my favorites.
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they charged per sheet, not per piece, so I didn't leave one millimeter unused
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i can imagin this as some kind of alien hieroglyphs telling some story of war as there seems to be alot of spear heads, axe blades and swords but also leaves, keys and the batman symbol 
+fav
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It actualy is a working language... cause I'm that much of a geek hehe
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wow! the mind boggles at such intricacy! wonderful!!!
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Thanks 
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i hate the finer details myself, they make my head spin, and my eye go all twitchy! 
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I know, it seems like of OCD but i like of like that kind of work sometimes, I get lost in it, time goes away and I get all... zen hehe
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I too would love to see a tutorial on this. I can't wait to see what you come up with.
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I'll try and get some info up as soon as I can
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o_o That's.... pretty amazing. Killer designs.
8D Hey, it's like a texture map for a 3D model! It's UV-space efficiency! Filled up to the nines. :3
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XD Well, well, now, two extra squares! You're just loaded, aren't you? ^_~
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Haha, I haven't drunk a thing ;-P
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XDDD That seems to be on several people's minds today. What's with that?
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no idea, guess it's the next back hehe
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That's amazing! I'd love to try acid etching and will gladly take more info or a tutorial if you have the time/know a good resource. It's sweet of you to offer!
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thanks, at the least, i'll get some links to some of the sites where i got my info
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I think it made me pretty dizzy at the time... too... much... detail! hehe
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That is really intricate...even without cutting all the metal patterns it makes for an interesting piece of art.
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thanks, I liked how they looked too, kind of frantic
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Sounds really interesting. And you really do not waste a space, hehe
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Haha, yep, I go a bit crazy drafting the shapes and fitting them together. waste not....
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A little confusing.. looks complicated.
But I bet it yields amazing work
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You can see parts from a lot of my projects in there
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Thank you, i thought it looked interesting
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Hahaha, now you know how I felt, that's a small part of just one of the sheets, my eyes were spinning!
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oooh... complicated-sounding process with VERY cool results!
I can't believe how much you pack onto one template! 
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I tried to get them laser cut first, they looked at the file and freaked out, said it would take a month to rip the file to the cutter LOL
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Good grief! And yes please!! A tutorial or walk through on the process would be fantastic, or even if you have no time to do a full run through perhaps you know of other sites you could provide links to?
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You got it
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Brilliant! Thanks in advance
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Nice! I was using copper sulfate and electro-etching. With reasonable results - tho I couldn't get a deep enough bite for my liking.
How are you registering? Pins through drilled holes?
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I made a line edge 24" X 24" so it matched up with the metal sheet. Also I registered the transparencies and taped one side and then just slid the metal in. Everything came out perfectly lined up ... thankfully ;-P
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do you mind sharing a breakdown of how you do the transfer?
I was heat transferring with a dry mount press - and that worked pretty well for small pieces, but was inconsistent once I got over a couple inches.
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I used a photo emulation transfer... much higher detail...i'll have to look up the chems tho, it's been awhile ;-P
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cool - if you get around to it. I can always actually do my own research.
I actually got really good detail. What I wasn't getting was consistent coverage over large areas. *shrug*
One of these days, I'll have time to really sort through it.
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yes i would like more info... like the one you sent me last time... those books looked stunning.
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I'll try and get a good tutorial together
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THAT would be brutaly appreciated!
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sounds complicated x: *rubs head* it's probably easier shown than said XD;;
but those designs looks pretty cool 8D
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