Whiskeymike
Well-known member
I have a 2’x2’ piece of mild steel i’m trying to deeply etch with a Celtic pattern and unfortunately have failed on the first two times. I’m using a 4x4 plastic tote, a large upright battery charger running 15a-30a, salt water and mild steel as the anode.
I first time I tried, I made a vinyl stencil, applied to the sheet metal and it was working, but within 15 minutes, the vinyl started peeling and was etching where it wasn’t supposed to.
Second time, I sanded down the piece so there was no etching, applied a vinyl stencil, then painted it with a rattlecan. Let it dry for a week, peeled the stencil, and set it up for etching.
When I started it up, I was getting brisk bubbles from the outer edges of the design, but not the center. So I laid a cotton towel over the piece and made a 2’x2’ sacrificial sheet out of scrap and laid it over the towel. Within a few minutes the water was covered in sludge and bubbles were coming out, so I assumed it was working perfectly.
However, when I checked it 30 minutes later, the unprotected parts were not etched, and the paint was bubbled up, all over.
I’m trying to figure out what I did wrong. Couple thoughts...
1. I made a new batch of salt water, I guess I could have not had enough salt. But would there be bubbles with low salt?
2. I just grabbed a can of paint from the leftovers box and it was a transparent blue with metallic flake in it. Didn’t pay attention when I did it, but could it have conducted the metal more than the bare metal and made the paint peel and not etch?
Any advice would be appreciated. Trial and error is driving me nuts.
I first time I tried, I made a vinyl stencil, applied to the sheet metal and it was working, but within 15 minutes, the vinyl started peeling and was etching where it wasn’t supposed to.
Second time, I sanded down the piece so there was no etching, applied a vinyl stencil, then painted it with a rattlecan. Let it dry for a week, peeled the stencil, and set it up for etching.
When I started it up, I was getting brisk bubbles from the outer edges of the design, but not the center. So I laid a cotton towel over the piece and made a 2’x2’ sacrificial sheet out of scrap and laid it over the towel. Within a few minutes the water was covered in sludge and bubbles were coming out, so I assumed it was working perfectly.
However, when I checked it 30 minutes later, the unprotected parts were not etched, and the paint was bubbled up, all over.
I’m trying to figure out what I did wrong. Couple thoughts...
1. I made a new batch of salt water, I guess I could have not had enough salt. But would there be bubbles with low salt?
2. I just grabbed a can of paint from the leftovers box and it was a transparent blue with metallic flake in it. Didn’t pay attention when I did it, but could it have conducted the metal more than the bare metal and made the paint peel and not etch?
Any advice would be appreciated. Trial and error is driving me nuts.