etching brass plates - small brass name plates

This is the way I etched the brass plate as a decorative board for the laptop lid.
I also stuck these in front of my notebook and sketchbook as gifts for my friends.
My approach draws heavily on this guidance and this site, so I am grateful for the excellent work done by the respective authors.
There are a lot of different ways to do this, but when I was working on it, there were not many full tutorials, so I thought it might still be useful for some.
But if you are interested, be sure to search the internet and you will find a lot of information about toner transfer and etching --
Some are good, some are bad, some are just simple and inexplicable.
The art I use is * xx's "Tribal Eagle"trigrhappy-
Xx, license.
You need: yellow copper plate (
I got mine from eBay.
Prepare artworkLaser printer and laser OHP acetate (
Or do what I do and have a print shop copy it to acetate for you)
Permanent OHP mark (
It is useful to touch the mask before etching)Insulating (PVC)tape (
Woolworths/Robert 30dyas or hardware store)Masking tape (ditto)ScissorsNon-
Acetone (metal) kitchen towels)optional -but useful.
Nail Polish detergent is mainly acetone, and the effect is very good)(Hydrated)
Iron Chloride Crystals (Maplin)
Wet, dry paper (
Hardware stores in Wilkinson)
Sand blocks of some form (
I just used a small piece of wood that I lay near)
Cheap Tupperware (
You can't reuse it for food! )Rubber gloves (
Absolutely necessary)Goggles (
If you're not stupid
Don't risk vision for things like this! )Dust mask (
If you are careful, draw outdoors, this is optional
Not many paintings involved)Spray paint (
I used black enamel satin.
Complete the things of Wilkinson)
The first thing is to get you (Black and White)
Prepare and print the artwork on OHP acetate in the right size.
This can be done directly by a laser printer, or indirectly by printing on plain paper and then copying on acetate fiber.
The toner transfer process does reflect the image effectively, though, so if you have text, make sure to mirror the image before printing.
The wise thing to say, though: this has to be done with a laser printer or copier, not an inkjet printer!
Only Toner will shield the brass area we don't want to shield-ink won't work.
Remember that any black area will be masked instead of etched and will eventually become Brass
Colored, and any white area is etched, eventually turning black on the finished board.
Cut the plate to the right size and shape and finish the edge-
It is now easier to do this than after etching.
But the most important thing is to clean the dishes!
Scrub the front of the plate with a kitchen broom until it shines (
But no need to polish)
No stains and dirt.
Then, clean the surface thoroughly with a kitchen towel stained with acetone to remove any oil or grease.
Try not to touch the face of the plate now-
The cleaner the plate is, the better the toner will be transferred later. Mind out here -
Acetone is extremely flammable.
If you have anything on your hand, it will dry your skin, so use some moisturizer later.
Align the plate with the artwork on the OHP film and paste it carefully using masking tape.
Make sure the tape is only on one side of the brass plate as this will make it easier to remove the film later.
Also, make sure the tape is tight, otherwise the artwork will move and you will transfer the toner in the wrong place.
Place a brass/acetate sandwich on the insulated surface (
I used some scrap cardboard)
Heat the iron.
You want the iron to be as hot as possible, don't steam!
Starting with brass-
Up side, press on the back of the metal with hot iron.
This will warm up the brass and help melt the toner.
After about 20 seconds, flip the brass/acetate fiber without touching the brass, which will be very hot.
Place a piece of waste paper on the acetate fiber and press it on the brass again (
This time through paper and acetate)
Keep the iron running with the iron.
Be careful not to melt acetate.
The actual toner transfer happened very quickly and I found that there was very little heating in this way --
Follow 5-10 seconds.
Take the iron away and immediately carefully peel the acetate back --
This must be done while the brass and toner are still hot (
This is different from the way you use paper transfer).
If you let Toner cool first, it will be taken away with acetate instead of staying on brass.
You'll also find that the adhesive on the concealer tape melts with heat, so it's easier to peel off when the brass gets hot.
Don't burn yourself, though!
This is the time to check if you are satisfied with the toner transfer.
If you mess up and need to start over, acetone will easily dissolve the toner on the plate and you can try again (
Fresh OHP acetate, though).
If the toner layer is a bit thin, you can align another printed acetate sheet with what you have already partially
Coat brass and try the toner transfer step again.
This is one of the main benefits of using OHP movies, not other options for what people call work (e. g.
Magazine paper, inkjet glossy paper, press 'n peel toner transfer paper, etc. ).
Make sure that the brass plate does not have melted acetate, which can happen if you heat too much acetate.
If you are satisfied with it, cover the back, side, border with insulating tape (
If you want it)
And any other large area you don't want to etching.
Touch any little mask on the toner that looks slightly thinner with a permanent OHP mark. Time to etch!
Wear your rubber gloves and goggles now!
Make an iron chloride solution based on the back of the package in your Tupperware product and immerse your plate in the solution.
Etching works faster if heated
I think the bag recommends 40-50 degrees C.
I put Tupperware with etching solution in a larger base half
Achieve this with hot water.
It will work at room temperature, but it will take longer.
However, I found it more important to stir the solution during etching.
This ensures a fresh supply of etching agents on the tablet and will greatly speed up the etching.
I just wear gloves and pick up the plate every 10 minutes-
15 minutes, use it to rotate the solution before putting the plate down and leaving again. Time-
But it works well and has simple benefits.
It took about 3 hours for my etching until I decided to finish it.
You can monitor the slight feeling of progress, corrosion etching of the surface (gloved)fingers.
You may not see any depth until the etching is close to completion.
Please keep an eye on the mask, however, as it will eventually start to fall off
When this happens, you definitely need to remove the plate because you will start etching where you don't want.
Iron Chloride is not a very good thing, so do it outdoors and don't apply it to your skin.
Don't breathe smoke, be careful-
It stain everything indelible.
No, we're not done yet.
But this is a photo of the plate that was taken out of the etchant tub.
When you are satisfied with your plate, remove it from the etching agent and rinse it thoroughly with water.
You will see verdigris covered on my plate
This didn't happen on the first two plates I made, but it happened on this plate.
I don't know why. . . First thing -don't bother!
You can keep the etching symbol for your next plate (
As the solution becomes weaker, it will gradually take longer for the etching stereotype). Second thing -
Do this responsibly when you do need to deal with it.
Don't put it in the sewer!
Iron Chloride is corrosive to many metals, but more importantly, it now contains dissolved copper that is quite harmful to wildlife.
What you need to do is neutralize the solution in alkali (
Something like washing soda)
It will precipitate Copper into a solid.
You can then dilute the liquid with a lot of water and put it in the drain as long as you filter/remove the solid copper and handle it safely --
Your committee will suggest how you can do this best.
It's time to finish it!
The name of the game here is clean and dry.
Grab your spray paint and shake and mix.
Before you are satisfied with your technology, do some tests sprayed in old newspapers-
Remember, the light is even bigger than the objects and thin coats sprayed.
Once you're happy, stick the plate down and paint it!
I sprayed my paint with three layers of light paint to make it dry between each layer of paint.
Remember to spray from different angles to make sure to capture all the edges of the etching stereotype.
Make sure the paint is completely dry before proceeding
If you are as impatient as I am, use a hair dryer!
Remove all the tape from the edges and back and you may find that it leaves all sorts of garbage.
At this point I will clean this up carefully by gently scrubbing.
Rinse the dishes and dry them with some kitchen towels.
It's almost now.
Pick up your wet paper and dry paper and wrap it on your sand (
The block is there to keep the paper flat)
Get the sand off the surface of the plate.
This will be exposed to brass in any area without etching.
Don't worry about the way it scratches the paint surface
It gives it a good fake. aged look.
Once you have cleaned the brass of all the unetched areas, add a little water to the plate (
This makes wet and dry actually a finer grinding material)
Scrub the plate with small circles to make sure it's done well.
If the paint is scratched uneven, then carefully use the paper without sand in the unscratched area and even scrape it off.
When you are satisfied with the finish, rinse the plate and dry it.
Don't forget that if you screw up this stage completely, everything will not be lost --
Clean the plate, pray again, and try again! Final step -glue it on!
I used strong glue because it is very good at bonding the mix material (
Metal to plastic in this case)
And can be removed with proper solvent.
I suggest using masking tape as before, let you align the plate first and flip it so you can apply the strong glue and then flip it and stick it to the position correctly
How fast is the strong glue!