Brass Trophy Plates

[Steve Clarkson]

So I was given a little 3 1/4"x 7/8" standard brass trophy plate and asked to engrave it. I did, and it engraved deeply enough......but there's no contrast. Do I fill it with black paint of some sort so you can SEE it?

[Gary Hair]

How about an oxidizer? Paint fill is nice but oxidizer works wonders on brass and aluminum. Be careful that there are no scratches though, they'll turn black also.

Gary

Edit: I just reread your post - do you have a rotary engraver or just a laser? If just a laser, how did you get any depth in brass?

[Mike Null]

My question too.

[Steve Clarkson]

It must not be 100% brass......I was hoping it would have been a laser engravable plate. They bought a clock from JDS or some other vendor and it came with a brass-looking plate.

The mark is crisp and clear.......if you hold it at the right angle! It's definitely deep enough to color fill, I'm just not sure if it would stick.

Where would I get an oxidizer?

[Joe Boiman]

How about making your own "brass" look alike from laserable plastic? Just a thought

[Steve Clarkson]

Good idea Joe.....thanks!

[Mike DeRegnaucourt]

Hi Steve,

I'm surprised you were able to deeply engrave into brass or whatever metal it was. I'd love to see a picture and know the settings you used.

[Steve Clarkson]

It can't be real brass because I used 100s and 30p to start....it made a mark, so I hit it three more times, but it didn't add any contrast. I'll see if I can gat a picture.

[Steve Clarkson]

OK......here is the picture under a light at an angle.......you can see it very well......the second picture is straight on......yes, it's very shiny!!! The second picture is kinda freaky, but how else could I show that you can't see it when you look right at it?

[Mike Null]

Steve

Nice first picture. Looks like you lasered through the lacquer. You might be able to oxidize it. Get that from JDS.

On second thought, I don't think you've removed the lacquer. Forget oxidizing.

The second picture wins the grand prize though as the worst picture ever taken of an engraved object.:D

[Steve Clarkson]

The second picture wins the grand prize though as the worst picture ever taken of an engraved object.:D

THANKS!!!! LOL!!!!

So there's nothing I can really do?

[Phyllis Williams]

Hey Steve,
that turned out nice...for brass...we dont use the plates that come with the clocks from JDS...we us satin brass alumamark...that material turns a nice black when lasered....just a thought...

[Steve Clarkson]

Thanks for the idea!

[James Rambo]

Steve I have done the same thing when I did not have any alumamark in house. I turned it over and use a little brasso (left over from the army time 25 years ago) and used cermark and it worked great.

[Garrett Nors]

Oxidation methods are best kept with rotary engravers.......you have to break the surface of the metal to get a crisp outcome...our CO2 lasers simply aren't powerful enough to cut through dense metals.

[Dan Hintz]

Steve,

I'm with Mike... it looks like you lasered through the lacquer. You have nothing to lose by putting a little oxidizer on it, and if it works you'll know for next time.

[Martin Reynolds]

How does Steve fix up this job?

Best I can think of is mask, etch solid letters, spray paint black. But the alignment will need to be perfect.

[Frank Corker]

...that looked pretty good, now stop biting your nails!

[Dean Rose]

Steve, I did a brass plate and used cermark on it. It turned out nice and black
and looked great on the brass. I will post a picture later when I get home.

[Bill Cunningham]

Yup.. and if the Cermark does not stick 100% to the brass, just keep your fingers away from it, and spray it with a coat or two of clear lacquer. The mark will stay black, and be protected from all but the most destructive handlers..

[Dean Rose]

Picture as promised. Brass plate engraved with Cermark.

[Terry Swift]

All,

Old thread I know; but I've been searching on oxidizing unlacquered brass (rotary engraved already thru the lacquer) and the easiest way to do it. I would get the oxidizer from JDS / Johnson Plastics; but all I need is a small bottle and shipping will quadruple the price. I Googled about doing it and some have mentioned using bluing agent like used on firearms or a phosphate dishwash soap (which doesn't seem to exist now). I even talked to a local engraving shop (mainly rotary folks) who said oxidizing is like shooting craps - you may win and you may not. :(:(:(:(

Where to now?

[Dee Gallo]

So what do you have to lose by color filling it with black paint, for instance? It's not usable as is, so why not? Just don't use a lacquer-based paint!

And I love the second photo - makes me feel so much better about my own photos! Thanks!