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How to enhance a mark?
- Thread starter RedFury
- Start date
Well since the patina or rust always seems to stick more in places you cannot readily get at with a wirebrush, I think (that's what I'd do) just about any acid would do...just put a few drops of vinegar on the area, and then, once it's done its job, you could gently (manually) scrub the surface with a brass wire brush. If you are concerned that the wires would still touch your new patina, just use some very fine sandpaper...this one won't be able to "reach" inside the depression.
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Don't have any experience, but I have axes and other tools that I would like to clearly identify. Seems like with all of the collectors and restorers of tools and machinery out there it it would be easy to find out how to read worn stampings. Maybe I just don't have the google sense to find more.
This might be a start:
Restoration of Stamp Marks on Steel Components
https://repository.abertay.ac.uk/js...sOnSteelComponents_Author_2008.pdf?sequence=3
Bob
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That is a forensic cool paper Bob.
Red Fury, are you talking about stamps on say, an axe head or tool?
If a mark is removed from use, corrosion, or excessive cleaning (as in polishing attempts) I don't know what a guy can do.
Moonw's suggestion is good as well.
If it is eaten at from corrosion but still visible and you are ambitious you might use something to loosen up the junk out of the stamp and get busy with a dental pick. What that "something" is I can't say.
Etching like on a saw blade or related tool is interesting as well. Here is a site where a little bluing brings up the mark:
http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthr...n-Old-Saw-%96-Advanced-Filing-and-Restoration
I personally don't know any tricks but it seems like a good question.
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Well if you look inside the letters you will see that they all seem to have more patina than the rest of the steel. They don't stand out more because they are quite small and surrounded by "noise" (more pitting, more patina here and there), random stuff. Short of cleaning up everything around it (a good question is how?) I don't know what more you could do.
Personally, I don't think the effort is worth it. I was thinking maybe the stamp was bigger and deeper.
I don't know what fine tool you could use to perfectly clean up all the pits surrounding the mark (world's smallest needle file? Joking.)...so as an alternative taking away a pretty thick layer of metal from around it to make thise pits smaller would be a quite laborious task. And when, in time, when the patina returns...it won't seem like time well spent either
.
Hope my ramblings makes sense.
Personally, I don't think the effort is worth it. I was thinking maybe the stamp was bigger and deeper.
I don't know what fine tool you could use to perfectly clean up all the pits surrounding the mark (world's smallest needle file? Joking.)...so as an alternative taking away a pretty thick layer of metal from around it to make thise pits smaller would be a quite laborious task. And when, in time, when the patina returns...it won't seem like time well spent either
.Hope my ramblings makes sense.
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That wooden boat saw restoration is incredible. I bet there is not a handful of men in United States who could do that. Thanks for the link. He brought up an etched mark amazingly but mine is a stamped mark in a heavily corroded blade. I have some vinegar on it now and just watching. This tool was left in a bucket with rain water for several years.
Of course with a very fine drill -if there's anything smaller than what I've ever used! - you could make at least some parts of the letters deeper. It would still require lots of patience.
Hmm, come to think about it...would sandblasting everything BUT the mark (you should be pretty inventive on how to protect it, a small magnet maybe??) yield good results, guys? Again, I've never done sandblasting, I have no idea how fine the grain of the sand is.
I think what you are looking at here is a jeweler's work, and I kind of doubt that any of their tools would be suitable to be used even on unhardened steel, vs the precious metals they are used for.
Hmm, come to think about it...would sandblasting everything BUT the mark (you should be pretty inventive on how to protect it, a small magnet maybe??) yield good results, guys? Again, I've never done sandblasting, I have no idea how fine the grain of the sand is.
I think what you are looking at here is a jeweler's work, and I kind of doubt that any of their tools would be suitable to be used even on unhardened steel, vs the precious metals they are used for.
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Maybe a Dremel tool with a couple those tiny cloth wheels and varying grits of jeweler's rouge/compound. You might be able to clean up the metal just around the edge of the stamped lettering to make them more "crisp". It might pull some of the rust out of the recesses of the stamp as well.
It will be noticeably cleaner than the rest of the tool but it also make it more visible.
A saturated wad of this magic elixir sitting directly on top of the lettering then a scrub with a tooth brush might loosen some of it up before the Dremel.
The cold bluing technique from the boat building site might also make it pop after you are all done.
"London Made" I think I see but is there other wording stamped into it running from the circular wording toward the edge?
*I don't know exactly what I am looking so running to the left in that picture.
Honestly, it looks pretty nice as is.
It will be noticeably cleaner than the rest of the tool but it also make it more visible.
A saturated wad of this magic elixir sitting directly on top of the lettering then a scrub with a tooth brush might loosen some of it up before the Dremel.
The cold bluing technique from the boat building site might also make it pop after you are all done.
"London Made" I think I see but is there other wording stamped into it running from the circular wording toward the edge?
*I don't know exactly what I am looking so running to the left in that picture.
Honestly, it looks pretty nice as is.
Nevrdull is a favorite of mine, but didn't think about it. It seems to have an affinity for red rust, not black, so it may work but with lots of elbow grease if that's what you have there, but it is so useful to have it around that you won't regret buying it even if it doesn't do anything (which I doubt). On top of cleaning up any kind gunk very well, it is the ultimate tinder on any trip . You could probably light it up even after pouring water on it.
. You could probably light it up even after pouring water on it.
Last edited:
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Forensics were my first thought .Some of that require destruction of the part to get across section of the metal to see changes in the steel microscopically.
From my experience in photographing damage to metal, angling the light across the surface is very useful .
As usual ,careless efforts may do more harm than good !
From my experience in photographing damage to metal, angling the light across the surface is very useful .
As usual ,careless efforts may do more harm than good !
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Did the vinegar etch and worked on it with an old toothbrush. Didn't gain anything. The C T to the left of the mark look so clear that my brain wants to make more letters to the left of them but It always turns out to be random rust pits. I think I'm done with it. Thanks for all your suggestions.
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Polish the area to about 1000 grit wet dry sand paper using a flat backing block I use 400gr, 800gr, and 1000g put a little cold gun bluing on the area then polish it out again with the 1000 grit permanate marker may work as well as other weak acid like your vinegar but the gun bluing is pretty fast. There is also a chemical method used in police forensic's for serial numbers I think for steel they use CuCl2 and HC acid and water but one still has to polish the area for this method. They also say you can heat the area to a orange glow with a touch and maybe able to recover more of the mark and photo it. Pick up a cheap 5x or 10x eye loupe would help also. I'm sure there is more letters to the left of the mark in your photo the eye loupe may be all you need. Then even if you can read the mark is there any documentation left from the untold numbers of manufactures that doted this great country of ours back in the day. I have an old broad hatchet head with an interesting mark on it I would love to get more info on but that doesn't seem to be in the cards.
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It looks like there are a couple lines of words stamped to the left of the LONDON MADE circle, perhaps with the word SON at the end of the line below the CT.
Here's a photo (found online) of another circular LONDON MADE stamp on a tool, but with a shield (not an asterisk/star) in the center of the circle. The stamps are said to indicate J.W. STUTTER and 3 SHOREDITCH (and a third line looks like it says MANUFACTURER). The line 3 SHOREDITCH was said to be part of the the maker's address.
Square_peg
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The prescribed etchant, Fry's Reagent, is composed of:
Methanol (methyl alcohol) ...... 20-25%
Cupric chloride, dihydrate ...... Approx. 5
Hydrochloric acid ..................... 35 - 40%
Water ......................................... Balance
Available from a lab in CA.
http://www.etchantstore.com/Frys-Reagent-250-mL-131.htm