Etching Brass for a Journal // Custom Made Gift
Posted by
bruceaulrich
 
Joined Feb 3, '17 

Hi, everyone!
I’ve not posted in a while. Just too busy with all the things.

I made a custom gift a couple of months ago for my mom on Mother’s Day. She likes to journal and I found a nice one. Then, I wanted to customize it, so I picked up some sheet brass.

I made a video on my YouTube channel about the entire process:

I’ve read on here about people using Cermark on steel and some other metals, but an alternative is Dry Moly Lube, so I picked up a can of that. At the time I looked, one can of Cermark was $80 and I got this Dry Moly Lube for about $11.

After cleaning the brass with some 0000 steel wool, I put on 3 light coats of Dry Moly Lube, letting it dry in between. Then, it was to the Glowforge!

Here’s what it looked like right out of the Glowforge:

IMG_4183


IMG_4182


(I know…my alignment is slightly off. I’ll live with it.)

Then, I just used some high proof rubbing alcohol and a paper towel to rub off the excess marking spray. This worked really well, and actually gave the brass a cool patina.

I laid out where I wanted the little brass plate and attached it using some contact cement. When I was done, I had a really cool looking, brass-adorned journal. My mom loved it.

etching_brass


IMG_4185

IMG_4186

Thanks for checking out the project! Let me know what you think!


Hundreds of ideas brought to life
Explore projects.
High School Projects

Cantilever sewing box

Custom Laser Cut Wedding Invitation, Map/Directions Card, Menu, Signage and Decor

Beta Project: Name Wall Art