Engraving Fill In

I know this has been discussed many times here, but i just saw this over at another forum and thought it was a good idea and relevant to this place:

http://electro-music.com/forum/topic-19065.html

looks good and you can get pretty custom with it. Not a bad idea especially for those of us that do our own CNC engravings and have to use dark anodize so the bare engraved aluminum shows up.

thought i would share what others have found,
Ryan

Hiya Ryan,

Got a catalog in work, of all engraving materials, and there are a few methods you can use.

the 'fill in' type, crayon / paint, or there's some type of acid, that will only 'burn' the engraved surface, i think it's called blacking acid. don't know all the details, but I can have a look for you, when I go in on thursday.

Steve

My local store has these... They're not too hard to find..

Keef

Thank you man!

That looks a nice!
And I had no idea, now I do.

Antique Electronic Supply http://www.tubesandmore.com sells black, gold, red and white filler. $2.50 - $3.95 ea. Search for "lacquer stik".

What type of paint should one look for? Oil-based? Maybe that hobby paint they use to paint plastic modells?

[quote author="ChrioN"]What type of paint should one look for? Oil-based? Maybe that hobby paint they use to paint plastic modells?[/quote]

As far as I know... these plastic model laqueres are working good.

The typical colour used by engravers is a combination of Xylol and Isomeren or nitro laquer. It will dry in half an hour.

The frontpanelexpress guys are using thinned car laquer as far as I know.
It lasts much longer until the laquer is dried out completely. And after removing the needless laquer they use something which makes the colour filling looks very shiny. I don't know exactly what it is - it sounds something like "lipa" or "dipa" or so?

I tried the nitro laquer and it works quiet good:


But I don't like these wax pens.

Frank.

[quote author="nrgrecording"]
I tried the nitro laquer and it works quiet good:

But I don't like these wax pens.
Frank.[/quote]

hi frank,
when you say wax pens do you mean the lacquer sticks that antique audio is selling?
can you tell the method of applying the nitro laquer to the front panel engravings? do you add a clear coat over the entire front panel after all the in-fills are done?
cheers,
grant

Hi grant,

yes I have the "Laquer-Stik" from LA-CO Industries, inc. made in U S A. They're ok and they work - but its not the same quality tha the frontpanelexpress fill in.
The nitro laquer method is simple...
You can use a injection or a paint-brush to get the laquer into the engraving. Its better when you use as much laquer as you really need because you have to wipe it away. You can use a scraper or a piece of plastic to wipe the excessive laquer away. Let it dry... It depends on the used laquer of course... so you have to let it dry between 30 minutes and 2 hours. That nitro thing dries fast... 30 minutes.
In the end you can use nitro thinner or ethyl alcohol, spirit, grain alcohol or spririt of wine.. whatever it is called in english.
Works good but its time consuming. At least in the beginning. :razz:
Isn't someone living near seattle? Maybe somone can ask the guys at frontpanelexpress about what and how they're doing it. Maybe its possible to have a sightseeing at fpe?
:wink:

thanks for the info frank! much appreciated.
i'm going to research nitro cellulose laquers now. i know they are used extensively as a high end finish on guitars and such, but never looked at its application.
thanks again!
-grant

[quote author="dissonantstring"] i know they are used extensively as a high end finish on guitars and such,[/quote]

Ah, yes. Heard that before, too. I found several shops with probably the same can and a different labeling. You could try gravograph.
http://www.gravograph.com/usa/
http://www.gravograph.com/English/Engraving%20Products/pdf/engraving_accessories.pdf

They have Gravolaque (polyurethane paint) and Nitrolaque.

Mine have a different label, but they're the same size and also have a plate on top which shows the colour...

Theres a thing called Aluoxide. If you have a anodized aluminium panel you can put it into the engravings and it turns black. (because the surface is at the engravings isn't anodized anymore and so it will oxidize.

Sorry Old Boy,

Forgot to mention the ' blacking ' acid, it 'burns' the engraved part of the panel only, Good stuff for metal panels. I would put a pic up, but my cameras not right !

Steve :thumb:

I'll get down to fill in as soon as I recieve my engraved panels.
My panels are brushed. Won't the fill in color get down in the tiny cracks in the "brushing" of the aluminum?
That would make it impossible to wipe of.

[quote author="ChrioN"]My panels are brushed. Won't the fill in color get down in the tiny cracks in the "brushing" of the aluminum?
That would make it impossible to wipe of.[/quote]

If the engraving/brushing is less than 0,2mm you can easily wipe out the colour. Typical engravings for colour infills are at least 0,2mm.
The frontpanelexpress engravings are 0,2mm deep (with 0,2mm graver) all other tools are 0,4mm deep.

Frank.