Hello All
Well Its time I started this Tutorial and I thought it best to practice a few of the techniques I have only read about.
One of the things I like about the inlaying it seems to be a very mechanical type process, I am hoping that if I follow the steps I should be able to achieve a good result.
For practice I thought I would inlay with copper wire on some scrap steel to reduce practice costs.
I obtained some flat mild steel which I cut into usable lengths, I didnt worry about the quality and it ended up taking about on hour just to get a very average finish on both sides, next time I will try to buy stock that is in much better condition, the condition also affected the inlay a bit so lesson one is to have your surface as well prepared as possible for good results, I dont know how I will go with the ruger as its finish is fairly poor, time will tell.
Next I drew down the wire into a few different sizes as I am unsure what wire to use for a certain width inlay, If there is a formula that members use I would love to hear back on the forum, I also annealed the wires and cleaned them up in a pickle solution ready to use.
Now the cutting part, AS most of the lettering will not be that wide, I cut a line with a lindsay detailing graver that gave a final width about .6mm wide. I then used a flat graver against the lines edge to undercut both sides of the line, I am unsure just how much undercutting is required, in the end I ran the graver along the cut until I could see the edge lifting just a little.
To punch the metal down I used a broken drill bit that I had filed down and roughened the end on some sand paper.
I have read where people use a copper or brass punch and wonder of the differences or advantages of this over a steel punch ???
As the line width was about .6mm I used a wire .6mm to inlay into the groove and with the classic quite quickly hammered the wire down
Next to level the surface. I have seen people use both flat gravers and OR just files, so half the line was leveled with a flat graver and the other half was just filed with a mini fine diamond file. The filing was much easier and quicker, but i guess you can only do this on certain surfaces.
I have seen that to contrast the inlay it can be useful to engrave a border line and ink it , I made the mistake of going to close to the copper and the graver ran off track, the wobbly line didnt help either, something to be careful of in future.
Now truth time, pull it apart, It did take some effort to dig out a end with a graver and there was a satisfying resistant when trying to pull the wire out,
Not a bad start, a bit rough on technique and finish but for a first try i just wanted to see if I understood some of the methods
Also learnt quite a bit, have to have a good surface, I will have to try different wire sizes for different width inlays, I will have to make up some finer flat gravers for the undercutting, and to be careful not to damage the opposite edge when doing this
I also have some questions like the right wire size for a line?, What punches are best, also is it better to punch the wire in with a hammer, ie in one go rather than using the classic, I worry about work hardening the metal before it gets under the undercut?? dont know if this could be a problem.
I also now worry about inlaying such small lettering, without a border as it doesn't stand out, no contrast, but i dont know if its possible to engrave a border around each letter as well. All things to work out as I practice before I attempt the real Deal.
Yours Paul