Hello all,

 

I am forging 180 bottle openers for a client. He will be giving them to each of his clients as a Christmas gift this December. However, he really wanted the initials of his clients on each opener. Is it possible to do this? If so, where would I find the punches suitable for a job? 

 

By the way, I have never made 180 of anything... I am going to be so bored before I hit that 180 line. However, sometimes you have to take something you love and go through the boring parts in order to make it more exciting in the future. 

 

Let me know what you think!

 

 

Your Friendly Neighborhood Blacksmith-in-the-making 

 

Ryan

While an 'el cheapo import' set from Horrible Freight or Home Despot might work for a few dozen, for this many I would just get a real US made set from an industrial supply house like Grainger , Enco, Fastenal, etc. A good set will last a lifetime.

Lots of stamping kits available. You need to determine what height letters you want so that they "look right" on your piece and are not too large/small.

I use a couple different size stamp sets 1/8", and 1/4". If you look at the Show Me Your Bottle Openers thread I have a recent pic that shows the letter stamping I use. That last pic has both 1/4" and 1/8" characters in it.

Buy a good quality stamp set and it will last you a very long time. I bought the heavy duty ones from McMaster. It takes some practice to get freehand stamping looking decent. You can't hit all the letter characters with the same force, the letter "l" has much less surface area than a "B", so you have to go easy on the characters with less surface area otherwise they get too deep. This also depends if you're stamping hot or cold metal. I like stamping at a black heat.

Either make or buy a decent stamp holder that gives you good hold and control of the stamp. Not a pair of pliers. You'll be swearing at using pliers quickly.

Here's 1/8" numbers and letters:

Contact Stamp man of IFI pm or email him. He makes about anything you want in a punch.

Practice on a piece of similar scrap first to develop feel for your metal. Then only hit once on your opener so you don't get double  strikes. A piece of tape as a guide helps to keep your letters lined up.