Etching damasteel

[MjaRings]

I purchased Damasteel material , and after etching, the material turned completely gray. Do you know what could have caused this? The solution was mixed according to manufacturer sheets in the correct ratio. I also tried solution with HCl(95) : HNO3 (5).. this way it was way better but not perfect.. the ring is still light but my expectations were different.. i wanted more darker… can you help me please ?

And it´s DS95X

[Frosty]

That's a beautiful ring. Did you polish the gray residue off the first attempt? Have you tried other echants? Plain strong coffee yields some dramatic patterns.

What are the steels in the ring? Alloy makes a BIG difference in contrast.

Frosty The Lucky.

[MjaRings]

Oh, thank you… After removing the gray residue, the ring was shiny again without any signs of the Damascus steel pattern. I tried many enchants, such as classic ferric chloride, hydrochloride acid alone, nitric acid, but without any results... either the surface was gray again or it did nothing at all. Coffee is a good idea, but I'm afraid it won't work on stainless Damascus steel.
The steels are 1.4404 (AISI 316L) and 1.4301 (AISI 304).
Would there be any problems with wearing rings made from different alloys? I mean, to prevent the skin from blackening due to higher carbon content in the steel...

[Frosty]

I wish I had some suggestions but I rarely etch and got over my patinas on copper alloys phase years ago. The problem with etching stainless steel is it's . . . highly stain resistant by being pretty chemically inert.

Maybe some of the bladesmiths know, I don't.

Other than getting char on you I've never heard of carbon staining skin or clothing. I think you're safe there.

Frosty The Lucky.

[Steve Sells]

HIgh carbon is a relative term,  for Damasteel High is only around 1%, as for etching, longer time gives more topography, but there wont be a lot of any lasting color in stainless

[MjaRings]

Oh okey, so it won't be possible to make the pattern darker on such stainless steel?

Edited July 3, 2024 by Mod30
Remove excessive quote.

[Steve Sells]

Nope and FYI there is no need to keep quoting the post that we all just read. I keep removing them, when you do need to quote, just quote the portion thats needed to understand  your comment

[MjaRings]

2 hours ago, Frosty said:

I wish I had some suggestions but I rarely etch

Never mind, thank you for replying anyway. I suspected it was chemically inert, but I didn't know it was to this extent. I discussed it with a well-known local knife maker, and unfortunately, they also have no experience with this type of steel.
Maybe I just misunderstood and thought it would discolor over time.

Oh i didnt know, sorry fot that :/ 

Edited July 3, 2024 by Mod30
Trim quote.

[Frosty]

It's a learning curve for the forum, stick around you'll get the hang of it. Steve isn't the grouch people think he is.

Do you have any of the damsteel (sp) left over? If so you can experiment without risking the ring. For example, have you tried temper colors? Maybe start with 400f in the kitchen oven and gradually increase it. Stop before reaching red heat! If you have some left over and aren't risking the ring go ahead and see what high temps do. Make sense?

Perhaps pack it in a dry material say bone meal or loose clay dampened with ammonia or perhaps chlorine (NEVER MIX CHLORINE AND AMMONIA the fumes are extremely toxic, deadly even!!) and heat it. Hmmmm, the voices in my head just whispered copper sulfate is a maybe. Or. . . .whatever.

I'd hate to do it with the finished ring as pure experimenting though, it'd be a shame to ruin it.

If you start experimenting this way be Very VERY careful! Heating active chemicals can be very dangerous and who knows how one might react with the clay or whatever. Do it outside and wear good PPE!

Frosty The Lucky.

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

2 hours ago, MjaRings said:

Would there be any problems with wearing rings made from different alloys?

Welcome from the Ozark Mountains.

I have read about some folks having an anaphylactic reaction with Nickle in jewelry, that is in constant contact with bare skin. 

I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sail’s.
Semper Paratus

 

[George N. M.]

I have a couple of thoughts.  First, because damasteel is 2 different stainless steels it is not going to etch as deeply as say a high carbon and low carbon layering.  So, you will get less topography in the pattern.  Second, because of the Chromium content of the stainless steels it is much harder to get a dark or colored patina on it.  That's why it is called "stsinless."  I have never tried for oxidation colors with stainless but I suspect they would be muted and lighter than on a steel without Chromium.

You might try a phosphoric acid based gun blue agent but, again, I suspect that the results would be minimal.

If you want a dark pattern for a ring or anything else I suggest that you use carbon steels without any Chromium in them.

BTW, my wedding ring is a Damascus steel pattern set in 22k gold on the inside and the edges.  I have been wearing it for 8 years and the topography is starting to wear down a bit.  It was made by a guy in Boulder, CO.

[Buzzkill]

It looks to me like your first pictures show a contrast of dull grey and a shiny silver color in the layers.  That's probably the best you are going to do.   If there is any variation in topography you may be able to restore that condition with some high grit sandpaper (around 3000 grit or so) on a flat surface and a lot of patience combined with elbow grease.  That would shine up the high spots and leave the low spots as dull grey. 

The only other thing I can think of that *might* work is using electro-chemical etching to darken the whole thing (if that will even work on stainless) and then sanding off the high spots.  Again, that requires at least a little change in topography between the two types of steel to be effective.