Question: A question for the experts.

[Mosfet70]

I have watched a lot of engraving videos and its quite obvious why you need a vice that spins on an axis for doing scroll work but does anyone here supply a training video on how to properly do scroll work on say a large sheet of copper or steel? Its not something thats easily spin able and im looking to learn the best technique for stopping and restarting a scroll. You guys are awesome btw thanks in advance.

 

[monk]

in the tips section there may be ideas on making larger turntables. this sort of thing can be cobbled together from stuff you may already have on hand.

 

[Mosfet70]

Ok awesome much apreciated.

 

[AllenClapp]

Mike Dubber has some videos on YouTube showing how he holds and engraves large platters.

 

[Mosfet70]

Mike Dubber has some videos on YouTube showing how he holds and engraves large platters.

Thank you Mike much appreciated sir!

 

[JJ Roberts]

When engraving 4''x 6'' copper plates for etching I work off a sand bag or you can hot glue the plate to a block of wood. J.J.

 

[Mosfet70]

Hmmmm havent thought of a sand bag thats a great idea i will be working with a substantially larger plate though more like 2ft by 3ft

 

[Mosfet70]

Hmmmm havent thought of a sand bag thats a great idea i will be working with a substantially larger plate though more like 2ft by 3

 

[dhall]

The unknown for the commenters is the scale of detail you're proposing/anticipating, and therein lies clues to a solution. Unlike painting on a canvas, for example, where the use of an easel is common, and might not be inappropriate, yet the need to rotate the plate, and its weight, means some sort of adjustable, reinforced rotating axial support. Without something like this, I envision a lot of back aches stemming from stooping over an oversize plate, of which it will be difficult to reach the central areas. The finer the details, the longer you'll be in a truly uncomfortable position. For something long and slender, like the barrel of a gun, it's inconvenient to walk around/rotate the piece, but manageable. Long and wide is going to be very difficult to maintain the flow of the curves you'll likely be cutting, but again, we don't know the design or its scale.
A number of the hammer and chisel engravers advocate standing up and walking around the piece as the need arises and keeping the work stationary. Again, even standing and trying to reach into the center of an horizontal 2'x3' work surface is not going to leave you in a comfortable position. Given the size, again without knowing the detail/scale involved, I can imagine spending a number of days or longer working on a project such as this,
From your original post, I think it's safe to assume you've never engraved before. I know everyone who has read your post wishes you well on the project, and I'm fairly sure they/we all hope you put in some solid practice before you take on such a challenging project as this seems to be. We want you to end up with something of which you can be proud, and the experienced among us know what a large challenge you have in front of you.

Best regards,
Doug

 

[Mosfet70]

Very wise words sir and yes i do plan on getting in some serious practice beforehand of course. I have given a lot of thought to how i would tackle such a project and your post has reinforced my decision thank you for that. I think the best way even though it will be challenging is to mount the project vertically to a spinning axis on the wall utilizing a large turntable and some rather powerful neodymium magnets. My background is in board level electronic repair and design so im very used to working with extremely small objects and fine motor skills to manipulate them under a magnification. I have friends who should be able to CNC the parts i need to build such an apparatus once i am ready. I thank you very much sir for the very thoughtful response and i am sure at some point my intention, emotion and thought will prove me successful. Thank you again sir.

Best Regards.