Getting Started - Equipment needed ????

[BOB_T]

I have no prior experience with engraving but, I would like to get into it .......

What do i need to purchase in order to do so ...........???


I see alot of people talk about a "Steve" person - Administrator i take it ??? Does he sell a certain type of engraver ???


How much is it , Is there a Link i can search in order to purchase a kit or the equipment needed.........???


I am looking to get into the art of engraving on gun parts (Finer detail) to car parts (not as fine with deeper grooves) ....

Thanks for any info , BOB_T

[Ray Cover]

Bob,

Yes Steve is the administrator of this forum but he is also the maker of the finest pneumatic engraving equipment available. To see Steve's line of tools click the "Airgraver.com" link above.

As far as getting started, I am going to copy and paste a reply I often send to folks who email me with this same question. It is a common enough question that I have a form letter for it.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Today there are basically three ways to learn to engrave.

1. Teach yourself
2. Apprentice under an accomplished established engraver
3. Take a class

1. Teach yourself

This is very do-able and many of todays accomplished engravers ended up learning by this route (myself included). 20-30 years ago the opportunities that are out there today just did not exist. There were no schools to speak of, no internet, very few books and engravers were a tight lipped bunch where were afraid to share info for fear that they would be training their competition. Most all of that has changed.

Now days most engravers have realized that the more people are exposed to engraving the more the market for it will grow. This has lead to many more books on the subject, training videos and dvds (Mine is available from Centercross videos), and engraving forums where folks share info (my two favorite are The Lindsay Engraving Forum and The Engravers Cafe )

There is a lot more to engraving than just pushing a chisel through metal. The learning curve is fairly high. Not necessarily because the information is hard to understand but because there is so much information and a large part of it is information that has to be experienced to really understand it.

Because of that, teaching yourself through trial and error is a long row to plow. It takes a long time for the average person to get good at engraving with this method.

2. Apprentice under and accomplished engraver.

This also is a do-able way to learn. The problem is finding an accomplished engraver in your area who is willing to take on an apprentice. Most of us who are experienced and good at engraving are busy making a living with our own work and spare time to teach another is very limited. Because of that, the apprentice spends much time in the shop doing grunt work rather than really learning the tricks of the trade. Usually when an apprentice learns a valuable technique it is from watching the master out of the corner of his eye while he is busy with polishing metal or removing background. There are those who will say,"You can really learn a lot from doing grunt work." You can learn from doing grunt work. You can learn how to do grunt work really well. However, advancing beyond that is very slow with this process.

3. Take a class

This will cost a little money but the time it will save you by chopping down the learning curve makes it worth while. When you are in a class with an instructor you are with someone who is being paid to teach you. He/She is not trying to teach you in between getting all of their own work done. You have the ability to ask questions and get hands on help. Concepts and techniques can be clarified on the spot saving you from having to do a lot of trial and error work to figure out what was really mean by what you read or saw on a video. You will learn much much faster this way. Plus it gives you a chance to work with tools and equipment before going out buying them. This saves you from buying stuff you really don't need.

Ray
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Steve also has a list of resources on this forum including a section about getting started on the cheap. Here is a link to that.

http://www.engravingforum.com/showthread.php?t=419

For the types of things you are wanting to I would recommend a class whether you take from me, Brian, Barry or Mike it will help you get ahead of the learning curve and save you a lot of frustration trying to figure it out on your own. I also would recomend getting a Palm Control airgraver, especially for the car parts. The portability of the airgraver and the lack of all the extra hoses is a real plus for large hard to handle parts.

Ray

[Finn La Rue]

Bob-T

Hi I took Ray Clovers class and it helps very much he covers lots of the basics in his class the next starter class he has Basic Engraving: April 21 - 25, 2008

I would look into it if your serious about learning
. he is in the state of Mo.
And its only 1 month away .if he still has an opening you should jump into it.

And Steve L engraver the PalmControl with Classic handpiece (full stroke adjustment is the way to go IMO.


you only need 1

[Dave London]

:smilie5: Good one Finn but I would change it to (THERE IS ONLY ONE) :whoo: Dave

[mckeenh]

Take a beginners class from one of the schools that use Steves tool, the other guys will pressure you to buy their tools, I know, I have taken four of their classes. they really put the pressure on and you can spend 5000.00 real quick with them.

Neil:yesnod:

[SVD]

To be fair, if Steve held classes he'd probably offer some good deals on his gear to the attendees.

But a class somewhere independent of a tool maker is much more likely to give you a balanced experience.

[Barry Lee Hands]

Yes, the Lindsay products are excellent and it is good to take a class or two.
Here is a link to the approved Lindsay Schools:
http://www.engravingschool.com/schools.htm

[rbaptiste]

You can see this thread http://www.engravingforum.com/showthread.php?t=1599