etching glass

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mchurchf
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Joined: Wed Jun 17, 2015 2:16 am
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etching glass

Post by mchurchf »

Does anyone know if there is a bit that will etch glass? I have some mirrors and would like to etch some patterns on them.

fixtureman
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Re: etching glass

Post by fixtureman »

I use a diamond drag bit for this or you could use a vinyl cutter to cut stencils and acid etch them

mark-s
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Re: etching glass

Post by mark-s »

I use a vinyl cutter and sand blast with 220 grit aluminum oxide.
This edge lit sign was done with the sand blast method.
mark-s
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MARK-S-GRFX  EDGE LIT SIGN WHITE 2.jpg

Jozua
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Re: etching glass

Post by Jozua »

Take a look at this video.
It seems that he is etching glass with a 60 Deg V bit.

If the link does not work, Google Glass etching CNC
Joz

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martin54
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Re: etching glass

Post by martin54 »

I have tried various methods, engraving bits, diamond drag bits, sand blasting as Mark has mentioned. Sand blasting is the best method I have tried, if they are mirrors are you planning on etching/engraving the glass or removing the reflective coating from the back ?
Not something I have tried myself but removing the coating might be worth investigating, you will need to make sure your table is very flat & your spindle/router is trammed properly :lol: :lol:

mchurchf
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Re: etching glass

Post by mchurchf »

Thanks guys. I have a long (4ft) thin mirror that I was going to try to etch the last supper and frame it. I'll give one of these ideas a shot and if it don't turn out right, lesson learned.

fixtureman
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Re: etching glass

Post by fixtureman »

I bought some cheap mirrors from Walmart and used a diamond drag to do my etching on.

GEG
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Re: etching glass

Post by GEG »

OK, this is probably gonna make me feel foolish, but I can't seem to figure out how to stop the spindle on my Axiom 8 pro plus using the aspire software. I would like to do some drag etching but for the life of me, I can't seem to stop the spindle from turning. Any suggestions?

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gkas
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Re: etching glass

Post by gkas »

GEG wrote:OK, this is probably gonna make me feel foolish, but I can't seem to figure out how to stop the spindle on my Axiom 8 pro plus using the aspire software. I would like to do some drag etching but for the life of me, I can't seem to stop the spindle from turning. Any suggestions?
You cannot stop it with the Aspire software. Axiom spindle speed cannot be software controlled. The easiest way to turn it off is to turn the Spindle Speed rotary that is on the front of the control box to '0'. It's the same rotary you use to increase/decrease the spindle speed. You can check it by hitting the SPINDLE button on the hand controller. I do this when running a drag bit or drag knife.

dmthomson
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Re: etching glass

Post by dmthomson »

gkas wrote:
GEG wrote:OK, this is probably gonna make me feel foolish, but I can't seem to figure out how to stop the spindle on my Axiom 8 pro plus using the aspire software. I would like to do some drag etching but for the life of me, I can't seem to stop the spindle from turning. Any suggestions?
You cannot stop it with the Aspire software. Axiom spindle speed cannot be software controlled. The easiest way to turn it off is to turn the Spindle Speed rotary that is on the front of the control box to '0'. It's the same rotary you use to increase/decrease the spindle speed. You can check it by hitting the SPINDLE button on the hand controller. I do this when running a drag bit or drag knife.
You can also edit the output file from Aspire, and comment out the line that starts your spindle. Do this all the time.
Don
Diamond Lake Custom Woodworks, LLC
http://www.dlwoodworks.com

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