Damasteel - Uncharted Waters

If you follow Kemner Design on Facebook, you may have seen the post that Gail put up about the special project that I was asked to take on.  A very good friend was looking for a wedding band that was custom sized to fit him so that he wouldn't lose it.  :)  I made the prototype out of aluminum and he was thrilled, but I wanted to do something special for him.  We were talking about metal choices, and I thought damasteel would be a good fit for him.  Gail and I looked at the available options and we decided on the dense twist.  

Here is where the story goes wrong.  I order the material not realizing that I did not get the one that is most often used for jewelry.  So here I am I have the ring cut and the etching is not going well.  Instead of the beautiful etch that I am expecting, I now a have a very dull and washed out looking ring.  Back to the drawing board I go.  I figured out that I had the wrong grade of material and I would never get the finish I was looking for with this piece of damasteel.  Online shopping cart here I come!  Fast track a couple of months, and I now have the right material and am ready to try again.  This time things go so much better (see the picture of the ring).  I now have a finished product that I am happy with and  that our friend and his wife love.

Why am I telling you all of this?  Well, I learned some things when making this ring, and I think that I am now read to try my hand at making a top from damasteel.  So while the lathe was set up for smaller sized materials, I made my first top in this new material.  The machining process for the damasteel single stack went well.  I am still playing around with the etching process so I can get the final finish that I am after that I think you will like.  If all goes well (cross your fingers), I should have pictures of my first damasteel spinning top in the next day or so.