What are the techniques required for engraving coated pens?
Antares offers four cutting tool options for engraving epoxy-coated pens. The first is a rotary engraving cutter with an included angle of 30° and a tip width of .005"-.010" depending on the letter height and font used. While this tool is a bit fragile, it provides the sharpest, most defined cut.
The second option would be a pyramid cutter which is a three-sided pyramid shaped rotary cutter which offers similar cutting characteristics to a standard cutter, but is considerably stronger.
The third rotary tool option is a faceted diamond tool that looks and performs much like a burnisher and produces a good, clean cut.
The last option is a non-rotating diamond graver with an included angle of 90°. While this is the easiest method of engraving pens, it does not produce the clean, well-defined cuts as do the rotary tools.
The most important aspect of engraving pens is the set-up. Since you will be engraving on a curved surface, it is critical that the vertical center of the engraving falls exactly on the horizontal center of the pen barrel. If you are above or below center, the engraved characters will have thicker or thinner stroke widths from top to bottom.
