Electro-Etching Brass Plaques
Here’s an easy method for etching metal with electricity. I wanted to make some brass plaques to commemorate my brother, who passed away recently. Other methods use toxic etchant chemicals, but this method uses salt water. Both methods have pros and cons, but I prefer the electric method because it’s safer and the cleanup is more straightforward.



Supplies:
- 12V 2A power supply
- Extra long wires
- Gator clip
- Brass to etch
- Steel to match approximate brass size
- Plastic container larger than your metal
- Warm water
- Salt
- Aquarium pump with tubing
- Aerator stone
- Laser printer and iron/laminator/heat press (for toner transfer method)
or Vinyl cutter and adhesive vinyl (for vinyl method) - Electrical tape
Thanks to Digi-Key for sponsoring this project! Check out this project on Maker.io.
I designed the artwork in Illustrator to mimic the Cafe Bustelo logo– really I only needed to make up an R and an N, since I could just trace the rest of the letters. Before you etch, you’ll need to get your artwork transferred onto the brass, masking out everything you don’t want to etch. There are a few methods for this step, as well. I first tried the toner transfer method of ironing on a laser print-out, then soaking off the paper in water, but I couldn’t get the temperature and pressure worked out well enough to successfully transfer my image. So instead I used my vinyl cutter to make a sticker of my design and stuck it to the brass.
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