How to engrave our blanks
Every line we stock is chosen because it marks cleanly and repeatably. This guide covers what each material does under a laser, sensible starting points, and the handling details that save you scrapped stock. It is a guide, not a guarantee, so it is worth testing before committing to a full run. This guide assumes a CO2 or fiber laser. We have not tested diode lasers on our finishes and cannot speak to how they perform.
Coated stainless flasks and drinkware
Our black, matt and coloured flasks and drinkware are coated stainless steel. A CO2 or fiber laser ablates the coating to reveal bright metal beneath, giving strong contrast at lower power than marking bare steel. Start low and work up. Too much power burns through into the base metal and leaves a rough, grey edge instead of a crisp line.
- Fine detail and small text: higher speed, lower power, add passes if needed rather than pushing power.
- Solid fills: reduce speed rather than maxing out power.
- Wipe the surface with isopropyl alcohol before marking. Fingerprints show up in the fill.
Bare stainless steel
Uncoated stainless needs a fiber laser for a permanent dark anneal, or a marking spray if you are running a CO2 machine. Annealing runs slower with higher pulse overlap. Test on the base of a piece before committing to a visible face.
Slate
Slate engraves to a pale, frosted grey and is very forgiving. Because it is a natural material, thickness and tone vary slightly from piece to piece. That is part of the look, but it means focusing per piece rather than assuming a fixed Z height across a batch. For photo engraving, use a lower resolution than you would on metal, since slate's natural grain fills in overly fine dithering.
Curved items, bottles, tumblers, tankards
Anything cylindrical needs a rotary attachment for wraparound artwork. For a single flat badge or monogram, you can often mark straight onto the curve if the artwork stays narrow. The wider it runs, the more it drifts out of focus, and the lighter the edges look. Set focus on the centre of the mark, not the edge of the item.
Boxed gift sets
Mark the item, not the box, unless the set is specifically sold for lid engraving. Remove the flask from its foam insert before marking so heat and fumes do not discolour it, and let the piece cool before repacking.
Test pieces and repeat jobs
Keep one marked sample of every line you buy from us, with your settings noted on it. When a reorder comes in months later, you are not re-deriving your parameters from scratch. It is worth picking up a spare piece alongside each production run purely as your reference sample.
Browse the catalog for current lines and prices, or open a trade account for discounted pricing.
If you need advice on which finish suits a particular job, ask. We would rather help you pick right than process a return.