Making Stamps

I've made many stamps in the past for jobs I was doing. Most were small stamps and thus could be made from masonry or cut nails.  Recently I was in need of a large 'sun rise' stamp for a bracelet I was making for a friend. Not wanting to purchase one I decided to try making it. This one would require a half-inch wide steel blank.


All that is requires is a small vice, needle files, a good ruler and the blank. The end of the blank is painted. Using a scribe I will etch the pattern I want to file in the paint.

The blank mounted in the vise. Half of the pattern is already filed. Use good needle files. My first set was an economy set. I soon became frustrated with them and my work. It was only after purchasing a set of high quality files did I discover the ease in making stamps.

 The completed stamp.

This is what happens if the metal is not properly tempered after hardening. While testing the stamp on a piece of copper it broke. I got about ten hits with the hammer before it fractured. I'll weld it back together, grind the weld smooth then harden and temper it.

These are a simple crescent and circle.

This is how I make decorative buttons. Sterling scraps can be melted with a torch on a charcoal block. They form an almost perfect sphere with just enough of a flat on the bottom. I stamp them on an anvil using the stamp shown. The stamp was made from an old discarded twist drill. I ground the pattern using a small disc grinder.

This is the beginning of a deer hoof bracelet I am making for a friend. One of my stone dealers had the turquoise pair. I grabbed them the day I saw them. I made the 'deef hoof '  stamp from a masonry nail.