Hello,
Couple of questions here about hand stamps for a logo. I'm thinking about ordering one of the custom stamps Centaur sells, but I thought I'd get some opinions before I spend my meager funds. How are these stamps used? I don't have a die press or anything like that. Is that necessary? I talked to a smith once who used their stamp for his logo, and got a good imprint, but I forgot to ask him how he used it. Also, are there any problems with it weakening the blade or forming a stress riser?

Josh Blount
Wytheville, Virginia

Josh,
I have one of centaur forges handstamps. I normalize after rough grinding and stamp it then while the blade is hot (just before heattreating). I'm real happy with centaurs stamps, it seems to be holding up fine. I occasionally destroy a blade and have never had any problems associated with the stamp.
Hope this helped,
Jon

Hello Josh,
A hand stamp is used with a hammer, you don't need a press.
Some of us use a press or punch to stamp with, but they are designed to use with a hammer.
Strike only soft blades.
Blade does NOT have to be hot to work well.
Some people talk about the stress riser caused from a stamp, yet I have NEVER heard of a stamp causing a week spot.(never broke at the stamped place)
I have used mine for over 10 years now and still works great.
It has literally stamped thousands of blades.
Look up some of the old topics here on TT that talk about hand stamps, there is a wealth of info.

Thanks Jon and Gene for your input. Hopefully I'll get a chance to mail my design to Centaur this week and get a quote. I want to be careful that I don't get something too complicated that will look muddled. Anyway, thanks for your response.

Josh Blount

Just remember that the more you want to put in your stamp, the harder you will have to hit it.
The simplest design is the easiest to stamp.
I have three.
The small one, I can just tap and get a good print.
The medium sized one takes a whole lot more "whack" to get a good print.
The large one takes a bomb going off to get it deep enough.

The size and the surface area are critical to the amount of force you have to exert to get them to print.

The one I use most has a 1/4"X1/4" face.