square engraver issue

[45-110]

hello all:
amateur metal scratcher here.
was cutting a lock plate boarder today with the sq. graver. I find myself trying to look under the "curl" to see my line.  looking at the line from the front seems to only work for a very short distance before the curl blocks the view. once I get going on a smooth consistent cut I hate to stop midstream to remove the chip. is there such a thing as a chip breaker grind or such that would direct the shaving off to the side? maybe I missed a solution in J. Schippers book.
any thoughts appreciated.
kw

[David Rase]

That is why most experienced engravers will tell you to cut beside your line.  That way the line is always in clear view.
David

[deepcreekdale]

Never heard of a need for a solution to that. When I am engraving, a nice, clean continuous curl is what I want. I tend to look farther ahead of my border line instead of right at the graver point, I find that gives me  smoother, straighter and consistant line. Then again, I am an old motorcycle racer where we learn to look down the track instead of right in front of our wheel!. As you are just starting, just keep practicing, you will find you will get better. There is no magic sharpening technique, way of holding the graver, or body position that will transform you into an engraver. Only practice. You will get the hang of it.

[Kingsburyarms]

David is spot on - I sometimes make a few guide lines - as the one that is being cut should have a nice, crisp, sharp curl of metal over it... That does mean your gravers are sharp and if you practice, that curl will stay with you through the entire pass. Sounds like you are making progress, please post some images of what you care engraving - I'm sure we would enjoy them,

Jon

[jerrywh]

 There is a lot that Shipper's book don't tell you nor do any others for that matter. If you tilt your graver to one side slightly the chip will curl out of the way If you are cutting to the right side of the line tilt it slightly to the right and always look at the face of the graver. Sometimes you just have to stop and break off the chip.  When you stop to do that don't start off where you ended, Back up in the line some and slowly advance while raising the graver until it begins to cut. That way it will be cutting at the same level where you ended before.

[45-110]

thank you all for the tips. JerryWH I will try tipping the graver as you suggest, the rest is just practice.
best
kw

[smart dog]

Hi,
As always, Jerry's advice is excellent but be careful that you do not tilt the graver very much or your line will widen and if you cannot hold the tilt steady all through the cut, the width will be uneven. It also depends on the angle of your square graver. If is 90 degrees, you can tilt it over a little but the larger that angle, the less leeway you have.

dave 

[bama]

I do as deepcreekdale suggested, I look ahead of where I am cutting just a little and my graver seems to follow. I am not as an experienced engraver as Jerry but I have been engraving since 2007. When you first start engraving you have the tendency to want to make sure your graver is right on the line and you try to force it to stay in place. With practice you will start to relax, once you get to that point you will start to look out ahead of your work natualy. Just keep practicing it will get easier in time.

[45-110]

looking ahead of my line is a new concept for me to try. yes I have been focusing intensely on the line and "forcing" the engraver to it.  so more practice is due.
thanks all.
kw

[kutter]

Try a face angle that is less steep.
I don't know how to word it better, but if the face of the tool is say a 50* angle and you are getting the curl of the cut just twisting around and piling up in front of the face of the tool,,try sharpening the face of the graver down to 45*.
That gives you a less blunt of a face and the curl will run up the face and then off one side or the other w/o bunching up in front of you.
A lot can depend on the mat'l you are cutting, Some brass alloys just like to cut that way.

Another trick is to sharpen the face at a very slight angle from the normal '0' setting on your sharpening fixture.
Just a 1/2 degree or so slant giving the right side cutting edge the forward advantage if you are a right hand cutter works well. It deflects the  curl to the left of the face that way. The slight off angle doesn't make much difference in cutting on the left side edge of the V shaped point it's kept very slight.
It's the same idea as turning the tool slightly but it doesn't risk widening the lines as you don't have to keep track of the tool being turned over to the side as you cut.

[jerrywh]

  It is a bad idea for beginning engravers to use graver with a belly angle of more than 90°.  Why?
 Because beginning engravers have trouble maintaining the depth of the cut. With a wide belly on a graver any variation in depth is magnified in the width of the line and although the line may be straight it does not appear so.  You will have enough trouble wit ha 90° to begin with.