I am still not sure about lead and solder through a mask.
One method which I intend to try out in the near future is to mask as you do
and *electroplate* the letters in copper. But that is a whole different set
of skills.

--
Michael Koblic,
Campbell River, BC

"Ivan Vegvary" wrote in message
news:wOCJj.2670$lt2.2226@trndny05...

"Michael Koblic" wrote in message
news:IvGdnfAT-6GgUGvanZ2dnUVZ_jOdnZ2d@uniservecommunications...
I am not sure that you will be able to get the solder or lead into the
spaces left by the peeled-ff letters accurately.

I have tried similar method when making sundials:
I got a set of stick-on letters, stuck them on the face of the dial,
sprayed the whole thing with paint and then peeled off the numbers. I
then etched the whole thing with Ferric Chloride. The big problem was
that whatever glue there is left behind from the stick-on letters it acts
as an effective resist and screws up the results. Cleaning up the glue
with acetone is difficult - sometimes you cannot see it, sometimes you
remove the paint with the glue.

What if I tried just the opposite. Glue on a mask (after all this is only
4± inches) wherein the three initials would be holes within the mask.
Holes would not have any glue or other stuff on them. Would that allow me
to add flux and then solder?


If you only have 3 letters to do it is not unreasonable to cut them out
from whatever metal you choose and stick them on with JB Weld. This holds
really well particularly if there is no structural load. I have learned
to do this as heat from soldering/brazing/welding has a rather
unpredictable effect on the final appearance of the piece.

I will be trying to cut the letters from brass.

Thanks Michael, good ideas.

Ivan Vegvary