What does Your Maker Stamp Look Like?

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Thanks, Dave. Much appreciated.

[Holsterguy]

Kinda playin round with this

[Marshal Will Wingam]

That looks great, Holsterguy. Nice and clean.

[Smokey Dave]

I like that a lot Holsterguy.

[Holsterguy]

Well I got my first maker stamp today.
From Bunkhouse.  Custom size and not one of the ones on his 45$ plus shipping.

[Holsterguy]

Hit post too soon

[Holsterguy]

Next comes an oval

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Looks good. That's a nice stamp. I look forward to seeing your oval one.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I just got another makers stamp. I have been wanting an oval stamp for times when my other one doesn't fit or look right. My other one is a steel stamp made by Infinity Stamps. I wanted to see how the Grey Ghost Delrin stamps are. The order went smoothly and after I sent my artwork to Jeff, he had the stamp to me in a couple days. Great service, there.

This one was inspired by a Main & Winchester stamp.



I'll compare it to my steel stamp made by Infinity.



The Delrin stamp is laser cut so the whole thing is straight cut where the steel stamp has tapered lines. The impression is ever so slightly crisper with the Delrin one but not greatly so. The image made with the steel one is slightly softer looking and maybe a bit more historically correct, but again, not by a lot.





What is the most different about them is that the laser cut image requires a heck of a lot more oomph to get a decent impression. My 32 oz UHMW mallet wasn't up to the task. I tried several times with it but finally found that I got a good impression from two whacks with a 1lb dead blow hammer (which is now one of my leather tools). On the plus side, lining up the stamp for the second blow was easy.



So which do I like better? I like my Infinity stamp a little better but the Grey Ghost stamp was considerably more affordable. Both are top quality. The steel stamp will last forever where the Delrin one may not. When the time comes to get another stamp, it'll depend on my mood which one I get.

[Rube Burrows]

I know exactly what you mean. I only have the one stamp which is the Grey Ghost. I love the impression it makes but I have to beat the crap out of it and really lean it forward to get the upper part to stamp a good impression.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

At Smokey Dave's suggestion, I tried the stamp using my drill press like an arbor press. It worked great and made a good, even impression. If you have either one, you may want to give that a try. Just make sure the stamp is flat on the leather when you do it. If not, that might be something to look into. 1 lb ones are listed on ebay for $11 with free shipping (like mine) and a 2 lb one is $14. I did get a good impression with mine.

[Lucky R. K.]

I bought a small arbor press from Harber Freight several years ago, it does a great job for me. Gently lower the press ram onto the stamp and apply a firm pressure. Be sure not to let anything move. It does a great job. I think I posted a picture earlier to show the results.
Lucky

[Marshal Will Wingam]

What size arbor press did you get? Harbor Freight currently advertises a 1 ton one for $65. If you have other uses for one, that may be a way to go.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I just had another stamp made by Grey Ghost Graphics. This one is 1-3/8" long. It is inspired by one of H. H. Heiser's stamps. I finally hit the maximum detail point. Any smaller or any more detail and everything would get lost. It came out great, though. It shows how good Jeff's stamp making is.





Here's the H. H. Heiser stamp that inspired me to make this one.

[Rube Burrows]

I just had another stamp made by Grey Ghost Graphics. This one is 1-3/8" long. It is inspired by one of H. H. Heiser's stamps. I finally hit the maximum detail point. Any smaller or any more detail and everything would get lost. It came out great, though. It shows how good Jeff's stamp making is.





Here's the H. H. Heiser stamp that inspired me to make this one.

I really like that one.  Excellent.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Thanks, Rube. Looking forward to using it.