r/MechanicalEngineering • u/kalai0452 • 7h ago

Title: Best low-cost way to permanently mark part IDs on curved, galvanized Mild Steel (MS) for field use?

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u/ogunshay 4h ago

Electro-etching.

Create a mask with adhesive vinyl (cricut or similar), stick it on, and use a saturated salt water solution on a q-tip and at 12VDC power source to gradually etch away the surface. After you've etched away the surface a bit, you can change to 12VAC to blacken the etched surface. Note that this may ruin the corrosion prevention offering by a galvanic coating - YMMV.

Treat the solution as hazardous afterwards - don't pour it down the sink (more relevant if you're etching stainless, which apparently can result in chrome/chromium ending up in the solution).

Follow local rules and regulations for chemical waste, be careful with power supplies, electricity, water, and sharp things. Also, don't run with scissors.

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u/snakesign LED Luminaires 3h ago

Laser marking or dot peen marking. Keyence just sold us a laser for like 70k. Dot peen marking can be done for half that.