The ABS will now offer official stencils along with the Journeyman and Master stamps to electro-etch the J.S. or M.S. onto your blades. This is a project that I have worked with Patricia Bruno, of International Marking Group, on for over six months now and I am happy to say that they will be available to present to the new Journeyman and Masters at the Blade show.
When I started developing the artwork for these stencils I found that the J.S. and M.S. that the ABS had been using was pretty much just a standard font that did not distinguish our marks from anybody who had access to say Microsoft Word. I also discovered that the font had changed over the years and that Journeyman and Masters from years ago had a different stamp than the newer ones. In addition to this I found that some elements that made for a good stamp made for a difficult etched mark.
To remedy these situations, I sat down and redesigned all new J.S. and M.S. images that blended the two fonts together into a workable stencil. I even thought ahead to the day when new stamps may be created from the same images and applied some practical metallurgy to a stamp whith better flow and less chances of stress risers. The result is that we now have unique images that are the exclusive property of the ABS so that we can offer official ABS approved stencils.
I cannot thank Patricia Bruno and IMG enough for working with me on this project and providing the stencils for awarding to our new Journeymen and Masters. The good news is that we now have a reliable source for our members to get these stencils. New Journeyman and Masters will now be awarded a stencil along with the stamp and replacements, or new stencils for any of our current Journeymen or Masters, can be purchased from International Marking Group.
Patricia Bruno
Phone: 315-735-7591
"One test is worth 1000 'expert' opinions" Riehle Testing Machines Co.
Thank you Kevin! I know that all ABS members appreciate the time and effort that you put into this important project.
Dan Cassidy
Journeyman Smith
Send an email to Dan
Thank you Kevin for all your and Patricia's work. I need to get in touch with them anyhow and will ask about these.
Brion
Brion Tomberlin
Anvil Top Custom Knives
ABS Mastersmith
Patricia is a champ. She helped me design my etch and left no stone unturned.
You mention "....... that they will be available to present to the new Journeyman and Masters at the Blade show."
Are they available to the older JS/MS as well?
Karl B. Andersen
Journeyman Smith
|quoted:
Patricia is a champ. She helped me design my etch and left no stone unturned.
You mention "....... that they will be available to present to the new Journeyman and Masters at the Blade show."
Are they available to the older JS/MS as well?
Karl,
I believe Kevin covered that in the last line of his post: "New Journeyman and Masters will now be awarded a stencil along with the stamp and replacements, or new stencils for any of our current Journeymen or Masters, can be purchased from International Marking Group."
Mike
Gotcha. Thanks.
|quoted:
Karl,
I believe Kevin covered that in the last line of his post:
Karl B. Andersen
Journeyman Smith
tongue in cheek <img src=' http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//unsure.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':unsure:' /> , how about A.S. ('Aspiring' Journeyman/Masters) !! <img src=' http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//rolleyes.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':rolleyes:' />
[font="Comic Sans MS"]'Never Quit On Improving'[/font]
I contacted Patricia about prices for the new MS and JS stencils and this was her reply.
Dan:
We thought that 3 up on a sheet for $12.50.
Sheet is 2" x 6".
No artwork charge.
The size of the images:
M.S. .385" x .182"
J.S. .297" x .226"
Minimum order $25.00
If a knifemaker wants to order a stencil with the this MS or JS image
added to their Makers Mark, they can call for pricing.
1-800-775-ETCH.
If you need more information, Please let me know.
Patricia
Patricia Bruno
IMG of Utica, Inc.
206 Kossuth Ave.
PO BOX 379
Utica, NY 13503
315-735-7591
315-732-4262 Fax
www.img-electromark.com
Dan Cassidy
Journeyman Smith
Send an email to Dan
Truth is, I already have my JS stencil from Patricia.
I got my name and JS about 6 months ago.
At that time she let me know that she and Kevin were working on JS/MS stencils and that the one she gave me was one she was waiting to be approved.
I'd love to compare mine with what is now "official".
I might have got the first one!
Karl B. Andersen
Journeyman Smith
Kevin, I had no idea this would end up taking so much effort on your part, but I'm glad it worked out. Thanks for all your work on this.
|quoted:
OPTION 🙂
BLUE LIGHTNING STENCILS
Ernie,
Do you also have the official design template from the ABS? The last time I spoke to you about making a proper "JS" stamp you declined my request.
Hi Derrick,
I don't make stamps...just the MS and JS stencils in the original font
Ernie Grospitch
Ernie,
I think you misunderstood me. As Kevin wrote above, the American Bladesmith Society, working with IMG Electromark, has created a design for JS and MS stencils that bladesmiths who use the electro-chemical etching process to mark their blades may now use. This will allow for consistency and uniformity in the marks used by rated ABS members while at the same time eliminating the new artwork fees typically charged for new stencil orders.
If you have now also received these same design specifications from the ABS, I would encourage you to make that clear. As for me, I have been very happy with the products and service I've received from IMG.
I am sorry Ernie, I was not aware of the number of vendors that could have been producing JS and MS stencils independently from ABS efforts. The original stamps were more unique in the design but over the years somebody, somewhere, somehow had some stamps made using a common computer font that was not the original design, for many years now the coveted Mastersmith and Journeyman stamps have had no official design or exclusivity to the only organization to award them, the ABS. This recent effort will remedy that, and we happened to have a vendor who volunteered to assist.
While it seemed like an easy no-brainer to produce an official ABS design which we had control over, yours is not the first question to come up concerning how this will be handled in the future. I have requested that it be put on the agenda for the next board meeting so that we can discuss this and get some official decisions and guidelines for on how to proceed.
"One test is worth 1000 'expert' opinions" Riehle Testing Machines Co.
