There is something very special about an engraved door knocker. A name or personalized message professionally engraved on a beautifully crafted brass door knocker sets the tone for the entranceway.
Engraving requires a quality product from the start. Our products are produced from quality solid brass castings. Engraving is performed as part of the preparation and finishing process. The entire piece is lacquer coated after engraving to protect your purchase from the elements.
engraved door knocker finishes
Available finishes: Polished Brass, Satin Brass, Antique Brass, Satin Nickel, Antique Nickel (Pewter), Antique Copper, and Venetian Bronze. Coming soon is Verdigris Brass and Verdigris Bronze for most styles.
Different styles of door knockers will offer varyious engraving opportunities.
The urn style pictured at the left is a good example. There are two areas that can be engraved. One, the rectangle on the main body and the other, the oval on the clapper. Each area has limitations. You can only fit so many characters in a given space and still keep them presentable. The height to width ratio of the area to be worked and the weight and width of the font chosen will determine how much engraving you will be able to get in a given space.
If the maximum characters is exceeded the engraving point size must be lowered thus making the entire engraving smaller and harder to read.
The choice of font has a direct bearing on how many letters can be engraved per inch of area. Some fonts are more condensed than others allowing more letters per inch and still maintaining their proper design.
With some brands of door knockers the finish has a direct bearing on how well the engraving will turn out. When engraving something you are attempting to obtain a contrast between the item and the engraving so the engraving is visible. This happens because engraving changes the surface texture and how light reflects off the engraved area as opposed to the rest of the item.
On some finishes it is harder to create contrast than it is on others and the engraving does not show up as well.
It is for this reason we engrave before we plate our nickel and some copper finishes. The contrast is greatly enhanced by the plating process making the end result superior to other methods.
An added benefit is that the engraving process does not damage the plating causing problems down the road.
Care must be taken if you are purchasing a door knocker to be engraved. Not all are engraveable! How they are made and finished determines how well the engraving process will work. Even some that appear to be engraveable can be permanently damaged during the engraving process.
Engraving will damage and or remove the weatherproof finish or lacquer coating. It is for this reason the lacquer coating is applied after the engraving operation on our engraved door knockers.
The urn style pictured at the left is a good example. There are two areas that can be engraved. One, the rectangle on the main body and the other, the oval on the clapper. Each area has limitations. You can only fit so many characters in a given space and still keep them presentable. The height to width ratio of the area to be worked and the weight and width of the font chosen will determine how much engraving you will be able to get in a given space.