Any experience with Green vs. New Hermes engravers?

[Alan Douglas]

I'm looking for opinions and experiences with rotary engravers. I've had the use of a Green model 106 for decades, at the company I work for, and eventually after they stopped using it they gave it to me. A couple of days ago a friend dropped off a New Hermes model IL in a reasonably complete state. They're built rather differently, and the Green seems more suited to engraving 1920s radio panels (I collect and restore such things). But since I've never used a New Hermes, I don't know what it might be capable of. It needs a little work, some clamps are missing and there's only one (chipped) carbide cutter with it. If it's not going to be useful, there's no point in my spending time on it, though it might be fun to fiddle around.

So I'm looking for input from anyone who might have used either machine.

 

[kd4gij]

I have used new hermes like that back when I was in the optical busness thay are great for small things like name badges and desk placks.

 

[Alan Douglas]

I originally thought it was limited to short items, but then I found the entire upper mechanism can be raised up to a quarter of an inch and will rest on top of the panel being engraved, protected by cork pads. The vise would have to be moved out of the way for a really large panel. The Green has a raised carrier for the master letters (an accessory I asked them to get when they bought the machine) and a pair of thumbscrews to clamp a panel.

 

[rdhem2]

I own and use a New Hermes unit similar, but maybe older than the picture you show. I have used the unit mostly for name plates and legends for industrial electrical switches. Electrical type people have to label the devil out of all they do and to do it neatly is the sign of a professional in my eyes. The employee of mine got his hand slapped for using a marking pen! I have both the 5/8" and 1 1/2" master letter sets so I can engrave a large variety of signage. With the diamond tool you cam also etch (no power) hardened tool steel with great results. With a little ingenuity you can slide all sizes of material through the machine. It is limited to flat surfaces so no rings or bowling balls! I found a large engraving shop in Seattle (Bill's Engraving) that would sell material, cutters, resharpening service and more for far less then Hermes charges. Hermes is a French outfit and got their cut when you purchased the machine. So support the smaller guy when you can! Larger is always better, especially for the added functions but this basic unit does 92% of what I ever needed.

 

[Alan Douglas]

I have one cutter which seems to have been hand "sharpened" a few times but is now chipped also. It appears I could make them from 1/8" carbide drill rod if such things exist but I have only one threaded holder for the cutter, and I can see it would be much more convenient for each cutter to have the holder attached, so the engraving depth would be preset.

The Green works differently: the cutters fit a tapered collet and are held in with a threaded drawbar (if you can call something with 6-32 thread a drawbar. Might not be 6-32, I don't recall, but it's small).