Making a Stamp from Old Tools!

A name synonymous with the art of stamping, Matthieu Cheminée's passions have taken him around the globe, crossing continents in the pursuit of artistic knowledge and the desire to share the gifts he's been given. With primarily native New Mexican and West African influences, Matthieu's signature "Stampclastic" look (a self-coined term for his combination of stamping and anticlastic design) pays tribute "to all the jewelers around the world who transform any old piece of steel into tools or any piece of metal into beautiful jewelry."
Join the master in his workshop for a lesson in stamp making using old pieces of steel, old tools and a bit of creativity. Matthieu walks you through every step, infusing the process with tips and tricks from his years of stamping experience.
Check out the products used in this video:
Fretz® Large Jeweler's Ball-Peen Hammer, 28.2 oz. - ow.ly/yvAE30rIPU3
Brass-Head Mallet, 2-lb. - ow.ly/Dcn730rIPUw
Friedrich Dick Three-square Escapement File - ow.ly/PSG850HGLI0
The Art of Stamping, Book - ow.ly/igu730rIPVD
Rio Grande stands for makers who create with their hands and their hearts and who are courageous enough to make jewelry their livelihood.
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[@melissaosgoodstudio439]

I appreciate Matthieu Cheminée's tips when hardening and tempering the steel. Great video showing the stages of applied heat perfectly - thank you for sharing years of experience. I love repurposing used tools.

[@RioGrande1944]

Thank you for watching! We will be sure to pass your compliments on to Matthieu. We think he is pretty amazing too!

[@audreyh6628]

This video is brilliant, thank you so much for making it. By far the clearest and best resource I have found for understanding how to make stamps

[@RioGrande1944]

Audrey, we are glad you liked the video. Thank you for watching!

[@donktheclown]

Thank you, this inspires me to make another stamp..And this is the sound every machinist makes when they see you use your vernier calipers as a scribe --- "Whaaaaaaaaaat !!!" Like 3:42

[@RioGrande1944]

Thanks for watching, we're really glad we could inspire!

[@AfricanSouthernCross]

Fantastic editorial but particularly the little bits of advice such as using a magnet to clean up the tiny metal filings after using the metal file plus running the file against a piece of wood to clean the file before using, thank you, I learnt a lot from this video !

[@petersmedley459]

Excellent tutorial, Thankyou for your time, talent and generosity. P.S. I also love your book, Legacy, a real tour de force!

[@angelramos-2005]

Excellent video,Matthieu.Human delicate touch.Thank you.

[@chriscox52282]

Really great info. I wasn't paying attn when the the hammer started and didn't realize it was edited just a bit.... I thought: "damn... this guy hammers like a machine." lol. 😁

[@gordo6202]

Great video. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[@Lightness108]

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 🌻 How nice to see creativity using old tools... I really appreciate this. Thank you very much!

[@RioGrande1944]

Thanks for watching our video Flower Ceci! We appreciate the support!

[@truegritcouture]

We have one of your books here at home. It’s amazing. Thank you for sharing this wonderful tutorial 💐

[@RioGrande1944]

Thank you for watching!

[@danhoyt9961]

Thank you for this! I have your books and am getting into stamping. I learned to love stamped silver when I lived on the Navaho reservation in Monument Valley Utah in the early 1970s. And have gotten into silversmithing in the last few years. I love your books and have gotten into the West African jewelers work. I am trying to emulate some of their minimalist approach when it comes to tooling.

[@renfrewcalgary2830]

Outstanding!!! I'm FREAKISHLY excited to try this... I have never understood how steel is hardened, tempered, etc., and you have cleared that up in less than 20 minutes lol. I'm desperate to make a nicho to house my mothers ashes, she died when the world became awful, and it was awful; she had no funeral, no service, no goodbye. I feel a nicho is the perfect way to honor and remember her, made by my own hands so we can be together. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge and happy new year. big hug, Nichol (Canada)

[@RioGrande1944]

Our condolences to you!

[@gummidirajeswararao543]

Nice stamp work sir

[@yvesroldan5766]

Merci . Simple ,Clear , and an amazing design .

[@stevet9487]

Thanks l love it. You learn things new every day, thanks again.

[@RioGrande1944]

"We're glad you enjoyed it! Be sure to check out more here - we're always adding new videos for you!

[@flamingomtn]

Very interesting and informative. Thank you!

[@RioGrande1944]

Excellent! We are glad you found it helpful.

[@sirridok]

Great video brother! Excellent teacher! I like to teach my skills so i can appreciate your attention to dos and dont's! Thanks!

[@forestarcher47]

Great video

[@rayfromnorthriI]

A superior video on how to do this....!!!!...!!!

[@WallaceLivingFree]

Well explained,

[@turquoisetra]

I fell in love with stamp making thanks to you and your book!

[@RioGrande1944]

Excellent! We are glad to hear that!

[@donaldvonburen5932]

Very knowledgeable. Thank you

[@Gspitaletti]

Amazing video thank you

[@jarlathmcnee3833]

Great work, it was great to watch the hardening and tempering. My sister is a sculptor and blacksmith so I used to watch her work like that; my question is how to get curved or waves etc into a stamp? Thank you

[@RioGrande1944]

Hi jarlath, we're glad you enjoyed the video! We chatted with our Tech Team about this to get you and accurate answer. They said if you can’t create the proper curves with files then you could use burs such as ball, burs etc. You can also use high speed steel or Carbide burs for this grinding of the curves for the waves. Hope this is helpful!

[@BadCompany410]

I do a little leather work and have been thinking about using leather and copper together. All metals really it’s just that copper is way cheaper than some. By chance do you have anything on melting and creating your own types of metals? Anything like that? Man I’ve got so many questions. I’m guessing with you doing videos you don’t mind questions?? Be safe out here if you are living out here you’ve seen how bad and how fast things have changed in just 3 years! God bless you and yours!!!… 😝🥸🤠 New Mexico definitely has your back..! I think he’s one of us you guys..! 🎉🎉🎉🤠🥸 celebrate 🎊 🎈 🎊🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈

[@donnahiebert8887]

Brilliant! Thank you so much for sharing your experience and knowledge!!!

[@RioGrande1944]

You are quite welcome!

[@Metawoodart]

Great video and instructions. Thank you.

[@RioGrande1944]

You are welcome! Be sure to subscribe so you get alerts for our new videos and content.

[@EM-cg4iy]

Love that. Thank you!

[@MadroneHumanRights]

excellent thanks Matthieu

[@RioGrande1944]

Thank you for watching, Matthieu is an amazing teacher!

[@g.m.5412]

Awesome video, so informative 😍👍

[@bigoldgrizzly]

Just be aware, a lot of the old hand drills of this type had low carbon soft steel shanks forge welded on by manufacturers and will not be hardenable. This was done to save on costs when steel was a prized resource. It only takes a few minutes to test if it will harden before doing all your file work. Remember to anneal it again, before doing the shaping work. If using other old punches, they will probably be hard when you get them and annealing first will save a lot of time filing, and your files will last longer.

[@LockBits-ts6eo]

Good stuff

[@RioGrande1944]

Thanks for the visit!

[@stevenlisk2468]

Good info 👍

[@RioGrande1944]

Thank you! Be sure to follow out channel for more videos.

[@rayfromnorthriI]

,Matthieu would it be possible to show how to make different stamps??? Triangular, cicular, and differen square stamps Thanks sooo much your instructions were out standing....!!!

[@woodcar111]

Thank you so much for sharing

[@RioGrande1944]

Of course, we love watching Matthieu work; thanks for watching!

[@ThePigeonagile]

Merci! Très informatif et clair!

[@leinad.s]

That video was absolutely helpful... I just need to find an old auger bit with a nice fat shaft.

[@alierem4266]

Why not chase garage sales or trash markets for such treasure? You will save 80% to 90% on cost of buying new steel pieces. Used bits cost maybe 2 bucks.

[@rippy4freedom]

Neat !

[@elenazviaguintseva5438]

Thank you very much! Helpfull for me!

[@RioGrande1944]

Not a problem Elena Zviaguintseva! We are glad you like the video!

[@brucethackwell6686]

Very informative thank you. I want to make a Logo stamp of a 🖐seems like an impossible task given even drawing a hand is challenging. Any suggestions please. Bruce..South Africa

[@Shukarr]

How do you cut through the steel initially to make the piece you will use as a stamp? I love your Art! Thank you so much

[@RioGrande1944]

Hello Thanks for your question today, at around :25 seconds into the video He mentions that he uses a hack saw or grinder to get down to the final size of the stamp. I hope this helps.

[@annh3599]

Thanks!

[@RioGrande1944]

Hello, thanks for watching! We think Matthieu is great too! We will pass you compliment on to him.

[@mariolopez-ri8wd]

real nice stamp i think i make something like it ex video keep them coming

[@RioGrande1944]

Hi Mario. Thank you for the positive feedback.

[@goldsmith9060]

Great

[@LitoGeorge]

Oh my goodness. Send those old auger bits and countersinks my way, and I'll put them to use the way they were designed and created to be used. Seeing them cut up is like watching my arm being cut off, and it hurts. I can understand old files being used up once they cannot cut anymore. I can also understand an old auger with the wings reduced to nothing or the leadscrew gone. But in the opening sequence, those two items have a LOT of life left in them.

[@danhoyt9961]

And now a new life.

[@sirridok]

😂

[@LitoGeorge]

@@danhoyt9961 with their first lives still going strong and with enough left in them to surpass your own.

[@ajaxcleaningdomesticservic7876]

What advice can you give for getting a deep imprint into the metal other than annealing?

[@RioGrande1944]

Hello, thank you for the question. We will pass this on to our Tech Team and get back to you with their answer!

[@threegreencharms]

@@RioGrande1944 nuh uh

[@oldmanonabike233]

Well that was very interesting. How would you make a stamp more intricate, like a number or letter. If you see what I mean? As in a Q, q, 8 or 6.

[@alierem4266]

No answer, so here goes a suggestion. . Forming/shaping any rounded/oval shapes/rounded numbers, use drilling on surface with drill bits. . Then work by hand to to shape the rest with files OR flex shaft with carbide burr /tip. Practice on soft metals first to develop/hone yr hand & toll use skills. gd luck.

[@forestarcher47]

How do i make a logo or markers mark how do u remove tiny details?

[@commanderhawk5958]

Hi how do u make a weave pattern stamp?

[@batta986]

..Jesh..

[@24934637]

That stamp is WAY past the 'non magnetic' temperature when you quenched it! Lucky you aren't doing a heat treatment on a knife, as with the length of time you spent over cooking it, you'd have grown the grain structure masiively! Other than that, great vid! Ideally the tempering should be done for an hour or so!

[@rajsaw4608]

Hi

[@sleu752343]

I was not clear what the name of the tiny file is could you let me know

[@RioGrande1944]

Hello, that is a three-square escapement file. You can find them here, ow.ly/PSG850HGLI0

[@lelearmi6186]

Info email ?

[@BadCompany410]

“NEW MEXICO “ Los Lunas … do you have a shop out here in New Mexico by chance? I’d love to stop by.. I’ll be waiting for your reply’s super cool and super duper happy I found you.. aaah it’s like soulmates🥰🥰🥰😜. Just kidding dude..! 🥸😝🤔🤠

[@shadowmihaiu]

Very nice, thank you.

[@RioGrande1944]

Not a problem, thank you for watching! :)