Electo-Etching!!

[m-Kresol]

the closer anode and cathode material are to each other, the faster it should etch. don't forget that ion conductivity is not the fastest, so this could just well be the limiting step in your setup. I would probably try a shallower batch.

[matmosphere]

Thanks Felix, I'll keep that in mind. I had actually read that they needed to be as far apart as possible, so this will probably have a solid impact.

I'm also probably going to try a different donor material. I have heard stainless steel works well but that seems counter intuitive to me because I don't think it is as good a conductor of electricity as the aluminum I was using.

[m-Kresol]

hmmm. I'm more or less just guessing, but it might be worth a try. I just remember when I electroplated an enclosure with copper, it was only depositing right were I had the zink counter electrode. that's why I thought it might be beneficial.
the "as far apart as possible" might just be so that you have an even etching process!

[Jebus]

I would also guess a beefier power supply would help. Have you measured how much current is flowing? How much salt are you using? 

[Aristatertotle]

More salt will help. When I did mine I boiled the water and added salt until it wouldn't take any more.

[somnif]

So I found some of my notes from that wax resist electro etch class project. Apparently we did it at a half volt,  at 400mA, for 1 - 2 hours. (Assuming the teacher didn't change the protocol in some way I didn't write down)

[matmosphere]

Okay first off, you guys are the best! This is such a great community.

So I found some of my notes from that wax resist electro etch class project. Apparently we did it at a half volt,  at 400mA, for 1 - 2 hours. (Assuming the teacher didn't change the protocol in some way I didn't write down)

Nice! Thanks for looking into that. Thinking about it, the power supply doesn't matter that much. There isn't going to be any more current going through the water than the solution will pass. Do you by chance remember if you used a deep water bath or was it a fairly shallow pool of water?

More salt will help. When I did mine I boiled the water and added salt until it wouldn't take any more.

This is a solid idea, I'll have to try it next time.

[m-Kresol]

yep, using a saturated solution will also be helpful. Maybe try that before lowering the distance of the electrodes.

[gtr2]

I've tried this a few years back.  I put the anode and cathode as close as possible and also faces parallel.  What ever you are using as the "donor" should be larger than your enclosure.

It's slow as anything, and just putting some ferric chloride is 100x faster on enclosures.

[gtr2]

Oh and use something for agitation.  I've seen fish bubblers used.

[matmosphere]

There are some great suggestions here but I have to admit that I caved. I drove past a Radio Shack that was closing down and got some ferric chloride for 25% off.

Wouldn't have done it but I started a new job and I wanted to finish the pedal before things started getting to crazy.

Turned out alright though. Not perfect but for a first shot with chemicals it's not terrible.