Acid etching Lapis?

I had this idea…anyone know if it would actually work? I want to
inlay an 18K monogram into a Lapis bufftop. I know Lapis reacts to
acid. With an appropriate mask could I etch the recess away with
acid? Could I get a fine enough edge? I would think a depth of 15-20
thousandths would be good enough.

I know Lapis reacts to acid. With an appropriate mask could I etch
the recess away with acid? 

Theoretically, yes, practically, probably not to the degree of
precision you’d want. Somebody may correct me, having done it (I
haven’t). Lapis is a rock - that’s a mixture of minerals, and the
acid is going to affect each mineral differently - maybe not at all.
The carbonate components will go with HCl, the quartz will need HF,
on and on. Use diamond burs under water…If it were a “pure”
mineral like quartz, it would work much better.

I had this idea...anyone know if it would actually work? I want to
inlay an 18K monogram into a Lapis bufftop. I know Lapis reacts to
acid. With an appropriate mask could I etch the recess away with
acid? Could I get a fine enough edge? I would think a depth of
15-20 thousandths would be good enough. 

With the appropriate mask, you would probably have better luck
sandblasting the design into the stone. This would be a much more
controlled process than the acid, and you could control the depth of
cut with the appropriate media. The trick is getting a stencil cut at
the size you need and finding the appropriate media…

If you dont have a blaster already, try these guys…

They have a disposable sand etch kit for little money that might
work for you, they do carry stencil material as well…

Good luck,
P@