Slide engraving or stamping

smith revolver cop

smith revolver cop

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After a 4 year fight, I have finally been awarded my retirement sidearm. (Long story, including lawyers, but the condensed version is: a petty, vindictive former employer with horrible management and administration that won't honor a collective bargaining agreement!) Now, on to my question... the gun is a Beretta 92FS. I'm thinking of having something engraved (or maybe stamped?) on the slide regarding my retirement. Since it will be on the slide and not the frame, shipping it to someone out of the area shouldn't be a problem. Any recommendations on who would do a good job? It will probably just be text, no designs, so it should be pretty simple- I just want to make sure it is done right! Any help from my experienced and knowledgable forum friends would be greatly appreciated.
 
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Engraving...

Local trophy shop does some really nice work for the area LEOs here.
Anything available to you like that?
 
The perfect saying for your engraving ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
Two little words. With these two words, two concepts were verbalized that have lived for nearly two and a half Millennia. They signify and characterize both the heart of the Warrior, and the indomitable spirit of mankind. From the ancient Greek, they are the reply of the Spartan General-King Leonidas to Xerxes, the Persian Emperor who came with 600,000 of the fiercest fighting troops in the world to conquer and invade little Greece, then the center and birthplace of civilization as we know it. When Xerxes offered to spare the lives of Leonidas, his 300 personal bodyguards and a handful of Thebans and others who volunteered to defend their country, if they would lay down their arms, Leonidas shouted these two words back.
Molon Labe! (mo-lone lah-veh)​
They mean, “Come and get them!” They live on today as the most notable quote in military history. And so began the classic example of courage and valor in its dismissal of overwhelming superiority of numbers, wherein the heart and spirit of brave men overcame insuperable odds. Today, there lies a plaque dedicated to these heroes all at the site. It reads: “Go tell the Spartans, travelers passing by, that here, obedient to their laws we lie.”
We have adopted this defiant utterance as a battle cry in our war against oppression because it says so clearly and simply towards those who would take our arms.
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]It signifies our determination to not strike the first blow, but also to not stand mute and allow our loved ones, and all that we believe in and stand for, to be trampled by men who would deprive us of our God-given – or natural, if you will – rights to suit their own ends.[/FONT]
 
Last edited:
potthawg said:
Local trophy shop does some really nice work for the area LEOs here.
Anything available to you like that?
Click to expand...

I'd thought about that, but a coworker raised a point I hadn't considered- since the engraving will penetrate whatever surface coating or treatment is on the slide, do I need to then have the slide refinished to prevent rusting, or will filling the letters (with paint or wax) be sufficient? So, I guess I now have another question for the forum members!
 
Depending on the wear from duty use, your Beretta might need, or you might want it, to be refinished. Have it engraved, then send the whole gun off to be refinished. Beretta will refinish it, howver, I don't know their prices.
Another option would be to have the engraving gold-filled to highlight it.
Personally, I would engrave just your name, rank, dates of service, and department on it. A tasteful reminder of your service.
 
My late brother-in-law had something very similar done to a Beretta 92 - name and dates cut into the slide by a local trophy shop. They just engraved straight through the finish on the slide, so bare metal showed bright against the dark finish of the slide. I thought the same thing you did - that the bare metal would tarnish or corrode. Its been about ten years, and the lettering is still as bright as ever.
 
Instead of engraving the gun's frame which would necessitate refinishing, perhaps a shield shaped plate inlettend into your guns grips would be a more cost effective way to go. If machine engraving is acceptable the trophy shop would be the place to go. Most jeweler's employ the services of a hand engraver if a classier job is what you're after, they'd be able to deliver your inscribed plate quicker than a gun engraver. When I was in gunsmithing school we used to take our custom rifles to the local jeweler to have the caliber markings engraved on the barrel. Cost then (circa 1975) was about $15.00 IIRC.
 
Marksman said:
Instead of engraving the gun's frame which would necessitate refinishing, perhaps a shield shaped plate inlettend into your guns grips would be a more cost effective way to go. If machine engraving is acceptable the trophy shop would be the place to go. Most jeweler's employ the services of a hand engraver if a classier job is what you're after, they'd be able to deliver your inscribed plate quicker than a gun engraver. When I was in gunsmithing school we used to take our custom rifles to the local jeweler to have the caliber markings engraved on the barrel. Cost then (circa 1975) was about $15.00 IIRC.
Click to expand...

Thanks to all for their input. I may look into having some nice stocks laser-engraved. I hadn't really considered that at first, but it would be another good dig at my former chief! (One of my buddies put some nice wooden stocks onto his duty gun, and [once the chief finally noticed!] the chief asked "if brown grips were authorized- do we wear brown grips on our guns?")
 
That chief must be related to my former chief-except if my former boss asked that question it would be because he really did not know.
 
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