Chemical Etching or Tumbler Etching?

When it comes to etching,

I'm a kind of take or leave it person.

However, after ruining my bathroom, and I do mean ruining it, with a chemical etchant that spilled,

I had to look at other ways to etch.

I belong to a wonderful forum called

Lampworketc.

There are many discussions there about a variety of topics.

I found several on non chemical etching.

So, here's what I did.

I realized I had what I needed on hand.

 I bought this at Harbor Freight.

I also needed some silicone carbide grit.

Surprise!

I had purchased a small amount years ago.

All you need is a teaspoon.

I was set.

I filled my tumbler with the end chunks of the murrini I make.

I added water, the silicone carbide grit, and a drop of dish washing liquid.

I added the beads.

(Oh, it really IS a good idea to count the beads before you put them in the tumbler.)

I tumbled them for an hour. 

Here are the results.

I was pleased.

I like the matte finish on these discs.

I didn't like these beads before I etched them, but now I do!!

These beads came out much better than I expected!

I like them now.

I like these discs now.

These discs look pitted to me, so I'm not sure on these.

Overall, I was very pleased with the etching.

I'm still not really excited about etching, but I did make some beads specifically for etching.

I'll take before and after photos and show them next week.