A piece of copper is cut to size and covered with "etching ground"; an image is drawn into the etching ground, exposing areas of copper.
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Plates are submerged in an acid bath; the acid will eat away at the exposed areas of copper.
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Depending on the strength of the acid, it can take an hour or so to etch a plate to the desired depth. Plates are rinsed in a water bath every 8 to 10 minutes, to clean out the "sludge" that collects in the etched grooves.
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Etched plate, with the etching ground cleaned off. The next step is to fill the etched "grooves" with ink in order to make a print.
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