Zinc stencil plates for marking boxes and sacks may be cut by hand with the aid of a mallet, a sharp chisel, a pair of bent-nosed snips, and a plate of thick sheet zinc. Taking the letter 0, shown by the accompanying diagram, commence by drawing the letter; then, assuming that the inside part of the figure is to be held by the straps A B, A B, take the chisel, and. laying the stencil plate upon the sheet zinc plate, cut it through along the lines A a, B b, then, with a circular hollow punch, punch out the holes X, X, X, X. Insert the nose of the open snips through the holes alternately, and cut through the zinc to the corners A a, B 6 on both sides of the figure; then, from the open spaces formed, cut round with the snips upon the lines drawn, smooth the burr down upon an anvil with a few blows from a smooth mallet, and trim the cut edges with a smooth file to finish the plate. Letters formed by straight lines, as E or F, can be cut by the use of the chisel only.

Making Zinc Stencil Plates.