It can be tedious, but I get into a rhythm, usually do them in batches.
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This looks expensive
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Looks like a 24" x 48" sheet is about $109. With labels at 2" x 6" that’s a bit over $1 each. Not terrible I suppose…
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This is awesome. Never thought you can print on stainless steel tape. Nice!!
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It doesn’t really come out that expensive especially considering the money we spend just to get a crop. I think we deserve somerhing of a luxury that makes it just that little easier to find the #$*^ label. I don’t want to think of all the times I had to go back into the house to look up my orchard map to figure out what I was looking at because I could not find the label or because it fell off.
These labels are large really solid and being attached with these cable ties they don’t fall off… and… I can see them.
Time, comfort & some satisfaction have value also.
So, all in all, not that expensive and besides, we deserve it.
Mike
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@MES111 the higher contrast of your labels inspired me.
Bright yellow UV resistant paint over the stamped aluminum. Then the same “Sharpie Extreme” black ink in the impressions. Followed up by a clear UV resistant coat over it all.
Should be easy to spot because of the bright color, legible because of the contrast, and hopefully long lasting. Even if the clear, black, and yellow paint all wear off… It’s still stamped aluminum. They’ll possibly last longer than the tree…
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Maybe I’ll swap to the indent rather than raised wheel on my Dymo with stainless tape and see what it looks like with some black on the indent.
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Thank you… It is very gratifying when the value of an idea that made sense to you is ratified by others. Feels really good. Thanx
Mike
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I’ve found that my shiny tags get chewed on and ripped off. Then the tag is nowhere to be found.
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Very very very cool!
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My goats “taste” everything. Once my husband was out mending the fence in the goat yard and my most curious goat picked up the entire box of nails by the cardboard flap and if course, the nails went everywhere. An old can or empty glass jar to hold the nails would have been a better choice for use around goats. But, if it’s paper it belongs to their mouth! They love my return envelopes that come with the bills.
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We just bought one of those can openers that takes off can tops without leaving a jagged edge. I was just surveying my grafts and wondering how the heck to mark that many. I have to say I’m a big diet dr pepper fan so sounds like a great plan and just in time!!!
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Man, those labels are awesome. Great job. I’ve seen that type of material and it would work perfectly with my laser. Just set the power enough to burn through the top color layer into the middle layer.
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Was re-reading this old thread and was just wondering what do you use to stamp these . the rows are really straight
Mike
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It’s certainly difficult to align the punches visually. I took a few scrap pieces of wood and screwed them down tight on a big red oak round. That held the metal tag from moving and all I had to do then was hold the punch firm against that piece of wood. Which took care of vertical alignment, but I still had to do the horizontal visually. I flubbed a few of them but for the most part was able to keep the letters pretty consistent.
The “Sharpie Extreme” is faded a bit on a few of them but for the most part they look just like they did last summer. I have some acrylic paint pens and will apply a thick layer of it in the letter indentions if the (lack of) visibility becomes annoying.
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Well, to me they looked straight enough that I thought you had some sort of machine or tool to do it.
For me, trying to puch out one letter at a time would wind up playing the song…“they’re coning to take me away, ha ha”. 
Let’s see…
160 varieties
Avg. 25 letters per variety
Avg. 10 seconds per letter (including painting) =
160 x 25 x 10 = 40,000 seconds = 666 hours (oops I’d need to add or remove a couple of varieties) = 83 solid 8 hour days …
I got cross-eyed that it took me +/- 4 hours to do these with the dremel tool. 
Mike
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Heh… You can speed the process up considerably, for a small fee 
Something like this:
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Yup, what every home orchardist needs as the last straw before divorce papers are served
Mike
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Can you hear me laughing? I bet you can!
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