Medals are a popular reward and recognition item. They come in many shapes and sizes, with designs that can be customized to commemorate any special event. What most people don’t know, however, is that some medals glow in the dark! Read on to find out how we make glow in the dark medals.

Step 1: Mould Engraving

The first step in creating glow in the dark medal is to engrave the design and features into a mould. This can be done by hand or with a machine, in our factory,we do it by digital engraving machine. So the engraving is 1:1 copy and match customers design.

After the features are engraved, there are still procedures that need to be completed before this mold can be used for die-casting medals, such as drilling the holes to secure the feeler to the die-casting machine, digging the feed route, finishing the engraving surface smooth, etc.

Step 2: Die Casting

If you’re interested in pure electric cars, then you’ve seen the video of Tesla’s Model Y production facility in California. and were blown away by their integrated die-casting plant. Medal is produced using the same die-casting process!

Die casting is a metal casting process, similar in principle to injection molding, which involves applying high pressure to molten metal and injecting it into the cavity of a mold to cast the desired shape. It is fundamentally different from traditional sand casting in that the molds are usually made of stronger alloys. The production efficiency is high, and the high speed and high pressure filling can press the metal into the model in a short time, and it can create complex shapes with clear contours. In addition, the surface roughness of die-cast parts can reach Ra0.8-3.2μm, in other words die casting medal surface is flat and smooth.

Step 3: Polishing

Polishing can not improve the dimensional accuracy or geometric shape accuracy of the medal, but to get a smooth surface or mirror luster for the purpose, sometimes also used to eliminate the luster (matting).

Medal polishing is divided into front, side, and back polishing, relying on very fine polishing powder and the relative grinding and tumbling effect between the grinding surface to eliminate the abrasion marks. Polishing wheels are usually used as polishing tools. Polishing wheel is generally made of multi-layer canvas felt or leather laminated, both sides with metal round plate clamping, its wheel edge coated with polishing agent made of micronized abrasives and grease and other uniform mixture. After polishing, medal is as shiny as a mirror.

Step 4: Electro-Plating

Plating can meet your needs for different colors of appearance, such as gold, silver and bronze, which are done by plating. After polishing and cleaning, the medal is fixed on a rack and immersed in a tank with different Pre-plated metal salts solution, and the medal is used as the cathode, through electrolysis, the cations of pre-plated metal in the plating solution are deposited on the surface of the medal to form a surface processing method.

Step 5: Filling Colors (Key Step)

Filling colors can make medals become colorful and charming. It is the key step for glow in the dark medals. Different from other enamel medals, The secret of luminous medals and glow in the dark medal is the addition of water-based glow-in-the-dark powder to the color, blended evenly in a ratio of 40-60%. Commonly used 50%, the higher the proportion the brighter the luminescence. Because the luminous powder is easy to precipitate, the ink coating needs to be mixed well before use. Use glass, ceramic or plastic containers for storage, avoid using metal containers.

Water-based luminous powder color is rich, complete specifications, customers can choose the right product according to the requirements. In 365MEDALS we have common colors such as: yellow-green, sky blue, blue-green, purple luminous, white luminous and color luminous powder.

Don’t hesitate to send your design and request:

Step 6: Heating

After filling the color, we will put the medallion in the oven. After low temperature baking, the baking paint and glow-in-the-dark will be cured on the medallion.

Step 7: Assembling ribbon

Last step is assembling ribbon for each medal. Ribbon design can be customized, full color printing ribbon, single color printing ribbon, Plain color ribbon, stripe ribbon request can all be matching.

If you are looking for some unique medals that will make your race stand out, try our glow in the dark medals. These Medals are sure to wow your runners and add an extra element of fun to your event. We’re proud of the high-quality custom medals we produce and if you have any questions or would like to order please don’t hesitate to contact us at JIE@365MEDALS.COM