Rubber was discovered in the Amazon River Basin in 1736 by the French explorer Charles Marie de la Condamine. Cubes were made of the substance and used for rubbing out lead pencil marks, but the material was unstable. Charles Goodyear discovered a use for the rubber and patented his invention in 1844. The process he invented is called vulcanization. When Charles Marie de la Condamine discovered rubber he also discovered another problem. When the temperature rose the rubber changed from a firm hard surface to a jelly like substance. Charles Goodyear wanted to use the rubber for something during hot temperatures as well as cold. As most discoveries, Charles Goodyear had an accident in the lab and the invention of making rubber stay hard no matter the temperature was discovered.

Multiple people claim to have invented the rubber stamp by 1860. A furniture maker for Illinois putting a mark/stamp on all the products he made to a dentist in New York making molds for dentures. Either way the rubber stamp was created by using the process of vulcanization to keep the rubber hard in all temperatures.

Making a rubber stamp isn't very difficult if you have some artistic abilities. You must collect the following materials to make the stamp. The items include latex rubber, wood for the mounting blocks, adhesive-backed padding that is placed between the rubber and the block, and adhesive-backed labels. You will also a need a carving knife. All of these items are produced by specialty manufacturers who supply them to rubber stamp makers.

A basic rubber stamp is to carve out the image you want on the latex rubber or even a large eraser. Make sure the image is raised on the surface. You will have to carve out around the image to make sure the image is raised. The last part of making the stamp is to use adhesive tape and connect the rubber stamp to the wooden block. Once you have your stamp made press onto ink or paint then onto the surface you want the permanent stamp.

A more difficult rubber stamp is using the vulcanization process. You will need someone that knows the process of heating the rubber image in a vulcanizer to perform this process. This stamp would be a better quality stamp that would be able to use multiple times.

There are multiple uses for custom made rubber stamps in the business world. From authorized signatures to document messaging, stamps are found across desks in offices all over the country. We have been using them for over a century and will continue doing so well into the future. Visit www.newfossil.com to get your custom rubber stamps.