I know nothing about the folks who commented on writing.
But, if you have a friend, spouse or other, who is close - you might ask them about doing calligraphy for you.
In my case, my wife is an artist and she is the one who has written on all of the rods that I have made over the years.
In our case, we use a quill pen and acrylic ink from Speed Ball or Dick Blick art supplies.
I simply wipe down the blank, my wife does the lettering and then when dry, coat the letting at the same time that I put on the first coat of thread epoxy over the threads.
However, one important thing with respect to the lettering. I do not ever brush the finish that has just been lettered. Rather, I apply a generous coat of finish on both side of the lettering and as the finish is spreading, it will come over the lettering and seal the finish.
If I use a brush on the fresh lettering, there is a chance that the lettering gets smeared. But when applying the first coat of finish I insure that the finish is thin enough to flow well and the finish spreads nicely over the lettering with no change to the lettering.
After the first coat has dried, any succeeding coats can be brushed out with no issues to the lettering that is nicely sealed from the first coat.
Quill, pen and ink as follows:
[
www.dickblick.com]
[
www.dickblick.com]
