When you decide to create custom enamel pins, the standard procedure is simple: you contact your manufacturer, share your design, and request a factory quote. Once your order is confirmed, however, do you know exactly how your pins are manufactured step by step?
Welcome to the definitive factory guide. Below, we break down the precise 11-step manufacturing process of how premium zinc alloy enamel pins are made inside the Jiayue Pins facility.
Step 1:Order Confirmation & Setup
From a factory perspective, every pin project begins when we receive a request for quotation (RFQ) from a client. When customers send their design requirements via email or our online quote form, our dedicated sales team replies with a comprehensive quotation detailing pin sizing, plating options, backing posts, and quantities. Once the quote is approved, payment is securely completed through PayPal or bank transfer, and our design team immediately begins preparing the official manufacturing artwork proof.
Step 2:Technical Artwork Proof Preparation
The artwork proof (or mockup) is a vital technical blueprint showing every detail of your future pin. It explicitly dictates the manufacturing process (Hard Enamel vs. Soft Enamel), electroplating requirements, exact Pantone Solid Coated color numbers, screen-printed details, custom back-stamps, post locations, and special upgrades like epoxy, glitter, or glow-in-the-dark effects. This document ensures the finished product looks exactly as intended. Once the customer reviews and signs off on the mockup, real factory production begins.
Step 3: High-Precision Mold Engraving
With the artwork approved, the digital vectors are sent to our high-speed mold engraving department. In the pin industry, factories use two main types of molds: iron stamps (primarily used for striking classic iron pins, coins, and medals) and zinc alloy die-casting molds. Because zinc alloy is the premier choice for complex, irregular shapes, this article focuses on the zinc alloy process. Using program-controlled CNC cutting knives, we carefully carve a front mold (the face of your design) and, if required, a custom back mold to stamp your corporate brand logo onto the reverse side.
Step 4: Blank Pin Form Production (Die-Casting)
When a pin design features highly irregular borders, 3D relief layers, or cutout holes, zinc alloy is the ideal material choice. To form the base metal structure, the front and back molds are securely locked into an industrial zinc alloy die-casting machine. High-purity zinc alloy is melted to a liquid state and injected into the hollow cavity between the molds under massive physical pressure. Once cooled, the molds open, and a solid, raw metal blank pin is born. Technicians carefully remove the pins from the casting runners and trim away any micro-burrs to leave a completely smooth edge profile.
Step 5: Fixing the Backing Spur Needles
The next step is the precise attachment of the backing spur needles, or posts. Utilizing specialized welding machinery, the metal pins are fused firmly onto the back of each zinc alloy blank. (Note: At this stage, the order of operations shifts based on style. Hard enamel pins move directly to color-filling before electroplating, whereas soft enamel pins are electroplated first before the color is injected. Let’s follow our premium hard enamel production line).
Step 6: Artisan Hand-Coloring & Industrial Baking
For custom, boutique creator orders, pins are meticulously color-filled by hand using precision syringes. To guarantee crisp line separation and prevent colors from bleeding into one another, only one color field is applied at a time. After a single color is injected, the pins are placed into an industrial oven for over 2 hours to dry completely. This cycle is repeated for every color in the design. This intense consumption of manual labor, production time, and electricity is why pins with higher color counts carry a slightly premium cost. For large wholesale orders, we utilize automated color-dispensing machines to optimize speed.
Step 7: Multi-Stage Surface Polishing
Once all the hard enamel colors have been applied and thoroughly baked dry, the pins have a rough, overfilled surface. They are first sent to coarse scouring wheels to grind down the excess enamel, ensuring the metal lines and color fields are completely flush. Afterward, they are buffed against fine polishing cloth wheels to eliminate micro-scratches and give the metal lines a brilliant, glass-like shine.
Step 8: Chemical Electroplating
Following the polishing phase, the raw metal frames undergo industrial electroplating. If a customer requires a black nickel finish, for example, the polished pins are submerged in specialized chemical plating baths filled with liquid black nickel. Through a precise electrolysis reaction, positive ions bond permanently to the exposed metal surfaces. This creates a brilliant, durable, and rust-proof finish—whether you choose Gold, Nickel, Bronze, or Black Nickel.
Step 9: High-Detail Screen Printing
When a design features intricate details that are too small for metal lines or liquid enamel (such as text gradients, facial features, or tiny logos), we apply precision silkscreen printing. Just like the enamel process, each ink color is applied individually through a custom silk mesh screen and dried thoroughly before the next layer is printed. After screen printing, your hard enamel pins are officially complete and fully rendered.
Step 10: Final Quality Control (QC) & Packing
Quality control is embedded throughout our entire workflow; before any department starts a new step, the batch is verified against the original signed artwork proof. Once final production concludes, our QC team manually checks every individual pin under bright lights for blemishes or paint errors. Flawless pieces are fitted with their specified attachments (rubber clutches or butterfly clutches) and sealed into individual protective OPP bags. To support ethical and environmental initiatives, we also offer bio-degradable paper bag packaging upon request.
Step 11: Secure International Delivery
Your custom merchandise is now ready to ship to the global market. Small and medium orders are packed into heavily padded FedEx or DHL express bags, while large wholesale quantities are packed into heavy-duty corrugated cartons and palletized. Whether your order travels via express air courier or economical sea freight, we ensure it arrives safely at your doorstep.
Ready to Start Your Next Collection?
That is the comprehensive journey of how a raw sheet of metal transforms into a retail-ready enamel pin. For die-struck iron pins, medals, challenge coins, or police badges, the metal-forming process relies on physical stamping hammers rather than liquid injection. To see how that process differs, feel free to read our companion guide: How to Make Enamel Pins with Iron Material.
Have an artwork file ready for production? Upload your design today, and we will evaluate your file to provide direct factory recommendations and a free production quote within 24 hours.
