Abstract: A method of manufacturing structural elements in magnetic head air bearing sliders by etching. The invention forms transverse pressure contours on the edges of a slider air bearing surface by first forming slots in a slider blank adjacent the location where air bearing surfaces are to be formed. The slots are filled with an etchable material and the slider blank is machined to form air bearing structures. The etchable material is positioned so as to form a part of the side edge of the air bearing structure. The slider blank is then subjected to an etching process that principally etches the etchable material. By proper positioning and etching, the etchable material forms a transverse pressure contour on the side edge of the air bearing structure. The invention has other uses with respect to forming complex, high precision structures within a slider body. Any structure that can be formed by etching an etchable material away from the bulk material of the slider body can be manufactured.