What grit diamond pads do you use?
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What grit diamond pads do you use?
For you guys who use diamond flat lap pads, what grit pads do you use? When do you go to pre-polish pads? When do you go to a cerium or pumice polish?
Thanks for the advice.
Steph
Thanks for the advice.
Steph
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Found the answer in the archive
I found the answer to this question in the archives - Marty says he uses 60, 120, 270 and then a finishing pad. Is that right, Marty?
Steph
Steph
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Re: What grit diamond pads do you use?
There was a whole thread on this over craftwebSteph Mader wrote:For you guys who use diamond flat lap pads, what grit pads do you use? When do you go to pre-polish pads? When do you go to a cerium or pumice polish?
Thanks for the advice.
Steph
As I recall with diomond they tend 2 wear in one bit if U not carefull
Also they scratch realy deep like a glass cutter
So some finish on grit
I think used carefully they R cost effective it U got the volume of work
But 4 hobby / little use expensive
We use diomond grinding wheels n grit on flat bed
Marty there was a real good bit from Bob ( his ) on refreshing a diomond pad
The jist was using this method u got a faster cut over its life but it wore out quicker
But with ur time was cost efective
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grinding
It's an expensive habit: yesterday's UPS delivery had one 45 grit x24" and one 140 grit x 24" diameter pad from HIS. I'm scared to open the invoice but it'll be close to US$1300.
I'm turning out a lot of work and time=money so I can justify the expense. I don't have room for 3 SiCa loose grit machines (yes, Brian, there are limits to my space larceny!) and I don't want to risk the contamination from one machine to the next.
My current grinding regimen, subject to change without notice, is to rough cut the edge of my bowls on the diamond tile saw, then go to the lap: 45, sometimes 80, 140, sandblast with 180 SiCa. If I want a sort-of-polish, I'll go from the 140 to 270, pre-polish (600?), and cerium on a synthetic felt pad. It ain't perfect, but it's close enough for me, now.
Robert (at HIS) suggests that when you get disgusted at the slow cutting speed of the diamond pads when they start to wear out, that you take a carborundum stone and rub it forcefully across the pad: do it dry and make "spokes" from the center out all the way around the pad. This breaks new fractures in the diamonds and exposes new sharp edges. Then turn the machine on and flush with lots of water. He says it shortens the pad's life, but if you were cursing the damned thing anyway, what kind of life was it, eh? And it does work for a while, then you do it again. And again until it doesn't cut at all.
One of the frustrating things is that the used up 45 grit pad does not automatically become a new 80 grit pad. I'm thinking of hanging them from the trees to scare the deer.
I'm turning out a lot of work and time=money so I can justify the expense. I don't have room for 3 SiCa loose grit machines (yes, Brian, there are limits to my space larceny!) and I don't want to risk the contamination from one machine to the next.
My current grinding regimen, subject to change without notice, is to rough cut the edge of my bowls on the diamond tile saw, then go to the lap: 45, sometimes 80, 140, sandblast with 180 SiCa. If I want a sort-of-polish, I'll go from the 140 to 270, pre-polish (600?), and cerium on a synthetic felt pad. It ain't perfect, but it's close enough for me, now.
Robert (at HIS) suggests that when you get disgusted at the slow cutting speed of the diamond pads when they start to wear out, that you take a carborundum stone and rub it forcefully across the pad: do it dry and make "spokes" from the center out all the way around the pad. This breaks new fractures in the diamonds and exposes new sharp edges. Then turn the machine on and flush with lots of water. He says it shortens the pad's life, but if you were cursing the damned thing anyway, what kind of life was it, eh? And it does work for a while, then you do it again. And again until it doesn't cut at all.
One of the frustrating things is that the used up 45 grit pad does not automatically become a new 80 grit pad. I'm thinking of hanging them from the trees to scare the deer.
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Does the 80 grit take off material pretty fast?
Okay, to be honest we're really talking laziness now. I have at this point about even brains/money. So I'm interested in taking material off pretty quick on the first pass. I cast stuff, so I'm grinding the feeder gate area after I haven't cut it just perfect, and sometimes the rim of a vessel, stuff like that. But sometimes I want to take a lot of material off as soon as possible. Someone mentioned that a 100 carbide is more like a 50 diamond... true? How coarse would you start to take the material off?
Steph
Steph
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Re: Does the 80 grit take off material pretty fast?
We used 2 use a 26 grit silicon carbide wheel we now use a 30/40 diomond wheelSteph Mader wrote:Okay, to be honest we're really talking laziness now. I have at this point about even brains/money. So I'm interested in taking material off pretty quick on the first pass. I cast stuff, so I'm grinding the feeder gate area after I haven't cut it just perfect, and sometimes the rim of a vessel, stuff like that. But sometimes I want to take a lot of material off as soon as possible. Someone mentioned that a 100 carbide is more like a 50 diamond... true? How coarse would you start to take the material off?
Steph
Its better faster less fractures cleaner
Diomond gives a faster finer cut than a courcer silicon carbide
There is more chat on this over craftweb
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tornado
If you're looking for a disc for stock removal on an angle grinder rather than a flat lap you should look at this page.
http://www.granquartz.com/gdwheels.htm
There's a disc in the tornado group that is 36 grit diamond. It's built for hours of heavy grinding. You have to have the right kind of backing mount for it.
http://www.granquartz.com/gdwheels.htm
There's a disc in the tornado group that is 36 grit diamond. It's built for hours of heavy grinding. You have to have the right kind of backing mount for it.
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Hi Suzan,
A flat lap is a large wheel similar to a potters' wheel that has an abrasive disk or loose abrasive in a liquid slurry on it. As the wheel rotates, the edge, base, or other portion of a glass object is brought in contact with the wheel where the contacting surface is subsequently ground flat. These cost from $1000 to several thousand dollars depending on size, configuration and the number of diamond abrasive disks that you want to invest in. http://www.hisglassworks.com/pages/20grind.html
The hand grinders are right angle electric or pneumatic devices similar to drills that have abrasive pads attached to the spindle. Water is sprayed onto the worksurface either through the spindle or from the side to keep the diamonds cool, the glass wet and to keep the dust under control. http://www.mytoolstore.com/mk/1503.html
I hope this helps.
Tony
A flat lap is a large wheel similar to a potters' wheel that has an abrasive disk or loose abrasive in a liquid slurry on it. As the wheel rotates, the edge, base, or other portion of a glass object is brought in contact with the wheel where the contacting surface is subsequently ground flat. These cost from $1000 to several thousand dollars depending on size, configuration and the number of diamond abrasive disks that you want to invest in. http://www.hisglassworks.com/pages/20grind.html
The hand grinders are right angle electric or pneumatic devices similar to drills that have abrasive pads attached to the spindle. Water is sprayed onto the worksurface either through the spindle or from the side to keep the diamonds cool, the glass wet and to keep the dust under control. http://www.mytoolstore.com/mk/1503.html
I hope this helps.
Tony
The tightrope between being strange and being creative is too narrow to walk without occasionally landing on both sides..." Scott Berkun
Thanks, Tony. This is what I needed to know (the flat lap ain't in my budget for now )
However, the angle grinder is a possibility. So far, all my slumped pieces have a rough surface from contact with the mold; will the angle grinder get the glass back to the same glossy surface you usually get on the side of the glass that doesn't contact the mold?
Hi Suzan,
A flat lap is a large wheel similar to a potters' wheel that has an abrasive disk or loose abrasive in a liquid slurry on it. As the wheel rotates, the edge, base, or other portion of a glass object is brought in contact with the wheel where the contacting surface is subsequently ground flat. These cost from $1000 to several thousand dollars depending on size, configuration and the number of diamond abrasive disks that you want to invest in. http://www.hisglassworks.com/pages/20grind.html
The hand grinders are right angle electric or pneumatic devices similar to drills that have abrasive pads attached to the spindle. Water is sprayed onto the worksurface either through the spindle or from the side to keep the diamonds cool, the glass wet and to keep the dust under control. http://www.mytoolstore.com/mk/1503.html
I hope this helps.
Tony[/quote]
However, the angle grinder is a possibility. So far, all my slumped pieces have a rough surface from contact with the mold; will the angle grinder get the glass back to the same glossy surface you usually get on the side of the glass that doesn't contact the mold?
Hi Suzan,
A flat lap is a large wheel similar to a potters' wheel that has an abrasive disk or loose abrasive in a liquid slurry on it. As the wheel rotates, the edge, base, or other portion of a glass object is brought in contact with the wheel where the contacting surface is subsequently ground flat. These cost from $1000 to several thousand dollars depending on size, configuration and the number of diamond abrasive disks that you want to invest in. http://www.hisglassworks.com/pages/20grind.html
The hand grinders are right angle electric or pneumatic devices similar to drills that have abrasive pads attached to the spindle. Water is sprayed onto the worksurface either through the spindle or from the side to keep the diamonds cool, the glass wet and to keep the dust under control. http://www.mytoolstore.com/mk/1503.html
I hope this helps.
Tony[/quote]