Question: Heel on round gravers?

Doc Mark

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This is probably obvious to many of you but I was surprised recently by a jeweler friend who does a little engraving. He said that he puts a heel on his round gravers. I've only ground a face on the graver and polished the belly to a high shine. Do any of you put a HEEL on you round gravers? And if so, is it a very short heel or a longer one? "Inquiring minds want to know."
 

monk

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well intended forum members goaded (actually shamed) me into trying heels on round gravers. personally, i find such to be a nusance. i used the round and flats for years without heels. i find that after years of doing things the dumb, stupid way, it's the only way i like to use them. i sometimes bend the graver tang for a bit of hand clearance. my only exception-- flats with a bit of heel are useful for doing hobo nickels. heels on a 90 to 120 is a whole different story.
regardless of other opinions, what works for you, is the way to fly
 

dlilazteca

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I bought les's template to make rounds, I have made both with heal and without, with a round heel I've gotten a little more clarence even working a curved line, trying to avoid heel drag.

Saludos,

Carlos
 
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silverchip

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I have used a heel on my round bottom gravers for years but then again it is mainly for engraving silver. I learned to make my own onglette from John B. for inlays and that also included putting a heel on that tool as well.
 

JJ Roberts

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The onglette is the engraving tool you can do just about any engraving with,H&R scrolls,shading,background removal,bruin hand engraving.Dave is right inlay is an other choice,a little tricky to sharpen by hand. J.J.
 

LVVP

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It is a good idea to make a heel, as mentioned Carlos it is avoid heel drag. Some times I do at the same.
 

Doc Mark

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Thanks guys! I think I'll have to try it on one of my rounds. I was interested since I'm doing a bit more jewelry recently and have been cutting with rounds more than before. Actually, I'm not sure that I've ever used a round except for carving Cameos.
 

Terrezar

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I usualy make my round gravers from steel rods, and turn them down to the size I need. As I do this I sorta lets the graver narrow gradualy towards the tip to make a very long kind of heel. I usualy also makes the "heel" rounded instead of straight conical. I've tried it without anything, but I find it easier to controll this way.
 

Sam

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I don't use actual round gravers much, but when I do (lettering) I sharpen a short 1/4mm heel.
What I do use more than rounds are flat gravers which have a gently rounded 1/4mm heel.
 

phil

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Hi Sam. Hope all is well over on your side of the world. What do you do with round gravers when lettering?
 

dlilazteca

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I don't use actual round gravers much, but when I do (lettering) I sharpen a short 1/4mm heel.
What I do use more than rounds are flat gravers which have a gently rounded 1/4mm heel.

Wow, very interesting please do tell and show.

Saludos,

Carlos
 

rod

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Doc,

This is my first post since May 10.

I was out of touch in my homeland, Scotland, for a few months.

No, I was not eaten by the Loch Ness Monster. My attentions had to be focused, unexpectedly, on some problems with my Highland cottage over there. After other journeys to Iceland, England, and Canada, I am again in my Mendocino workshop, sweating daily over a hot lathe , making flutes, and doing some engraving. I will expand on all this later, in a separate thread.

Regarding round gravers and heels. I use rounds a lot, mostly on silver, and find a brightly polished heel to be an important parameter in the way the tool works. That said, I concede that Sam and others get good results with no heel.

It is very easy to experiment with a round heel in the following way:

First grind and lap the front face, for me 40 degrees works for precious metals.

I form the heel only by buffing with a linen or felt polishing wheel loaded with diamond impregnated wax... not liquid diamond dust, not even a diamond paste that comes out of a syringe, but a stick of hard 'wax'. Why, because it appears to load the polishing wheel and stay clinging to the cloth/felt, and not be thrown off. Specifically, the stick I have is called:

"Micromite Diamond Compound" from:

Lapcraft, Inc.®
195 West Olentangy Street
Powell, OH 43065 USA

CustService@Lapcraft.com
Phone (614) 764-8993 ¨ Sales (800) 432-4748 ¨ FAX (614) 764-1860

It is not expensive, so get several sticks of different grit sizes. I only have one, which is 1/4 micron, 100,000 mesh.

I have recently added a new tool to my engraving bench, the small but powerful Foredom bench grinder/polisher with variable speed. It sits by my elbow, and beside my diamond lapping unit.

Form the round graver heel thus:

Apply the graver it aggressively, or lightly, against the diamond loaded polishing wheel, graver angled downward, cutting face is looking at the floor, so basically it looks like you are trying to blunt the nice crisp cutting edge of the front face, the wheel addressing the underbelly of the round, coming from the back.

In fact, yes, as a side effect, this will slowly blunt the crisp cutting edge!

However, more importantly, at this stage, it will slowly but surely make a very nice, even, rounded, mirror heel. Blunting happens slower than the rounding of the heel, so it will still cut.

I keep looking at the result, under my scope, and have a practice plate in the ball vise, so I can check the cutting action, and test how the graver will start and end a cut. Continue the buffing for a larger pronounced heel, if needed. Finally re-establish the crisp front edge, that has been slightly dulled, by going back to the lapping plate to touch up the front 40 degree front face.

All of the above happens quite fast and efficiently, and you will find a good result that cuts well, mirror finish, and with no scuffing to the finished surface. My sense is that a rounded and mirror finished heel, in this case only, actually burnishes the surface down stream of the cutting edge.

It is a good plan to start with, say, a 3/32 in diameter round graver blank, mounted in your variable speed handpiece, and with the tool spinning fast, applying down onto your graver lapping machine, in a rocking motion, makes a gentle bullet shaped end on the blank. Why, as you grind the front at 40 degrees, the face slowly gets larger and larger and that allows you to experiment with the round diameter size of your graver... all with one tool, until you choose which size of cut you want. All of this can be done at arm's length, so it happens much faster than the description can be read.

Rod
 
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rod

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I must go back and give the leather wheels another try, Brian,

Thanks for that reminder, loaded with diamond, may work quicker, and just as effective.

I also could not help myself getting one of those tiny one inch diameter rubber diamond impregnated lapping wheels that Alex uses for his englette sharpening when stone setting. It fits in your high speed 3/32 shank hand piece, and you can look through the scope as you sharpen by hand, this one:

http://www.grstools.com/tool-sharpening/023-120.html

But it may not be so effective as the soft cloth wheels, in creating an even shaped round heel?

best

Rod
 

Brian Marshall

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There's also an abrasive impregnated rubber wheel of 4 or 5" diameter that jewelry suppliers sell for cleaning up sprues.

The fine one works for this application as long as you keep moving and don't wear a groove in it. (unless of course you dedicate it to polishing only round gravers)

Won't work with carbide alloys...


Which rounds are you using Rod?

Premade/shaped QC, HSS, old school carbon steel or shaping your own outta M42 or one of the carbide alloys?


Brian
 
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Sam

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Welcome back, Rod!! I was thinking about you this evening and wondering how you'd been. Seems I remember you being in Scotland for awhile. Nice to see you again!
 

Sam

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Hi Sam. Hope all is well over on your side of the world. What do you do with round gravers when lettering?

Hi Phil. I would use rounds for simple, small block lettering jobs where all of the lines are the same width. I would not use a round or rounded graver for Roman style lettering.
 

monk

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rod: am always amazed at what i never think to do. i have diamond powder, and will create a small leather wheel to give this a try. who knows, i may like round heels afterall. thanks for the post
 

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