Draw Plate Suggestions?
- Thread starter Beathard
- Start date
Beathard,I suggest a tungsten carbide draw plate,spent the extra money it's worth it.Got mine from Gesswein. J.J.
Brian Marshall
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I also use carbide - but the much cheaper tool steel draw plates will work fine too...
Simply take a toothpick and charge it with triploli. Chuck it in your flexshaft handpiece and polish the insides of the holes and tapers.
You can finish with Zam if you want an even higher polish.
We used them for 20 years at the shop in Taxco, Mex. without problems - but we kept them polished and we greased them when they were not in use.
It seems that the imported steel drawplates nowadays are all lacking in that final step?
Brian
Ummm... try parafin (candle stubs) not beeswax as a lubricant when you draw the wire.
Works better in IMHO. (It's the basic ingredient in all the fancy overpriced lubes sold by jewelry suppliers)
Simply take a toothpick and charge it with triploli. Chuck it in your flexshaft handpiece and polish the insides of the holes and tapers.
You can finish with Zam if you want an even higher polish.
We used them for 20 years at the shop in Taxco, Mex. without problems - but we kept them polished and we greased them when they were not in use.
It seems that the imported steel drawplates nowadays are all lacking in that final step?
Brian
Ummm... try parafin (candle stubs) not beeswax as a lubricant when you draw the wire.
Works better in IMHO. (It's the basic ingredient in all the fancy overpriced lubes sold by jewelry suppliers)
Last edited:
James Roettger
Elite Cafe Member
Tungsten carbide plates can be had for good prices now days. Be sure it goes down very fine like .26mm. Also keep in mind that wire larger than 2mm almost requires a draw bench to pull. My plate covers 2.80mm down to .26mm and is the prefect range for hand pulling.
oiseau metal arts
Elite Cafe Member
i too use the tungsten...... you can find them on ebay too.
rod
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
"... Simply take a toothpick and charge it with triploli. Chuck it in your flexshaft handpiece and polish the
insides of the holes and tapers..."
Brian, I do like your tip about polishing with a toothpick charged with a cutting paste, like Tripoli!
I find that a standard toothpick will nicely fit the 3/32 inch diameter collet of an electric 20,000 rpm hand piece. I then get it spinning as I fashion the wood nose, against the revolving graver lap disc, to a perfect cone or bullet nose, running concentrically. Following Brian's tip, load it with your tripoli, or any grade of diamond paste, and it makes a great finish lap, tipoli cuts steel, diamond paste will lap carbide. In my gilded flare cut procedure, I can remove any tiny area of gilding that I missed on the silver surface, while under the 'scope.
While we are on the subject of Tripoli and diamond paste., smear some from your finger onto a sheet of white paper, and spread it around. When placed on a flat surface plate, or sheet of glass, this give a good lapping or final polish to flat objects.
Rod
insides of the holes and tapers..."
Brian, I do like your tip about polishing with a toothpick charged with a cutting paste, like Tripoli!
I find that a standard toothpick will nicely fit the 3/32 inch diameter collet of an electric 20,000 rpm hand piece. I then get it spinning as I fashion the wood nose, against the revolving graver lap disc, to a perfect cone or bullet nose, running concentrically. Following Brian's tip, load it with your tripoli, or any grade of diamond paste, and it makes a great finish lap, tipoli cuts steel, diamond paste will lap carbide. In my gilded flare cut procedure, I can remove any tiny area of gilding that I missed on the silver surface, while under the 'scope.
While we are on the subject of Tripoli and diamond paste., smear some from your finger onto a sheet of white paper, and spread it around. When placed on a flat surface plate, or sheet of glass, this give a good lapping or final polish to flat objects.
Rod
Brian Marshall
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
If you cook much, you should have bamboo skewers around. They work better yet. Bamboos is tough stuff!
B.
B.
rod
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Another good tip, Brian!
You are right, bamboo is great stuff... and... a yearly plant, and not a tree. China is doing so much with bamboo and resin these days, and you can make really good flooring, workbench slabs etc., from it.
I will give it a try with a chunk of my chop sticks!
Rod
You are right, bamboo is great stuff... and... a yearly plant, and not a tree. China is doing so much with bamboo and resin these days, and you can make really good flooring, workbench slabs etc., from it.
I will give it a try with a chunk of my chop sticks!
Rod
Brian Marshall
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Yes, I use bamboo chopsticks in the shop too. Not for polishing, for a certain technique setting very fragile stones.
Riding a tour bike down through Oregon a coupla years back I stopped at a bicycle shop where they had one of the first bamboo framed bikes made in down in Santa Cruz... I sure wish I could have afforded one.
You could lift the thing with one finger. On the test ride I took (after I got out of sight of the shop) I went off a few curbs and up a couple - not too gently either. Then I cranked it up as fast as these old legs could go. Just the right amount of flex in the frame.
I left convinced that it was as good as any carbon fiber frame. In some ways better. It is renewable...
B.
Riding a tour bike down through Oregon a coupla years back I stopped at a bicycle shop where they had one of the first bamboo framed bikes made in down in Santa Cruz... I sure wish I could have afforded one.
You could lift the thing with one finger. On the test ride I took (after I got out of sight of the shop) I went off a few curbs and up a couple - not too gently either. Then I cranked it up as fast as these old legs could go. Just the right amount of flex in the frame.
I left convinced that it was as good as any carbon fiber frame. In some ways better. It is renewable...
B.
Brian Marshall
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Back to the drawplates - Swiss, German and French tool steel are my favorites. I have some also from Spain and one from Italy.
Polishing the square and triangular holes can be a real PITA... but those shapes you will not easily find in carbide, so you have little choice.
B.
Polishing the square and triangular holes can be a real PITA... but those shapes you will not easily find in carbide, so you have little choice.
B.
PAUL LANTUCH
Elite Cafe Member
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2008
- Messages
- 208
I find a steel is easy worn, changing diameters. Rio Grande has china made tungsten draw plates for very reasonable price in their catalogue.
diandwill
Elite Cafe Member
I have 2 steel ones, one I acquired and another I bought, because I didn't like the first. Now I use a carbide. It works like a charm. I'll have to try the toothpick/bamboo trick, and maybe I'll have 3 drawplates. I use 3-1 as a lube, should try the wax, it would be cleaner, but the oil is really easy to apply! LOL
Hears a suggestion I got about pliers to draw the wire from Ray Viramontez,take a pair of needle nose pliers and grind them down to fit the hole in the back of draw plate to get a better grip on the wire. J.J.
mitch
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2007
- Messages
- 2,636
on the topic of drawing wire- here's a slick way to taper it:
http://www.engraversstudio.com/apps/vblog/Video/View.aspx?id=69d5a1b428
this technique also has the advantage of making a work-hardened end to grip with the pliers. i've done it this way for many years and can easily taper wire down to virtually nothing.
http://www.engraversstudio.com/apps/vblog/Video/View.aspx?id=69d5a1b428
this technique also has the advantage of making a work-hardened end to grip with the pliers. i've done it this way for many years and can easily taper wire down to virtually nothing.
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