Loading a Ceramic or Iron Cast lap with diamond powder or spray. [photo]

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Let me make it clear, I’m not saying a GRS diamond spray is expensive…. But
I use a ceramic lap to polish C-Max gravers.

Chris DeCamillis shows a Iron Casted lap on one of his Bulino DVD. So a year ago I bought a GRS Iron cast lap as to me it made sense that after loading the lap, I could use it for a long time.

The manual that comes with the lap let you load the Iron one with the GRS diamond spray.
Well, let me tell you, don’t do that.
The GRS diamond spray contains water. You have to start loading the Iron lap by using Acetone or something similar to take of all the oils.
Then you have to spray on the Iron lap and wait till it dried. What happens is that the iron gets rusted.

So I was thinking a while to enter a diamond lapidary toolshop to find out how diamond lapidary craftsmen load their iron laps.
After all Antwerp is or was the Diamond City.
So I bought me two different grid diamond powder bags and a kind of liquid that is used most.

They make a mix using a few drops of that liquid with the diamond powder. Then you have to well work that mix into the metal.

I will let you know how it works
The price surprised me; two carat powder and a bottle of liquid = 6 euro.
It should work on the Ceramic lap as well.

arnaud

 

[Beladran]

This may be a silly question but people have been using leather strops to hone blades for hundreds of years. Could you glue some strop leather on a old wore out disc an get the same results? Power strop sounds like a cool idea

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

There are no silly questions, only silly answers.
I use a leather strip glued on a piece of wood to hand polish metal. Works the best and works on all metals.

To polish Titanium I used the same tools with the GRS Diamond spray on it, but now that I write this, I will spend some carats of diamonds to find out how it works on Ti.

If the diamond powder can polish diamonds, it should polish everything.

arnaud

 

[mrthe]

Thank you for the tip Arnaud very interesting

 

[silverchip]

I have heard that from old methods that they used olive oil with diamond powder to charge laps for polishing diamonds and other gem stones too. Would that be correct??

 

[Willem Parel]

Interesting thought Arnaud, I do have diamond powder ( boort they call it here) and some times I polisch a
worn down cabochon stone with it.
But using it for polisching gravers didn't come to my mind, thanks for bringing this up, I will try.

In meanwhile I was typing Dave came with his post, yes Dave I polish the stones with olive oil and diamond powder, it works great.
But I never used it on a cast lap, only leather or feld.

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Dave that could be correct olive oil and diamond powder. But now a days there are other liquids than olive oil. The bottle I bought, isn't really only oil, of course I don't know the ingredients.
The diamond lapidary tool shop also sells oils instead of what I bought.
To answer Willem's question, as far as I know most gem stones are polished on Iron casted laps, only a cabochon probably need another way.

Thing is that the diamond powder is that cheap, you can spoil some carats to find out how to polish whatever you like to polish.

I used the GRS diamond spray on leather to remove some scratches on the object finder and screen of my old Nikon Coolpix 5700. And it worked perfect.


arnaud

 

[DakotaDocMartin]

The diamond I use for lapidary comes color coded and in syringes and is known as "diamond compound" made by Crystalite. The diamond is mixed with a colored stuff that's like a grease. That would work just fine for cast iron laps and there would be no rusting. It is applied by putting many small dots of the compound all over the disc and then massaging it in with a fingertip. There is a clear liquid that I think is mineral oil they call Crystalube that is used to spread the diamond and lubricate the surface of the disc. If it works for lapidary, it would work for graver polishing, etc. also.

 

[Willem Parel]

Arnaud, in your first pic I see the labels of the company with adress and phone number, did you get in person or did you order it there?
I am running out on boort ( I see on the label they called it also like that) so if possible I would like to get some more and would like to order.
I see a white label and a green label, is there a difference in grid or so?

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Willem I bought it in Antwerp in a diamond lapidary tool shop. It is not the Belgium company on the package. The shop just sells tools from different brands.
And yes the green and white are different grid. They are labeled by the color.
One and a half euro a carat I paid.

arnaud

 

[tundratrekers@mtaonline.n]

Arnaud,
I believe you need an lap plate for each grit.

michael

 

[Willem Parel]

Ah well, I think I will give this company on the label a call, the might able to help me out or give me a adress where to order.
Thanks for the info.

 

[Willem Parel]

Arnaud,
I believe you need an lap plate for each grit.

michael

I think you're right Michael because of the loading.

 

[Brian Marshall]

You definitely need a different lap for each grit. And you need to "wipe" before contacting the next finer lap - to keep from contamination.

Arnaud, you'll find that 1 carat won't really go very far, at least if you sharpen for a jewelry "bright cut" a lot.

I clean my laps in an ultrasonic with a degreaser. Sometimes even steam them. Dry them immediately and carefully.

Put a light coat of whatever you prefer on BOTH sides and edges of the iron laps to prevent rust. (oil, grease, synthetic)

Try using a one inch (25mm) piece of round tool steel about 6" long to roll over the grit and embed it in the iron surface. (DO NOT do this with ceramic - it won't embed in ceramic, just kinda floats around on the surface)

I use water with drop or two of dishwashing detergent (surfactant) on the ceramic - and mineral oil on the iron lap.

Never had a problem with either...



Brian

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Brian, I have no problems neither. I have a carbide steel triangle to load the diamond into the iron lap that came with the lap. My point is that it doesn't work trying to load that iron lap with that 1 carat diamond powder in the diamonds pray.
Buying a carat pure diamond powder and the right oil will do better.

About the different grid who needs that? Do someone use 5 GRS ceramic laps for all the different GRS diamond grid sprays?

Arnaud

 

[Tom Curran]

Gesswein, DME, and other mold polishing suppliers carry the Diamond lapping compound. It comes in a syringe, with the diamond in a grease base, color coded for the grit size.

And, yes, you'd need a different wheel for each grit.

Here is a sample link to Jamestown Distributors: http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=56066

Also try Enco, MSC, McMaster-Carr.

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Tom, why would I want to order the Diamond lapping compound from Jamestown Distributors, I don't get your point.
Neither do I understand why I would want to buy more iron cast laps, one for every grid.

I have one GRS iron cast lap, bought 2 carat BOORT in Antwerp and the right liquid to load that lap to polish gravers. and it costs only 6 euro (8 dollar) and will work better than the GRS manual that comes with the lap
So I'm just sharing knowledge, I don't have a problem?

And here is another great tip:
There are two sides on a lap, you can load two different grid on one lap.

Thats is all

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Read the GRS instructions to load the iron cast lap, here is the link http://www.grstools.com/PDF/LIT-322_CastIron.pdf

It says you spray 6 - 8 full sprays of the GRS diamond spray and let it dry, but they don't say your lap then will be rusted, but it will.

So I'm only pointing on the bad manual instructions and point to a better and cheaper solution.

thanks, arnaud

 

[tundratrekers@mtaonline.n]

Arnaud,
The diamond wont charge an ceramic lap.
The cast iron will allow the diamonds to actually become embeded into the metal,not just on the surface like is on ceramic.
Thats why you need an cast iron lap(or other side) for each grit,as you cant wash it off ,like on ceramic.
Re read Brians post.
michael

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Michael did I say I was gonna load a ceramic lap?

I really can't figure out why some
Of you keep telling me that I need a iron lap for each grid and neither can I figure out why I can't use pure diamond powder on a ceramic lap as long as I don't try to "load" the ceramic one.

In other words: I know what I'm telling in this tread, but don't understand what some of you try to tell me.
It is just out of topic the way I understand it

arnaud