snetbonaut
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since February 2022
Posts: 129
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Post by snetbonaut on May 16, 2022 19:55:01 GMT -5
The Particulars I have three hedge trimmers. I forget why. My friend Dinesh has a small (6") bench grinder. He also forgets why. I am currently in possession of one of his chainsaws and two of his sawhorses. He has an equivalent number of my stuff. Today he dropped by and borrowed one of the aforementioned hedge trimmers. I asked him if he would consider a permanent trade for the grinder. I'll probably do it no matter how my question is answered. The Dilemma I currently "grind & shape" with a flat lap. I really like it and have learned a ton about how to get out little flaws and chips without flattening an entire face. There is actually something soothing about about lapping. It's great until there is something close to a naturally-occuring right or acute angle that needs a little touch up. I'm not willing (able?) to sink big bucks into a cabbing machine and have begun to gravitate toward smaller (<10cm) slabs and odd shapes. Six or eight wheels would be massive overkill. The Question(s) So, presuming that I pull the trigger, can a garden variety bench grinder converted to use a buffing wheel and an/or an expanding drum or diamond wheel? Would I have to jury rig a coolant gizmo or for small blemishes and angles can I do without it? What part of this is going to end up embedded in my garage wall? Am I the only person who uses gel finger cots with a flat lap? If you could be any rock you wanted to be, what would your Mohs be? Please answer at least one of the questions above.
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Post by rmf on May 17, 2022 6:53:52 GMT -5
Standard bench grinders as you know are not designed to work with water. As your question refers to coolant you do understand that lapidary grinders are different for a reason. The two big issues are heat and dust. Diamond wheels do not like heat. Heat releases the diamonds either by melting plastic or the metal that holds the diamonds resulting in a worn out wheel. Heat on the stone results in cracking. Then there is dust. Many of the lapidary materials are Agates and Jaspers which are all Quartz family members. This dust is hard on lungs causing silicosis. Other minerals like Malachite, Azurite, Cuprite are copper family minerals and they tend to be toxic when inhaled. These are but a few examples. I am sure there are people on here that have reworked a bench grinder. My personal preference would be not to rework buy one optimized for the job to start. Look for an older used 2 wheel lapidary grinder like and old Lortone or Beacon Star where you can just swap the wheel you want to use. It is more time consuming if you cab but takes up less room and is cheaper. BTW I have used my SiC Lapidary grinding wheel to sharpen mower blades and everything a bench grinder will do and I have water coolant when needed.
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Post by manofglass on May 17, 2022 10:54:19 GMT -5
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rockbrain
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2022
Posts: 2,487
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Post by rockbrain on May 17, 2022 18:54:10 GMT -5
Bench grinders are usually a much higher RPM than what you should be using. Have you considered a Dremel type tool?
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Post by hummingbirdstones on May 17, 2022 21:46:32 GMT -5
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