Thread: Shapton DGLP, Worth it?

Shapton Diamond Glass Lapping Plate -

Just wondering, It looks like a great lapping plate but way expensive. How many, (that use or have used it), believe it's worth the money as an investment in stone conditioning?

Thanks for your replies, Dave

Having used one for the past 5 or 6 years I would not buy one if I had it to do over again. The Atoma 1k and the Atoma 4 or 6k would be my choice. Not to say it isn't a good plate, it is, but the Atoma is better for far less $ . IMHO.

I do use it, or rather I used to. Far (and I mean far!) Too much money for what it is.

I use lapidary grit and Atoma diamond plates now.

Regards,
Neil

Ditto to what the others have said, the atoma is the way to go. DGLPs don't have a great life span, and for the price, I'd expect something that would last forever.

Originally Posted by Neil Miller

I do use it, or rather I used to. Far (and I mean far!) Too much money for what it is.

I use lapidary grit and Atoma diamond plates now.

Regards,
Neil

If Diamond or SIC grit is used on a tile plate, how much is enough and what grit for lapping a japser, natural stone, or even a barbers hone?

You pour a small amount of grit on a plate, add enough water to act as a lubricant anf then hone until its time to go onto the next grit or the grit has become degraded and doesn't remove much material. You don't need a lot - less than an egg-cup full or thereabouts. Like most things, you have to try it out and draw your own conclusions.

You can start off using 80 grit, but that is very coarse and it takes a while to get the scratches out, so I use something like 140grit - even on hard stones like CFS and LIs. The finishing is not done with grit, as it 'rounds off' the sides. If you have a couple of grits in diamond plate, say 400, 600 or 1200, then use these to remove any rounding.

Barbers Hones are best left as they are IMO. The top surface once lapped often gives out altogether, or changes the nature of the hone. Barber Hones that have pits where the original material has plucked out are undergoing the first stages of breakdown anyway, and will last longer if you do not lap them.

Regards,
Neil

Regarding the Shapton plates, IIRC the GDLP was/maybe is, cheaper than the Shapton reference plate with the replacement option. At least that is the way it was years ago. In those days Harrellson Stanley, the owner of Shapton USA, and a noted plane blade and chisel honer, had a tutorial on the website where no pencil grid was used, but the color of the hone was the indicator of when the hone was flat. When it was a homogeneous color from one end to the other you were done.

The reference plate looked similar to the DGLP glass plate but was made of steel and lapidary powder, in various grits (IIRC) were used, as Neil posted above. The steel reference plates were quite a bit more but were supposedly dead flat and if you wore one out you could buy a reconditioned plate at a substantial discount. The glass plates were less expensive by a lot and were supposed to be dead flat as well, but no option for a replacement if the plate wore out.

I've had mine for years and done quite a bit of lapping with it. Since it was so expensive I would begin with a DMT D8C 325 and do the bull work. Then finish with the GDLP. Both of them have worn over the years but I still use them as I did before. Now the finish is with the Atoma 1200 and it is unbelievably fast. How long it lasts remains to be seen. One advantage of the DMT D8C is that as it wears it is still quite usable on kitchen knives, pocket knives and that type of thing. The DGLP due to the grooved construction is only good for lapping waterstones, so once it is shot, it is a paper weight. AFAIK, anyway.