Thread: Lapping Naniwas

Where can I get a DMT 325? The ones I found seem to be around 60 bucks or so, so I was wondering if there was a cheaper option.
Thanks for the advice.

Edit: I found this one for 37ish bucks including shipping. http://www.amazon.com/DMT-W6CP-Diamo...bxgy_hi_text_c
Is that what everyone is referring to?

Or would some of these work?

DMT 4" Dia-Sharp Diamond Stone

American Made in USA Products DMT Dia-Sharp Diamond Bench Stone Sharpener, Coarse, 4 in. - Lowest Prices of American Made Products - All Products Made in USA

Buy DMT 6” Dia-Sharp Continuous Diamond Bench Stone, Extra-Coarse at Woodcraft.com

Dia-Sharp Diamond Bench Stone Sharpener, Coarse, 4 in. - DMT

Dia-Sharp Diamond Bench Stone Sharpener, Coarse, 6 in. - DMT

I wonder if the smaller ones would work since they are so cheap. It'd only be 12 bucks for a 4 inch by 1 inch plate.

Last I checked, the lowest prices I found where here: Diamond Sharpening

I have a 6 inch DMT Coarse and find it to be smaller than I would like, but it works. I personally would not recommend the 4 inch version.

IMO the best thing for lapping is the DMT D8XX and a nagura. If I can ever get my hands on an Atoma 140x then I may replace the DMT XX but for now the DMT will have to do. I look at it like why screw around with fine plates that stick to stones when you can make fewer non-sticking passes and be done with it? Use the nagura on the finishing/polishing stones to smooth the surface and you're golden.

If you learn to "read the stone" there's no need for drawing on stones before flattening. You'll flatte faster and loose less stone too. What I mean by "reading the stone" (in this sense anyway) is that you can clearly see the low spots as darker shades of the stone's color not to mention the obvious black streaks being steel on the surface. If you remove the black streaks and then work onwards to reduce the height of the lighter shaded sections (the high spots) you will then be working into the darker shaded sections (the low spots) and they'll go light and match up to the rest of the stone. You just have to look and this will be very clear. Drawing pencil lines works as well by why bother? One thing not to do is to use a marker because stones are porous and soak the marker into and beneath the surface causing you to remove more stone than necessary (AKA - chasing your tail).

Dave

I agree that if you know what you're looking for, you don't necessairly need a grid, but I don't think not using a grid will cause you to "flatte faster and loose less stone too." For a new guy, using a grid is certainly helpful as a learning tool.

BTW, if you're really concerned about losing less stone, don't use the DMTXX + nagura. The XX does lap faster, but it also scratches deeper. Using the nagura to remove those scratch marks is taking off more stone than you need to (of course this is a minimal amount, but if one is going to raise the argument of removing the minimal amount of hone, I think it's relevant). Not to mention you need to be careful of what "nagura" you use - one that breaks down can contaminate your hone. But I have no idea what you mean when you say "nagura" so that's more something for others to be findful og.

holli, the contamination issue is a myth - it just doesn't happen. In all the lapping I've done in all the ways I've done it I can honestly tell you that only one time I can recall anything imbedding in a stone and that was fine green silicon carbide into a soft polishing stone (the perfect scenario).

On hone wear, I shouldn't have said that the pencil marking causes someone to wear a stone faster - quite true it doesn't, I was thinking in my mind the magic marker trick. The thing I see the pencil trick doing is to cause someone not to lap enough.

On the XX plate being too rough and removing too much, that's not true either. It only removes what you tell it too and if you stop when the shading is even then you've got no waste at all. The theory of it cutting more than needed (from deep gouging) makes sense in theory but in a practical way it's somewhat nonsense.

Maybe I'm thinking too much like a knife guy who flattens 15+ stones multiple times a day. I'm thinking about processing a problem from a standpoint of efficiency rather than theory.