Thread: Barber hone lapping

6000-15000 grit Wet & Dry paper on 1/4 plate glass.

PuFF

Originally Posted by PuFFaH

6000-15000 grit Wet & Dry paper on 1/4 plate glass.

PuFF

6,000 ???? Did you add an extra zero?

I use another barber hone. Or rather, the large piece of another barber hone that I broke...

I guess it would depend on how worn it is and how perfect you want it to be. Also cost. I suggested a machine shop to true it because they can level the stone on a surface grinder so that it is perfectly flat, then do some light passes with a diamond wheel to true the top surface. It would then be flipped over and the process repeated. The stone would be squared like new again, the same process I'm guessing they use to square brand new ones.
I brought it up because I used to do this type of machine work. Having done it for as long as I did I'm not sure if I would trust any other method when you could just take your stone up to a decent shop to have them do it for next to nothing. You have to figure how often do you need this done?
I'm not dis-ing the other methods at all. Just that they could take a lot of time or in the case of the DMT money. Just another suggestion in the list of options that would work.

-Brian

Now you have me wondering... just how much would a machine shop charge to surface grind these hones? I have quite a few that need lapping and if the price were right, like $5 each or less, I would spring for it.

Randy- I'd talk to the shop foreman and tell him you do it for a hobby. You might find them doing it as a one off for next to nothing (maybe free). This would be a standard tool and die shop that has some (or a) decent surface grinders.
If I was doing this professionally I might setup an account (or at least save your receipts), you could write this service off on your taxes. Not to mention all sorts of other things they could do for you to save your shop time and money (mill parts, sharpen tools etc.).

-Brian

Randy, Brian,

I have access to and have used a surface grinder, but am not sure that I would choose to use it on a hone. My limited familiarization with the machine is that with it's magnetic table, it's just the cat's PJs for grinding steel. Clamping non-magnetic material could be a real problem and the wheel would have to be much harder than the hone or it would glaze immediately. And I don't have a clue what those hones are made of.

Bruce

Originally Posted by Bruce

Randy, Brian,

I have access to and have used a surface grinder, but am not sure that I would choose to use it on a hone. My limited familiarization with the machine is that with it's magnetic table, it's just the cat's PJs for grinding steel. Clamping non-magnetic material could be a real problem and the wheel would have to be much harder than the hone or it would glaze immediately. And I don't have a clue what those hones are made of.

Bruce

Bruce, Yes most do have a magnetic chuck (surface) that you can turn on and off. You would hold something like a hone in place with steel blocks (scraps) (shorter than the hone of course) due to it being non-ferrous (that's how you would grind any non-ferrous material). I would think a dressed diamond wheel would make short work of leveling out a hone. I might go with a different wheel first (cheaper). But before you run out and buy a surface grinder (kind of heavy ) see what kind of deal a shop would do for you.

Originally Posted by randydance062449

6,000 ???? Did you add an extra zero?

LOL well spotted

read as 600-1500

PuFF

Wouldn't these stones chew up the machine shop's surfacing bits? They are very abrasive after all, and I suspect a carbide bit designed for steel won't take kindly to milling ceramic. For that matter, the barber hones might not take kindly to being milled that way either - many of these hones are very brittle and fragile and can't survive even a drop onto linoleum.