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Great lapping sandpaper for heavy duty work
So I just got in an escher, and it had a gouge in it about 3/32" deep, maybe a touch more (see pics). I started going at it with the D8C per usual, but it was sllooww going. Also, I didn't want to keep a constant stream of water on it as I usual do, for fear of completely wiping out the label before I've even thoroughly read and enjoyed it.
In the past, I've had terrible luck with norton and 3m w/d sand papers wearing out really quickly when lapping and therefore making lapping take forever. I've tried 320 grit and 600 grit for the w/d for lapping. This is why I love the D8C, because it's fast.
Enter 3M "sandblaster" 120 grit sandpaper. Bought it at advanced auto for $5 per pack of 3 (I got the 9x11 sheets but they make 3.5x9 or something too). Wow, this is good stuff. I took the entire gouge out of the escher (vintage thuringian) with ONE sheet in under a half an hour. It was literally just pouring slurry out at a rate that put the D8C to shame. This paper says it lasts 3x longer and resists clogging, and I was very skeptical, but I have to say that I'm impressed. I didn't have to rinse much at all, it really does just keep trucking and not clogging up.
Now, to be fair, I've not tried any regular 120 grit w/d paper for lapping, so for all I know this is the norm. Also, these vintage thuringians are quite soft from what I can tell and lap quickly anyway. But still, I'm very impressed with this paper. If I had tried to do this job with the D8C, it would have taken AT LEAST 2 hours. Probably much longer.
Here are some pics of the progress. I did some finish work on the D8C just to smooth things out.
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