OregonBorn
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2015
Posts: 88 
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Post by OregonBorn on Feb 25, 2024 1:54:25 GMT -5
Looks like MK Diamond in Torrence CA went under this month. I found this posted on the stone tool contractors web site ( www.contractorsdirect.com/blogs/mk-diamond-annoucement ): So where do I get my saw blades now? Amazon hardly lists any lap saw blades any more. MK Diamond's web site does not list anything about the bankruptcy, so I do not know where any 'designated channels' are being provided. Are we to go to the pastor with a tissue? Apparently all their equipment has been auctioned off. Something about a government Covid loan gone bad? I called their 800 number and all I got was a busy signal.
>>>
MK Diamond
It is with great regret that we announce the bankruptcy of MK Diamond, a company that has been a prominent player in the manufacturing of diamond tools and equipment. Despite its long-standing presence in the industry, MK Diamond has faced insurmountable financial challenges, leading to the difficult decision to cease operations and declare bankruptcy.
This unfortunate development means that MK Diamond will no longer be manufacturing new products. We understand that this news may impact many loyal customers, partners, and employees who have been associated with the brand over the years.
We would like to express our gratitude to all those who have supported MK Diamond throughout its journey. Your trust and patronage have been invaluable, and we deeply regret any inconvenience caused by this situation.
If you have any inquiries or concerns related to this announcement, please reach out to the designated channels provided by MK Diamond for customer support and assistance.
Thank you for your understanding.
Sincerely,
The MK Diamond Team
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realrockhound
Cave Dweller 
Chucking leaverite at tweekers
Member since June 2020
Posts: 4,483
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Post by realrockhound on Feb 25, 2024 2:15:36 GMT -5
And many many more companies to come. Sad state of affairs we’re in.
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Post by creativeness718 on Feb 25, 2024 3:20:25 GMT -5
Kingsley north bought all the blade stock
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Post by parfive on Feb 25, 2024 12:32:41 GMT -5
Funny, not so much as a peep on the website or anywhere else that I can see. May of 2020, PPP loan was peanuts, $350K-$1M for a company w/82 employees. |
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Post by parfive on Feb 25, 2024 12:45:06 GMT -5
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ThomasT
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2022
Posts: 616
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Post by ThomasT on Feb 25, 2024 13:05:37 GMT -5
parfive Thanks for sharing that video clip.
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Post by victor1941 on Feb 25, 2024 16:16:37 GMT -5
Thanks for the update.
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Post by oregon on Feb 26, 2024 18:28:04 GMT -5
The question I have is which blades to buy now?
Not sure about all the implications in the video: The PPP loans sound like the same level as many other businesses. I'm guessing the lapidary end of their business was small compared to construction. Maybe they were just demolished by the pandemic? Chinese competition in the Diamond abrasive space? I don't know, but there isn't anything out there to imply they were scheming to screw people over at this point? Happy to hear the story if anyone has real info.
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,722
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Post by Fossilman on Feb 28, 2024 11:33:12 GMT -5
There are other good blades out there and as said KN is one of the better companies for blades.. Try eBay and other places too, buy up a supply before the MK blades go through the roof because of this!
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Post by Rockoonz on Feb 29, 2024 2:29:38 GMT -5
oregon there are other lapidary blades made in the S Korea factory that MK and BD were having their blades made at. Sent a PM and happy to respond to anyone else, probably eventually do a thread or mass PM.
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jlswi84
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2024
Posts: 3
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Post by jlswi84 on Apr 9, 2024 6:44:10 GMT -5
I'm fairly new to rock cutting...quickly addicted. I'm totally new to this forum.
We've been using the BD-305 10" Agate Kutter and I went online last night to order another and soon found out the company is no longer.
I emailed them asking about the blade price and was informed in their reply that Alameda Supply is now fulfilling past and new orders.
I really like the Agate Kutter and am wary of spending a lot on something different that won't perform as well.
So if anyone is willing to point me in the direction of a comparable blade, I'd really appreciate the guidance.
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jlswi84
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2024
Posts: 3
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Post by jlswi84 on Apr 9, 2024 6:54:46 GMT -5
Adding:
I have found the MK BD-305 10" blade supposedly in stock online at Ruff N Tuff Tools for $125.
Under that listing, the company suggests the "New 10" Agate Slycer" with thinner kerf and a 10mm rim height. $165
Anyone have experience with that blade?
I have also been looking on the KN web site thanks to the info I found in this discussion.
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khara
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,979
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Post by khara on Jun 4, 2024 5:43:00 GMT -5
Ok so I've had at least 10 tabs open of old forum discussions about best saw blades. This is the most recent and discusses one of the seemingly favored brands so I'll comment here. The other discussions seem relevant as well though they are as much as 10-15 years old. I've finally got my 12" Spartan gravity saw completely refurbished. Yay! It runs great and the old pump actually pumps oil. I am now shopping for a new blade. Never bought a saw blade before so don't even really know where to start. I'll add a pic of the one I'm replacing. This blade took 30-40 minutes to cut a 2"x4" slab. Seems kinda slow to me. I don't know what the material is so I took the end cut over to my cabbing machine and I would not call this material hard, I've cabbed much harder, but it's also not soft. I will be cutting pretty much everything I can find, so all hardnesses. In reading the forums here I've come across people who really like the MK or Barranca blades, which now according to this thread I see they may be getting impossible to find. So is it worth trying to find and stick with these or consider others? I've found Johnson Brothers has 301 and 303 "compatible" blades. I don't know if these are MK, or just similar to MK. These are fairly spendy. Then I found someone who touted the Covington Gold blades. These are considerably more cost effective. I see these at both Johnson Brothers and Lapidary Mart. For 12" blades, Kingsley North has some notched rim blades for 18 bucks! I'm guessing these don't last long. I wonder if they are dangerous. On the other hand, they have their KN brand sintered for about $148-170. They have a few other options and one MK blade for $252. Quite a price range. If anyone has any thoughts, I'd appreciate it. The blade needs to have a 3/4 arbor hole which I'm not finding a lot of. I think a bushing is likely needed and most sites don't even mention this but Johnson Bros and Lapidary Mart do, which is helpful to me, and makes me want to give them my business. Also, since it's a drop/gravity saw style, with oil pumped to the top of the blade, I'm not really sure if a sintered blade or the notched blade style is best. I also may be missing some suppliers that I just don't know of. Here's the blade I'm replacing, style of saw, and the material I cut with it:    |
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wargrafix
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2023
Posts: 1,085
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Post by wargrafix on Jun 4, 2024 11:17:19 GMT -5
That machine looks cool. And those slabs? Chef's kiss.
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Post by parfive on Jun 4, 2024 11:23:12 GMT -5
khara Are you sure that’s a 12” saw? The angle of the pic might be fooling me but it sure looks like there’s a lot of unused clearance inside the blade guard. Looks like an exact copy of a Lortone 14” . . . if it isn’t a Lortone w/a Spartan sticker. : ) Pay attention to blade thickness too when buying a new one. The less rock you turn into mud, the better.
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khara
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,979
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Post by khara on Jun 4, 2024 15:15:03 GMT -5
parfive It is darn near the same saw as a Lortone 14. I actually have the user manual to the Lortone that someone here gave me. Pretty sure it was Rockoonz Hopefully I’m remembering that right, it was over a year ago. I have measured to see if I can fit a 14” blade in and I really do not think it’ll fit. There’s less clearance at the back of the guard than at the front. Since you mentioned it too though I’ll double check again today. I’ll watch the blade thickness. I was also reading that too thin can be easy to damage the blade. I was noticing when starting the cut you have to help it get purchase for a while or it can get pushed over and bent out of plumb by the shape of the rock.
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khara
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,979
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Post by khara on Jun 4, 2024 15:25:55 GMT -5
Thanks wargrafix I’m pretty pleased to have the capability to cut, even if quite slow for now. My next project is building a cover for it so I can keep the garage from getting over-sprayed. And I think(?) you are complimenting the quality of slab cuts rather than identifying the material(?) I agree the blade actually did a really nice smooth cut.👍 But since I don’t know the identity of the material yet, maybe I’ll temporarily call it Chefs Kiss.😁 |
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goldfinder
Cave Dweller
Member since December 2020
Posts: 273
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Post by goldfinder on Jun 4, 2024 21:34:10 GMT -5
khara That looks like the old style MK-301 blades. I run those on a couple of my old saws, really good old blades. It's looks like the blade has a lot of life (kerf) left, have you tried peening the blade? There are videos of it and lots of info on the forum about it. You basically wack the blade with a file a few times/inch. It really makes the blades cut great again. I'd try that first. As far as new blades go, with MK out of business I went with one of the new Covington C-series blade for an 18" I restored, it's their version of the newer style MK-301. I'm highly impressed with the blade. Cuts very quietly and the saw just seems to breeze through slabs without any difficulty. I like it so much I'm planning on putting one on my 12", I highly recommend it. But try peening your first, it'll likely make a big difference.
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khara
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,979
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Post by khara on Jun 5, 2024 0:44:30 GMT -5
Thank you goldfinder That’s good to know I have a good old blade.👍 If nothing else maybe it’s good for softer materials. Also, I meant to mention but forgot in my original post that I did ping this blade when we refurbished the saw. The photo I posted is actually one I dug up from back when I pinged it. When I started shopping I was seeing mostly 1” arbor holes and so I wanted to verify the 3/4 inch arbor for sure without taking the blade all the way off and so was digging thru old pics. You can see the file on the bench there. I think I did it enough(?) I could see results from what I did anyway. Is 30-40 minutes normal or too long for a 2”x4” slab cut of a sort of hard material? Part way through the cut whenever it seemed to plateau on movement I added a rock weight above the blade arm. Also, I’ve been thinking about trying to dress this blade(?) Cut a brick or cinder block with it(?) Only because I keep seeing that mentioned in blade discussions. |
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goldfinder
Cave Dweller
Member since December 2020
Posts: 273
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Post by goldfinder on Jun 5, 2024 14:43:11 GMT -5
Thank you goldfinder That’s good to know I have a good old blade.👍 If nothing else maybe it’s good for softer materials. Also, I meant to mention but forgot in my original post that I did ping this blade when we refurbished the saw. The photo I posted is actually one I dug up from back when I pinged it. When I started shopping I was seeing mostly 1” arbor holes and so I wanted to verify the 3/4 inch arbor for sure without taking the blade all the way off and so was digging thru old pics. You can see the file on the bench there. I think I did it enough(?) I could see results from what I did anyway. Is 30-40 minutes normal or too long for a 2”x4” slab cut of a sort of hard material? Part way through the cut whenever it seemed to plateau on movement I added a rock weight above the blade arm. Also, I’ve been thinking about trying to dress this blade(?) Cut a brick or cinder block with it(?) Only because I keep seeing that mentioned in blade discussions. I don't have any experience with a drop saw, but that style blade cuts through hard material without any issues on slab saws I run them on. Ah that's good you've peened it. I think the purpose is to help flatten out the cutting face of the blade. As blades wear the outer edge will get more domed and more narrow, and won't cut as well. Does the outside edge/face of your blade look flat or is it domed? It may need to be peened again or more thoroughly. That does sound like a bit too slow of a cut. A common feed rate of slab saws is somewhere around 7 minutes per inch. I don't have experience with a drop saw but, if the blade looks good, maybe a little more weight would help? |
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