Homemade flat lap for under $50

I like the drip bottle.   

That looks like something I could use. You have plans to make and sell or maybe offer the file for those of us who can find a local Maker to print it out. Really smart making it so it will fit on 5 gallon bucket.

So first I tried the commercial route and was quoted $108. So I went with plan B.
I work for a submarine builder and we have our own forum. I posted that I needed to get this 3D printed and got multiple offers and one was willing to do it for free with ABS and another the cost of PLA filament.
Will update when I pick up the parts this weekend.

So looking forward to using this flat lap.

This is a great project! Will be keeping an eyeball! :-)

I am a little concerned about the moror having direct exposure to the water and gunk, even if it's a washdown motor the heat is going to bake stuff on to it for us less fastidious lapidaries who don't always clean up at the end of a session. Might be more concern than needed, centrifugal force should eliminate most water exposure to the motor other than mist. How about a flange bearing on top to take most of the wear away from the motor bearings and pissibly allow for a small "cap" to protect the upward facing bearings from excess wetness? Overall, though, the "buckethead idea is fantastic, could be a nice option for windowing our finds when out digging.
With something like that I wonder about improvising an anchor/base to keep the bucket from scooting that would also allow for a little tilt action as well for those who would find it more ergonomic.
Will your power supply be speed control friendly? I think they all are, and if I recall the controller is pretty basic and inexpensive, sweetgumnyc on youtube has a "all in one" design that you may find helpful for that end of things. I find that at about 2k RPM and above a flat lap tends to spin all the water off requiring a lot more water to basically splash onto the rock. I run a sewing machine servo with speed control on my faceter and used belts to bring the approximately 3k motor down to 1500 RPM at full tilt boogie.
Looking forward to seeing where this project goes, and especially interested in the water container if you decide to market them at some point, so much easier than gluing acrylic ones.

That is the great thing about this forum, members help members. I will take the advice and figure out how to improve the flat lap.
I was thinking about putting a cap on the motor shaft, maybe cut the mouth off a bottle that has a diameter about the same as the shaft and that flares out enough to cover the motor mount.
As far as a base I know they make plant holders which would raise the level for those that need that.

Next step for me is too actually get it running next weekend, I still work full time.

The glued acrylic tube type water containers on the Graves machines have a tiny hole drilled in them, easy to do.
I am really picturing something like that for out in the field with a number of variations for the weekend prospector or out front of the saw shop to take the "nubbins" off of slabs and do a little preliminary sanding on specimen slabs while waiting for the next slabs to drop off the saw. The L shaped pieces that attach to the bucket top could even possibly support a 90 degree jig for a "bench rest" to make it an intarsia jointer.
Heres the Sweetgum NYC machine. TBH I think that this one has been hit with a severe level of "scope creep", and is attempting to do a lot of things that it won't do well, but there is a lot of good creativity he is willing to share with the DIY community.