QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Mar 2, 2016 13:17:54 GMT -5
I've been looking for a while at these large Chinese diamond topper laps being sold on eBay and wondering how well they might work being used as inserts in the 20" pans of a Lortone (or similar) Oscillating Lap for flatening and pre-polishing slabs. They should be able to be used with oil which would solve the water/slurry evaporation problems with SC grit and water. And they should certainly be cleaner to use. These topper laps measure 500mm (19-11/16") in diameter so I'm thinking they would probably be a close fit inside the pan without major modification. Has anyone here tried these yet? If so how did they do? www.ebay.com/itm/171658832723?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D171658832723%26_rdc%3D1Larry C. |
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jerrys
spending too much on rocks
Member since February 2014
Posts: 263 
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Post by jerrys on Mar 3, 2016 14:30:04 GMT -5
You could probably make it work in a vibrating lap. However, I doubt it would be successful compared to using SiC in a vibrating lap. One could buy a lot of grit for the price of one lap. The center hole would cause problems on large pieces. You could build a grid to guide the rock and keep the rock out of the center. Consider getting an old floor sander and building a stand to create a circular lap.
My solution to the evaporation is to use a plastic sheet covering the lap pan. I hold it in place with plastic spring loaded clamps. I even use the plastic sheet in the winter as this minimizes splash. For pieces that are too tall to accommodate the plastic sheet, I simply use a very slow water drip.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Mar 4, 2016 17:33:30 GMT -5
I'm not too worried about the hole in the center. I figured I could JB Weld or solder a short section of 1" copper pipe over the center hole area and slip a section of foam pipe-insulation over the pipe to protect the slabs from damage.
Remembering those old electric vibrating toy footballs sets from when we were kids, and how we could float objects around on the surface, I'm more concerned about whether the diamond particles being fixed in place on the plated lap, may tend to make slabs want to float-ride around the lap much in the same way without having to add an impracticable amount of weight on top to counter the motion and get good abrasion.
I'm also a little concerned about how truly flat these plated laps may be. But if those questions turn out to be non-issues then the time saved with diamond vs. SC grit may more than make up for the cost difference between the two.
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Post by spiceman on Mar 4, 2016 17:54:47 GMT -5
Well, I was trying to lap using vibrating sander and water. (Don't have a lap, yet) Holding it sideways for a visual alignment and to keep the water away from the electronics. Everything was good but it was much slower than a rotating lapper. My guess would be the range of motion of the vib. vs. Rotator
For fine finishing only, not removing much material the vib. Might be the answer
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jerrys
spending too much on rocks
Member since February 2014
Posts: 263
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Post by jerrys on Mar 4, 2016 18:13:15 GMT -5
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jerrys
spending too much on rocks
Member since February 2014
Posts: 263
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Post by jerrys on Mar 4, 2016 18:15:06 GMT -5
I have seen them build out of wood with a rotisserie motor turning the pieces
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