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Post by tims on Jul 24, 2016 23:55:50 GMT -5
Just purchased a model 1422 Gem Maker on fleabay and was wondering if anyone is familiar with these and would have a suggestion for a motor. The manual suggests a 1725 rpm motor but I'm wondering if a 1/3 HP motor would be sufficient, or if I'd be better off getting something with more power. It's driving a 10" cast iron lap wheel or 10" blade. Any other suggestions regarding this venerable machine welcome.
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Post by Rockoonz on Jul 25, 2016 0:22:06 GMT -5
I had the Wards version of the gem maker, If you intend to use it as a saw 1/3 hp will be needed, if you're only using as a flat lap 1/4 hp is enough.
They originally ran with a small 1 or 1 1/2 inch pulley on the motor and like 10 inch on the spindle, but with modern laps and sintered blades faster is fine.
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Post by tims on Jul 25, 2016 10:27:26 GMT -5
Thanks, just what i needed. I have a 1/3 hp in mind and found a 1.5" pulley to attach to it. I bought this mainly for the lap but will probably pull the 10" blade off my tile saw and give it a shot as well. It's got the clamp assembly with a weighted auto-feed which hopefully will cut a little smoother than hand feeding the tile saw.
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Post by Rockoonz on Jul 25, 2016 22:56:48 GMT -5
The problem with the saw is you have to drip a coolant onto it and it only gets on one side of the blade.
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Post by tims on Jul 29, 2016 11:02:39 GMT -5
NOW you tell me  I'll play with it (if it ever arrives and I can get it running) and maybe try to rig a sprayer or something on the underside of the blade. If that doesn't work maybe I could rig some kind of clamp and weighted feed system for the tile saw. Just a good solid movable clamp would help alot. My hand cuts are getting better but there's a lot of room for improvement. What if you just added another generous drip right above where the blade contacts the stone? Why isn't lapidary cheap and easy? |
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 29, 2016 12:03:23 GMT -5
I use a 1/3 hp on my Cut Above saw and it has plenty of power (Gy-Roc used 1/4 hp so guess that worked too). Covington uses 1/3 hp on their similar horizontal combo unit.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Jul 29, 2016 13:58:00 GMT -5
I've seen several B&Is that had one end of a wide oil lamp wick wired around the drip spout so the other end can drape down onto the saw blade to help spread the coolant onto the surface of he blade rather than letting the coolant drip free-fall onto the blade only to splatter and be immediately slung off by the centrifugal force. This doesn't solve the no coolant on the underneath side but it does improve the overall performance.
Larry C.
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Post by tims on Jul 29, 2016 18:05:41 GMT -5
Thanks for mentioning the wick, I think these originally came with one but I hadn't thought about it and probably would have made a nice mess. I'll try rigging one up. Might also be able to rig something similar under the blade, maybe a sponge in a tray or an aquarium pump or something to try to wet the bottom a bit.
IF IT EVER GETS HERE lol
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Post by tims on Aug 1, 2016 19:02:19 GMT -5
Yay it's here. Everything on the unit looks functional, except the height adjustment for the clamp is frozen up. Will go ahead and order the motor, belt and pulley and give her a whirl hopefully sometime next week. Got it all cleaned up, bought new screws for the legs, and cleaned out the grease applicator and filled it with fresh grease.
I've got the height adjustment assembly standing upright and have doused it with WD40, and every hour or so I go tap on it with a ballpeen hammer and add some more oil. Maybe it will loosen up ... without a clamp there's really no reason to try to use it as a saw.
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I'll play with it (if it ever arrives and I can get it running) and maybe try to rig a sprayer or something on the underside of the blade. If that doesn't work maybe I could rig some kind of clamp and weighted feed system for the tile saw. Just a good solid movable clamp would help alot. My hand cuts are getting better but there's a lot of room for improvement.
