luv2hound
freely admits to licking rocks
I try & I try, but dang it! Those rocks just keep ending up in my pockets
Member since June 2007
Posts: 890
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Post by luv2hound on Sept 10, 2007 21:14:14 GMT -5
Hubby and I are ready to buy our grinding wheels for the cabbing machine he's building. The cheapest place we've found is the Bombay Bazar. Has anyone dealt with them before?
We're going to be getting the Galaxy wheels 80 grit and 220 grit and the Nova wheels 280,600,1200,14000 grits.
Thanks for any info.
~~Mitzi~~
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firewalker45
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since August 2006
Posts: 929
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Post by firewalker45 on Sept 10, 2007 22:46:43 GMT -5
Hi Mitzi, I dealt with them, but that was years ago. Never had any problems with them. Do they have a web site now? If you want to save some money, Jade Carver sells 80 and 220 grit grinding wheels at a super price. They are great wheels and the 6 inch wheels are about $60 each. In earlier posts other members have good things to say about their wheels. He sells on ebay and I believe he has a web site. I also believe he became a member here. Daniel
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 10, 2007 22:50:09 GMT -5
Read the fine print. They charge a percentage "handling charge" on all orders. I think it is 3% but it has been a while. Most of the discount dealers charge 25% off for 6 wheel set as I do. That is $645 for the $860 list price set. I'll sell them to any RTH member for $625 plus shipping. Sorry for the blatant add but I hate the small print tactics.
John at JS Gems
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luv2hound
freely admits to licking rocks
I try & I try, but dang it! Those rocks just keep ending up in my pockets
Member since June 2007
Posts: 890
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Post by luv2hound on Sept 11, 2007 18:03:39 GMT -5
Thanks for the info Daniel. I looked at his ebay site and the 80 and 220 are at a great price for $63 each. He also has a 600 but doesnt show a pic of it. Dont know if its the soft wheel or hard so have written and asked about that.
John, thanks for the heads up about the "handling charge".
~~Mitzi~~
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Post by stardiamond on Sept 11, 2007 19:36:33 GMT -5
The Jadecarver wheels are solid metal and much heavier than a galaxy. I have used both the 80 and 220 8" jadecarver and they are a superior product at a much lower price than the galaxy. I use a belt driven star diamond cabbing machine that was designed for silicon carbide and so the weight isn't an issue. I have 8" Nova 220,600 and 1200 to finish out the machine.
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Post by akansan on Sept 11, 2007 22:30:09 GMT -5
Yup, the jadecarver wheels are all solid. I have a 50, a 120, and a 220, after that I switch to the Nova wheels (280 & 600). He was out of the 80s when I ordered.
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firewalker45
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since August 2006
Posts: 929
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Post by firewalker45 on Sept 12, 2007 8:37:17 GMT -5
Mitzi, his 600 is the hard. See what kind of a deal John (JS) will give you on the four Nova wheels that you want. Daniel
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 13, 2007 9:14:19 GMT -5
Daniel,
Thanks for the referral. I looked at the Jade Carver wheels. Thy look like the Brazed Diamond wheels Barranca sells. Do you know if they are brazed or plated? Plated usually feel real rough and have to be broken in. Brazed (diamond is fused to the wheel in high temp oven) cuts 3-4 times longer than plated. I have been e-mailing a Chinese manufacturer to buy faceting discs directly. They sent pictures of their other products. They also have solid steel wheels (Barranca knock-offs), Nova wheels (copied to even the Diamond Pacific label, Crystalite laps (also labelled). I'm going to order a trial order when I get home from Denver. I'll have to try them out before I sell them. I hear there are over two hundred companies in China copying just about everything. If their wheels are comparable for less and labelled honestly as Chinese knock-offs I don't see anything wrong with them. I won't sell the black plastic center Chinese wheels everyone sells as I have heard too many out of ballance/ short life stories. Also, while on the Jade Carver site I saw diamond powder and paste at the cheapest cost I've ever seen.
John at JS Gems
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Post by stardiamond on Sept 13, 2007 13:58:18 GMT -5
From my experience the jadecarver wheels cut better and last longer than the DP galaxy. I wouldn't put them on my Genie because of the weight.
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 13, 2007 22:47:46 GMT -5
I don't think the weight would be a problem. I know several people that have been using the Barranca brazed diamond wheels (also heavy) for over three years on Genies. The DP plated wheels don't last long for serious cutters.
John at JS Gems
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firewalker45
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since August 2006
Posts: 929
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Post by firewalker45 on Sept 14, 2007 14:26:07 GMT -5
Hi John, I would guess that they are Brazed as they cut right away. I honor your integrity! " Refuse to sell it until you try it yourself". I also honor your dedication to customer service: so often overlooked today. You are a great addition to this site as you have a lot of good knowledge to share. Let us know about the wheels, if you get and try them. If they are comparable in quality and price, I for one will buy and recomend from an active member over an inactive one. Have a great day! Daniel
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firewalker45
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since August 2006
Posts: 929
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Post by firewalker45 on Sept 14, 2007 14:39:08 GMT -5
John, there is no labeling on the wheels JC sells. I agree about staying away from the plastic core ones. There is a site on the web that offers to redue worn out Nova wheels. I believe he charges about $40 plus shipping for the 6 inch wheel. What are your thoughts on this and have you ever thought of doing it? Daniel
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 15, 2007 0:22:36 GMT -5
Daniel,
I had a tour of the Diamond Pacific factory and was amazed to see a lady sitting in a small room brushing the mix of diamond and (my guess) epoxy on the foam lined wheels with a paint brush. I suppose if you new the right mixture the wheels could be recoated. I don't know how cost effective it would be with shipping and wonder what the turn around time would be. Also, if you have any problem with a Diam Pac. wheel they'll send you a new one without a hassle.
John at JS Gems
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free4rms
freely admits to licking rocks
My little pet walrus
Member since January 2007
Posts: 839
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Post by free4rms on Sept 15, 2007 7:35:36 GMT -5
I have to throw in my two bits about Bombay Bazar, too. John is right about that "handling charge", and I think they actually list it as a tax. What tax? On the internet, when you are buying from somewhere other than their home state?? This is nothing but a hidden charge with no real explanation. I even emailed them to ask them what this was all about and they ignored me, of course. It really irks me when someone can"t put their lowest price on the internet in an honest fashion and then sticks an extra, unexplained charge at the last minute. I put this is the same class as some of the jerks on eBay who offer something at a good price and then triple the costs of shipping in the hopes of suckering some unsuspecting buyer.
In all fairness though, if you know this tactic ahead of time and factor in the extra cost, they are still quite often the lowest or close to the lowest price around. I have bought from them a few times in the past, and their delivery is reasonably fast.
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Post by larrywyland3 on Sept 18, 2007 20:52:56 GMT -5
I have used re-coated wheels. They can come out bumpy and in the more coarse grits can put deep scratches in your work. When they are like this you have to grind down the bumps which can shorten the life. Never had a problem with the resin flaking off, but the ones I had didn't last as long and wasn't worth the savings. If I could find good wheels at a better price I would be real happy. I like buying American made, but sometimes the price is so high it can make it difficult. I use the 4 inch wheels and at about 70 dollars a wheel it becomes a cost factor in making a cab. Right now I figure on about 1.00 for replacement blades and wheels for every cab. I get about 300 cabs out of a 280 and 600 novas; 400 out of the 1200 and the high grit wheels I have not had to change yet. The dp galaxy are going strong haven't had to change those yet either. The cabs I do are 30mm and up in size and I tend to obsess a bit on the shape and shine; as I get better I will probably get more cabs out of the wheels, but I don't think I'll ever get the 1,000 cabs per wheel I was told; when I called dp about it they said it depends; how careful, type of material; how good the bubblers were; the person I spoke to wouldn't commit to a number.
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 18, 2007 23:23:28 GMT -5
Spirit Stone if you are getting that many cabs out of your wheels you should be teaching classes. I have a lot of "pros" complain about short life on their Genie wheels and try to push them toward Barranca Brazed diamond or Inland sintered wheels. Neither makes a soft wheel. No one makes a better soft wheel that I can find. I'm thinking about adding an expando drum to my Genie to use diamond belts. I just picked up a few German made belts Barranca was closing out that are $135 list each. They are about four times as thick as Eastwinds and look like they would last forever. I'm a little hard on Novas. I wiped out a good one in seconds by pushing a little too hard trying to find some elusive fire in a boulder opal.
John at JS Gems
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Post by stardiamond on Sept 19, 2007 16:09:42 GMT -5
Here's the story I got regarding sales tax. An item can be shipped from their location or drop shipped from Diamond Pacific in CA. If you order an item online it assumes drop shipped and charges CA sales tax. If you call on the phone and the item is in stock, CA sales tax was not charged. I ordered a saw blade from them by phone recently and asked for a delivered price. The blade got to me remarkably fast.
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 20, 2007 22:44:33 GMT -5
The 3% charge I mentioned was labeled as a handling fee. If you order drop-shipped items from Diamond Pacific you should not be charged sales tax unless you live in CA (CA sales tax applies) or you live in the same state as the distributor (that state tax would apply).
John at JS Gems
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