Help with diamond paste?

pafka

pafka

Joined
Sep 12, 2007
Messages
320
Some time ago I mentioned I had issues finishing Vanadis 4E - I was getting blotchy/spotty finish above 400 grit.
I ordered some cheap diamond pastes to try out with the hope that the finish will improve.
They arrived and I tried the coarsest one I have - W20 (~600 grit?) and I can say that it does cut well and the finish really did improve, and I only just started to learn to work with it. But I have some questions.

I made this lap from mild steel. After doing two blades there is already some wear there, the machining marks are gone in the center. Should I use something softer like brass/aluminum so that the paste embeds itself in the lap more readily? Or more grooves for the swarf? Or is it expected that the lap will have to be flattened very often (which in a way makes sense, I just did not expect it to happen so fast)?

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If you use pastes in this way, how much would you use, or what is the consumption rate roughly? For now it seems to me I should be able to get maybe multiple blades from one small 5g tube (and considering the price that seems to be a good deal) but I am wondering how much of it are you guys using.

I also have some loose diamond powder and will try to make my own compound.

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Thanks.
 
I would think if the diamond is embedding itself into the steel or whatever substrate then most of the steel in this example is in contact with the material over the diamonds. If you’re seeing wear in mild steel I would think you’d see even more wear faster in brass.

I’ll wait for others to chime in but I would think using something like a 1x6 diamond plate would be better before refining the finish using diamond pastes.
 
Never heard of that technique. I used the same paste with some wd40 and regular sandpaper/micarta sanding block and it also worked good. I was putting some very small amount and creating sanding slurry with it.
 
FredyCro said:
Never heard of that technique. I used the same paste with some wd40 and regular sandpaper/micarta sanding block and it also worked good. I was putting some very small amount and creating sanding slurry with it.
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Exactly, that is also what I tried. It seemed to worked ok. But I'm not sure if I'm getting the full benefit of the paste like that. And the slurry eventually starts to have a detrimental effect it seems, as the swarf damages the finish (my amateurish observation). So I started cleaning the slurry often, no matter if using the lap or the sanding stick with the paste.
 
Also, try EDM stones (AKA - Die Makers Stones). They come in very fine grades. Try "N" grade. Falcon is a good supplier. I like 1/4X1X6 inch stones.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Also, try EDM stones (AKA - Die Makers Stones). They come in very fine grades. Try "N" grade. Falcon is a good supplier. I like 1/4X1X6 inch stones.
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I use them a lot (not this specific make but I guess similar) to go up in grit, but the finish they leave is not what I want, so I still do the final passes with lengthwise strokes with sandpaper.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Also, try EDM stones (AKA - Die Makers Stones). They come in very fine grades. Try "N" grade. Falcon is a good supplier. I like 1/4X1X6 inch stones.
Click to expand...
Stacy, I went ahead and ordered a set of these (because you are an influencer haha!) but watching videos on youtube there seem to be a few different techniques. Some use them as a "draw file" laying across the blade contacting the whole 1" side. Others like a sanding block on the entire 1" side. It seems most use them as I think they were originally intended- more like pushing a pen/chisel down the blade just contacting the narrow end (after shaping in an angle).
Appreciate any advice on how you like to use them!
Thanks,
Stuart
 
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