Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2016 5:21 pm
Moderator: Lapidary Arts and Tools
Joined: Tue Jun 12, 2007 6:41 pm Posts: 5534 Location: Massachusetts, USA
OK, most of the Tucson shipping is done, and inventory replenishment is going 7 days a week. There will be a Zinc+ run in 7-14 days. A big one. What do you all want me to do about the Dia+Z+?
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2016 6:26 pm
Active Member
Joined: Sat Sep 13, 2014 12:32 pm Posts: 52 Location: Tucson, AZ
I guess, I'm not really in the market for a second Dia-Z+, but I can tell you that it was love at first facet. I cannot recommend it highly enough, provided production proceeds. Thanks to testing this lap, I might even end up getting a full 8" Zinc Plus down the road. I am currently awaiting the 3k sintereds with bated platen, as are, assuredly, many others here. Anyway, maybe it would help to add a survey question here or on a new thread - something like, "Would you strongly consider purchasing Gearloose's banded Dia-Z+ lap?"
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2016 6:48 pm
Moderator: Lapidary Arts and Tools
Joined: Tue Jun 12, 2007 6:41 pm Posts: 5534 Location: Massachusetts, USA
I Thought of the survey question. Nope. Asking people their opinions on free samples is one thing, but anything that looks like a marketing survey would, I imagine, be DOA. Educational forum. I know, we will always have discussions about the best faceting machine, dop adhesive, suppliers, etc,etc., but I do not think those should originate with the manufacturer or dealer. When I offer test samples I am soliciting opinions...Some of these things never get to be for sale, and are never for sale when the test opinions are asked. In some cases, they do not even exist at the time. The "Mintway" was one such.
Another example was the "I want to see them make .." Thread. Them. Not just one entity. I assumed ANY/EVERY manufacturer with any curiosity, if not half a brain, would have avidly read that thread to listen to the community, and to see what people wanted.
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2016 4:07 am
Gold Member
Joined: Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:00 am Posts: 1322 Location: Wylie Texas but in Alaska for a while
[quote="fancyfoxgems"]
I've never tried polishing with a slurry remaining on the wheel. Do you find that a better setup in certain cases? I tend to just light to moderate charges of diamond at low to medium speeds - a smidge faster with oxides. I definitely like to run my Skyway at a good clip. I don't know if the chemo-mechanical phenomenon (through which, I believe, is how I read it works) requires a bit of heat energy input, but it seems to do the trick to run a bit fast.[/quote
I missed the question sorry. I have used a slurrey only on stones that were giving me fits.
In general I have found that with both firewarter and 13k, speed and slightly damp works best.
The problem with a slurry and speed is that you can get balls of diamnd and swarf that can leave commet trail scratches.
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2016 4:29 am
Gold Member
Joined: Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:00 am Posts: 1322 Location: Wylie Texas but in Alaska for a while
Gearloose wrote:
OK, most of the Tucson shipping is done, and inventory replenishment is going 7 days a week. There will be a Zinc+ run in 7-14 days. A big one. What do you all want me to do about the Dia+Z+?
I missed something. Are you looking at at a 3 banded lap? YEA>>>>
I guess that the other option is a greenway or a skyway insert
I had a greenway insert pop off of one of he old zinc castings. so here is a crasy idea, a set of onserts, that I can pop into the zinc pus. So I can go from greenway to diamatrix, heck to a matrix, to a skyway or creamway.
I do not think that there is any chance of doing this unless there was a way to account for minor changes in thickness.
The biggest think I have liked abut the banded laps so far is that I can prepolish and polish with no height adjustments. This is possible because you turn both of the surfaces on teh same finishing cut.
I am not sure which of the water only isnerts sells the most.
I have also not tried the skyway, but it seems that that is a canditate as well.
But if this is a dia+zinc+? how about
Any chance of getting the 8 inch 600 as an outer ring, zinc plus and then diamatrix?
but I may be missing the question. I did go back and reread the thread and do not a previous reference.
I am going to try to do the break c=facets on this k12 oval one more time. mabe the thrid ime will be the charmed one. I am begining to run out of height on the rough, so I will accept a slight overcut if it happens this time.
Anyhow. sorry if I totally missed the mark on this.
Jon, I would certainly recommend to others the Zinc+ / Diamatrix combo. I have been using it more and more, and I like it a lot. I have recently used it on Tourmaline, Garnet and Spinel this past couple of weeks. I think it will do well in your lineup of laps.
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Thu Feb 04, 2016 11:53 am
New to the Forum or The Quiet Type
Joined: Fri Jan 29, 2016 10:13 am Posts: 3
I have been using this lap for several weeks on various synthetics (corundum, spinel, CZ, christinite etc) and naturals like the various quartzs, peridot and feldspar. I am fairly new to faceting (I have cabbed for years) and this combination lap has been extremely helpful. I have been able to toss my very unsatisfactory but cheap 1200 plates, now roughly preform and then go from a 600 sintered on to the banded Zinc+ with Firewater for a final tweak and then cut in my very small facets right there. Its fast, the prepolish process is a breeze. For corundum (all synthetic, I can not afford the natural facet quality material) I spend a bit more time on a 14K prepolish and then on to the dedicated polish diamatrix. The other rough can go right to the darkside, so to speak, for polish.
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Thu Feb 04, 2016 9:32 pm
Moderator: Lapidary Arts and Tools
Joined: Tue Jun 12, 2007 6:41 pm Posts: 5534 Location: Massachusetts, USA
Time to catch up, post Tucson shipping.
1:
Quote:
I roughed up the Z+ with some steel wool in order to get any chemical/contamination/who-knows possibly remaining from production removed from the surface and, more importantly, to ensure maximal retention of the initial diamond charge.
It is always a good practice to pre-clean a new lap, packed in cardboard that came from some warehouse someplace.
Most laps here are machined with no oils or coolants because when these are used, the fixture gets icky and greasy and when the laps are flipped to machine the backs to parallel, the laps get ugly. In addition, the oxide laps would dislike oils and greases. So we use all diamond tools, both monocrystal and PCD, that require no coolants. Besides, on some laps, anything else wears out quickly...Greenway, for example, really needs diamond. It eats High Speed Steel in a few revolutions, and ceramic and WC do not last very long either.
2: Materialswill be arriving early next week, and a web-fed bonding machine has been finished and is running. A substantial Z+ run will happen shortly, both for Tucson resupplies and for some DIA-Z+. Final prices will be calculated from the Time, Materials, and Motion study on this run. Probably be close to the old Xinquing prices, but possibly lower due to easier machining, albeit with one extra machining step.
Post subject: Re: A new little test series: Banded Zinc+/Diamatrix
Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2016 3:30 am
Gold Member
Joined: Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:00 am Posts: 1322 Location: Wylie Texas but in Alaska for a while
What is the sizes of the materials on the 6 inch one? I am interested in one.
when you said.
Gearloose wrote:
OK, most of the Tucson shipping is done, and inventory replenishment is going 7 days a week. There will be a Zinc+ run in 7-14 days. A big one. What do you all want me to do about the Dia+Z+?
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