docweathers Posted March 12, 2015 Report Share Posted March 12, 2015 I'm about to build a 10 inch diamond grinder to smooth the bottoms of my pots. It will have continuous water flow over the disk. What grit would you recommend? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 Doc my diamond pads are 100 but if your using water I would go a bit finer as it will work better-maybe 120 -150?-I think 200 is overkill. Lets see what others say. mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy Eberhardt Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 I've seen this idea too, and wondered what would be the right grit. Thanks for asking the question, Doc. Now if someone can point me in the right direction to find said disks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docweathers Posted March 13, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 Let me clarify a bit what I'm up to. I want to build a flat lap machine similar to what Lin describes here However, instead of using a potter's wheel, also being a welder, I plan on welding a 10 inch steel disk on the end of the chain drive shaft of an old garage door opener motor I have. The rest of it would be similar to what he shows. I suspect I can do the whole thing for under $50 and not have to reconfigure my potter's wheel for throwing versus grinding and vice a versa. I will be grinding the bottoms of cone 6 stoneware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bciskepottery Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 I've seen this idea too, and wondered what would be the right grit. Thanks for asking the question, Doc. Now if someone can point me in the right direction to find said disks! I use these hand pads . . . 100 and 200 grit, generally. Dip the pad in water, then polish the bottom. Using water reduces dust in the air. http://www.toolocity.com/diamond-hand-polishing-pads.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy Eberhardt Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 I've seen this idea too, and wondered what would be the right grit. Thanks for asking the question, Doc. Now if someone can point me in the right direction to find said disks! I use these hand pads . . . 100 and 200 grit, generally. Dip the pad in water, then polish the bottom. Using water reduces dust in the air. http://www.toolocity.com/diamond-hand-polishing-pads.aspx Thank you very much! And look! A price I can afford! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pieter Mostert Posted March 13, 2015 Report Share Posted March 13, 2015 I've also bought from toolocity, although I just use their hand pads. The electroplated diamond pads Bruce linked to above last forever. Larry, maybe you've already come across this, but Jeff Campana has a nice blog post where he writes about sanding feet. He goes up to 3000 grit, but I think most people would be satisfied with something between 200 and 400 grit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docweathers Posted March 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Yes I've seen Jeff's blog post. He has a nice system. What I'm really curious about is what's the point of the weird way he makes pots and their bottoms. I think I'm missing something in his logic. If anyone can fill me in I would be most appreciative. From what I can tell, toolcity.com may be going out of business. They don't offer many of the products that they used to. Many categories are just empty. Since I'm doing stoneware, I bought an 80 grit diamond disc from Hong Kong. When I it gets here and I get the whole thing put together, I will describe the results. I will probably be at least a month. If you listen carefully to the video where Lin describes his lap grinder, I think he mumbles something about a 60 grit, but I really am not sure. People have posted questions about what grit he uses. He has not responded. Since I'm really not interested in spending long hours polishing my bottom , I have been experimenting. Once the bottom of the pot is pretty smooth, a quick coat of paste wax completes the job very nicely, and only takes a moment. After it dries, the wax is not apparent, even on my white stoneware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alabama Posted March 14, 2015 Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Hey, To smooth the bottoms of the stoneware pottery, I just use a brass wire wheel on a bench grinder. If there happens to be glaze that won't come off, then I use the other side which is the stone wheel. It serves the purpose, for me. If I'm not near a bench grinder then I have loose sheets of wet/dry sandpaper from the auto parts store, that I give a lick and a promise to the pottery. There seems to be a discoloration from the metal of the brass wheel on the pottery bottoms, but its a good discolor, for the cone 10 reduction. I just used it on a cone 6 oxidation cup, and don't recommend it for that. It became discolored in a bad way. In the past I have used a spare stone bench ginder wheel, that I hand rub across the bottom. Theres a hundred different ways. More than likely your method with the diamond grit and water will level, clean, and smooth your pottery. See ya, Alabama Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docweathers Posted March 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 I tried the wire brush on my bench grinder on my white stoneware and got the same ugly nasty discoloration that you describe. ... And it's really hard to get off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted March 14, 2015 Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Doc the brass wire wheel is only for stoneware clay bottoms as Far as Jeffs feet his blogs says Foot Fetishthat means hes nuts about feet. Just smooth them and call it a day. I would go broke spending that much time on each pot foot. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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