Help Center

 

General Questions
What payment methods do you accept?
We currently accept payments via Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. We also accept payment via Paypal on our online shopping cart. If you're interested in Net30 terms, you can fill out the Net30 application below. International orders...
What shipping methods do you offer?
For domestic shipping within the US, we offer UPS Ground service, Fedex services including Ground, Home Delivery, 2-day, Overnight, and FedEx One Rate Service (2-day service) for smaller items under 5 pounds; US First Class Mail service depending...
What are your hours of operation?
We are open from 8:00am EST to 4:00pm EST Monday through Friday. We are closed daily from Noon to 1:00pm EST for lunch and Saturday and Sunday. Our website is, of course, open 24-7, 365 days a year barring outages. Any orders placed while we are closed...
Do you offer education, non-profit, or military discounts?
We are firm believers in glass education and try to promote it and assist in any way we can. We currently offer discounts to all educational institutions, non-profits, and active military: 10% on all our diamond tools and accessories and 5...
Do you sell Wholesale?
We do not have specific wholesale accounts or pricing, as we believe all our customers deserve the best pricing we can offer. Our everyday prices are our retail and wholesale prices. We don't make the differentiation.
Do I need to use water with diamond tools?
All diamond tools should be used with water when you are grinding glass. This isn't necessarily to save the diamonds or prolong the life of the tool, but to prolong your life.When grinding glass, the outcome is ground silica dust. If inhaled, it can ...
Can you plate a tool with diamonds for me or make a custom tool for me?
Of course, we can. We can either create the tool for you or plate an existing blank that you have.Call or email us, and we will work up a quote for you.If you need us to create the tool, we just need a drawing of it with the correct dimensions ...
Do you stock diamond disks?
We try to keep 8-inch, 10-inch, and 12-inch diamond disks in stock at all times, as these are our most popular disks. However, this depends on how many disks we have to plate for orders and our ability to plate disks for stock. We have two electroplating...
Can I recycle my water for diamond grinding?
No.Actually, that's a bit of a lie. You can recycle your water, but we don't suggest it. You're more apt to start regurgitating contaminants back onto your diamond disk, increasing your chances of unwanted scratching. You also risk embedding debris ...
What's the difference in all of the cerium oxides you offer?
There are two main differences in the various ceriums: Actual cerium content, and particle size. The higher the cerium content, the "brighter" the polish will be. Optical ceriums have higher cerium contents and higher prices due to higher refining to...
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Shipping
How do I deal with freight damages?
When machinery ships via a freight carrier instead of a common carrier (e.g., UPS or FedEx), you must examine the freight when it arrives to ensure that the machinery is not damaged. The freight company's delivery driver must note any and all damage...
My package came damaged, what do I do?
If your package comes damaged, please keep all the packing materials and call us right away. We will file a damage claim with the carrier that shipped your package and send you a replacement shipment.
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Electroplated Diamond Disks
How long will my diamond disks last?
This is possibly the most asked and hardest-to-answer question we receive. Diamond disks are subject to a number of variables that will impact the lifespan of the disk. The main variable is how much glass you are grinding with it. If you're grinding...
I've dropped my diamond disk on its edge, is it destroyed?
It depends. Dropping a diamond disk on its edge is about the worst thing you can do to it, but whether it is destroyed depends on how bad the drop was. If the edge has only slightly crinkled and the electroplating has not detached from the disk, then...
How do I make sure I'm removing the scratches from rougher grits when I work on the finer grits?
There is a very simple way to confirm this. As you are about to remove your piece from the rough grit wheel, hold it in one place for a few seconds so that all the scratches from the rough grit are going in one direction. When you grind your piece ...
My disk is leaving unwanted scratches in my glass, what's wrong?
There is, most likely, nothing wrong with your disk. All of our diamond disks come with a magnetic backing and, as magnets are want to do, they will attract metal objects. Oftentimes, the scratches you are seeing are coming from foreign objects embedded...
What's the best way to store my diamond disks?
Diamond disks can be stored by sticking them on the flat side of a refrigerator and/or metal filing cabinet (dry the magnet side first). If these surfaces are flat and clean they serve well as safe storage. You might want to let them hang off the edge...
How much water should I use with my diamond disk?
Ah, water, elixir of life and bane of many a coldworker. Water can make or break how well your diamond disks work, and knowing how much water to use for particular steps can be the difference between joy and heartache. Rougher diamond disks like the...
I dropped a piece of glass on my disk, did I damage my disk?
Probably not. A dropped piece of glass is going to happen, at one point or another, to just about everyone. Our Electroplated disks are made strong enough to withstand most of those drops without any problem at all. At most you might notice a small...
My piece keeps "grabbing" the disk, especially at finer grits, what's going on?
This is almost always caused by using too much water on the finer grits. What's happening is you are hydroplaning on the disk. As you are grinding, you are actually floating on top of a layer of water. Every so often, you will displace enough of the ...
How fast should I run my diamond disks?
The speed of your machine will depend on the size of your disk. Remember that diamonds like to run fast and, although you can run them slower, their efficiency will be greatly compromised by slower speeds. Our recommendations for shaft speed are these...
Can you re-plate a diamond disk for me?
Tough question, as the actual answer is "yes", but the truthful answer is "no". Technically speaking, our diamond disks can be replated, but the expense of the disposal of the toxic waste generated by the stripping process is so high that it ends up...
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Resin Diamond Smoothing Pads
What grit diamond do the colors correspond to in smoothing pads?
Our diamond smoothing pads have a different color for each grit pad. It makes it easier to quickly find the grit pad you need. The colors correspond to these grits: 100 grit = Black 220 grit = Purple 325 grit = Maroon-Brown 600 grit = Cherry Red...
The edges of my smoothing pad are curling up, what do I do?
This is something that happens from time to time on smoothing pads. The base material for the smoothing pad is a synthetic felt. Once the phenolic resin is applied to that felt and allowed to cure, it slightly shrinks the base material. Felt materials...
The color is coming off my smoothing pad, is it defective?
The coloring is simply a dye that is added to the phenolic resin to differentiate the grit on the pad. It actually has no usefulness on the pad at all beyond that. If color is coming off your smoothing pad, the pad itself should still be fine. It just...
My smoothing pad is turning white and isn't working as well as before, what's wrong?
If your smoothing pad has begun to turn white (especially along the edges of the disk), then you are beginning to trap ground glass into the underlying mesh of the felt substrate. Over time, this ground glass can build up to a point where it is covering...
The magnet is coming off the back of my smoothing pad, what do I do?
The easiest thing to do is to let the smoothing disk dry out completely, then use a spray adhesive to re-attach the magnet to the disk. Usually a magnet will start coming off only around the edges of a disk. Just spray the adhesive on both the magnet...
Do I use cerium oxide with the smoothing pad?
No. Our smoothing pads are actually a diamond disk that will grind your glass. Cerium is used for polishing your glass and is generally used with a carrier that has no grinding or polishing ability unto itself like the Synthetic Felt LP66 material ...
Can I use my old smoothing pad for anything?
Absolutely! One of the best tools in our shop is an old smoothing pad. When you get a new smoothing pad, you're most likely still going to be using your existing electroplated disks. The new smoothing pad will be much more aggressive than you've probably...
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Small diameter diamond disks
My velcro backed diamond disks keep flying off my mandrel...
We've seen this happen from time to time with these diamond disks. We've continued, over the years, to refine the attachment structure of the velcro backed diamond disk. The mandrels now have a much better hook system than in previous generations, so...
What is 3M's Dual Loc attachment system?
3M's Dual Lock backing is a system of mushroom shaped plastic pegs aligned onto the backing material and on the mandrel. The diamond disks "snap" onto the mandrel and are held in place until you pull them free. They have a tremendous amount of shear ...
How do cerium impregnated disks work?
3M's cerium impregnated material uses their Trizact structure to encapsulate cerium oxide into tiny pyramid shapes. When water and pressure are applied to the surface, the cerium oxide is slowly released from the structure onto your piece. The pyramid...
What's the difference between the 3M diamond disk kits and the smoothing disk kits?
The 3M diamond disk kits with velcro backing, Dual Loc, and Roloc backing and are made from 3M's 6002J electroplated diamond material. They range in grit from 60, 120, 200, 400 and 800 grit. Being electroplated diamonds, even at 800 grit the surface ...
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3M electrostatic diamond material
Is there any special handling for 3M's electrostatic diamond disks?
Not really. You use the electrostatic diamond material the same way you would any other diamond material. Be sure to use a proper amount of water and go to work.  If you're using the electrostatic diamond material as a belt, you should be aware that...
What's the difference between electroplated and electrostatic diamond disks?
Electroplated disks have diamonds that are locked into place with a layer of nickel that is grown up around the diamond in a chemical bath. The diamonds are rigid and will give a very aggressive grind on your glass. These are generally used for rough...
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Abrasive wheels
How do I polish from the profiled engraving wheels?
This has been a long standing dilemma for many engravers and glass artists. Many simply do not polish those surfaces or will etch the surface for uniformity or attempt to have the surfaces acid polished. Now we offer a way to easily and quickly pre-...
My felt wheels is bloated and misshapen, what happened?
Felt material is a porous natural wool felt and will have the tendency to swell when in lengthy contact with water. Under normal circumstances on a bench grinder or lathe there isn't enough continuous water contact to cause the wheels to swell significantly...
What do the electroplated and sintered radiused wheels do?
The electroplated and sintered radiused wheels we carry have a radiused profile on the edge of the diamond wheel that when used on the glass will create a lens on the surface of the glass. Most often these wheels are used for the removal and subsequent...
I have an 18" covington lap grinder. What is the shaft and threading I need to order for that? Also, what else do I need to purchase to use the cone with the grinder?
For the Covington grinders, you'll need a male to male adaptor for the center listed here. The threading for the cone or dome should be 5/8-11 Right Hand Thread.
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Belts
I have a relatively new felt polishing pad that has delaminated from the magnet. Is it possible to reattach it and is there a specific glue that you recommend.
As water and adhesives do not like one another, you may find that your smoothing pad and/or felt pad can de-tach from the magnet backing after periods of use. We recommend sending the pad back to us and we'll apply new magnet to your pad at no cost and...
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