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Post by blizzard on Feb 10, 2010 17:36:19 GMT -6
Has anyone tried diamond paste to polish the axles or wheel bore? I found it while looking for something else and was wondering if anyone has had any luck with it. Here is a link to one of the sites that carry it. www.mtixtl.com/search.aspx?find=diamond+paste
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Post by jetmugg on Feb 10, 2010 18:57:28 GMT -6
I have used the LECO brand of diamond paste. It works great. I am a metallurgist by trade, and have access to all that kind of lab-grade metallurgical polishing stuff. That doesn't necessarily mean that I can make a fast car, but I can put one heck of a polish on a piece of metal.
SteveM.
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Post by blizzard on Feb 10, 2010 20:00:32 GMT -6
Would the diamond paste take too much material off of the axle, or just polish it. Also, are the meshes(?) the same as with a/o paper?
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Post by jetmugg on Feb 10, 2010 22:03:11 GMT -6
There are micron size ratings for the polishes, whereas the papers are often spec'ed in terms of a grit rating. It's possible to convert from one to the other.
Diamond pastes are used after grinding with wet/dry paper. Only a very small amount of diamond paste is usually used, normally in conjunction with oil.
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Post by Murph on Sept 23, 2011 23:45:35 GMT -6
I saw this post and thought I would give some insight. I have used diamond paste on axles that have been surface treated. The surface treatment was so hard that nothing but diamond paste would work for the polishing protocol.
Diamond paste is expensive and not needed for normal axle preparation.
I polish my axles with chrome polish and, subsequently, Brasso. Pretty inexpensive. What you do next is different when you are using oil or powder.
Murph
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Post by *5 J's* on Sept 29, 2011 18:44:14 GMT -6
I saw this post and thought I would give some insight. I have used diamond paste on axles that have been surface treated. The surface treatment was so hard that nothing but diamond paste would work for the polishing protocol. Diamond paste is expensive and not needed for normal axle preparation. I polish my axles with chrome polish and, subsequently, Brasso. Pretty inexpensive. What you do next is different when you are using oil or powder. Murph murph - to be clear is this for a zinc plate, nickel plated, or a stainless axle? Interesting - I just saw that WInderby has a Nickel/Teflon plated axle.
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Post by Murph on Sept 30, 2011 9:13:53 GMT -6
Hey 5, I was refering to leveraging PVD (physical vapor deposition) on axles. The only way to polish this stuff is with diamond paste.
This particular process of applying low surface energy coatings is expensive and outside the normal racer's budget. Murph
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Post by *5 J's* on Sept 30, 2011 9:25:59 GMT -6
Hey 5, I was refering to leveraging PVD (physical vapor deposition) on axles. The only way to polish this stuff is with diamond paste. This particular process of applying low surface energy coatings is expensive and outside the normal racer's budget. Murph Sorry Murph - guess I should have been more specific. I was wondering if you use the chrome polish & brasso regimen on zinc, nickel, and/or stainless axles.
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Post by Murph on Sept 30, 2011 9:56:44 GMT -6
On zinc and nickel, I would be careful. I would say, depends on finish. Usually, coated metal is pretty smooth to begin with.
I know that the axles supplied with the DERBY WORX RS and SS Wheels are very smooth to start with.
With bare metal, there are no rules. Go for it.
My personal preference is chrome polish and brasso. Under a microscope, the axle surface looks much better with this process when compared to the micromesh process.
I believe that everyone has a different opinion. I got some serious speed from this process along with a microscope to find minor imperfections.
A normal father and son team do not need a microscope for axle inspection. This process is for pro cars that are raced in venues such as PWDR.
For BSA Pinewood derby cars, you will still need a small file to remove the raised ridges on the axle shaft. My son does not rotate the axle when he removes the ridges with a small jewelers file.
After my son removes the ridges, he uses sandpaper when the axle is mounted and turning in a drill press to get a smooth axle.
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Post by *5 J's* on Sept 30, 2011 10:30:00 GMT -6
I have shown my sons how to chuck and axle in the drill press and while rotating use a small file to remove the flashing and crimps. Then we use the micromesh to 3 micron. For "pro" type cars I follow with lapping film and 0.05 micron paste. However, I am curious if axle polishing may be a case of less is better - with both Scouts BSA axles as well as "pro" axles.
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