Marian Sawby
Member
I ordered four from GRS today. I think they run about $30 a piece. I believe they are available now.
C-Max - a new carbide graver from GRS
- Thread starter sam
- Start date
Mike Cirelli
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Joe I been using the a 120 and I made a small flat of another one. Both hold up really well. The flat is giving me some ultra bright cuts right off the ceramic with 50,000 mesh spray.The cuts stay bright much longer than any other gravers I have.
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jetta77
Elite Cafe Member
$30, ouch that's gotta hurt, that seems mighty steep to me. I've been using lindays carbalt (carbide/cobalt) and I've yet to break a point using 120, theirs sell for about $15.
Jeff
Jeff
Roger Bleile
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Jeff,
I use the Carbalt also but on a stainless steel revolver cylinder their tips chip like anything else even though I round off the tip to a slight raidus. I would gladly pay the thirty bucks for a graver that saved the sharpening and interruptions. On the other hand, the price seems steep if you are using it on jewelry where the tips last a long time anyway.
CRB
I use the Carbalt also but on a stainless steel revolver cylinder their tips chip like anything else even though I round off the tip to a slight raidus. I would gladly pay the thirty bucks for a graver that saved the sharpening and interruptions. On the other hand, the price seems steep if you are using it on jewelry where the tips last a long time anyway.
CRB
Arnaud Van Tilburgh
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I can't find them on the GRS website, normal I order all my tools from the Alexandra school Antwerp, but than I need a code.
Or are these engravers not yet available?
arnaud
Mike Cirelli
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Roger you are right in one aspect that the edge does last longer on most any graver when doing jewelry.
I never used a graver that polished quit like this and resists the metal build as this C-max. The polishing on the ceramic wheel is done very fast to mirror quality with a razor edge. Unlike some carbides I've noticed the edge can be somewhat microscopically ragged after coming off the ceramic wheel.
I never used a graver that polished quit like this and resists the metal build as this C-max. The polishing on the ceramic wheel is done very fast to mirror quality with a razor edge. Unlike some carbides I've noticed the edge can be somewhat microscopically ragged after coming off the ceramic wheel.
silverchip
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Why do you think that is the case with some carbides and not others?
Silverchip, I don't know if Mike would agree with this but I would say it's to do with the size of the grain used in the composition of the powdered carbide mix.
fegarex
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I think John is correct in what he is saying. Carbide is like BBQ sauce. There are a lot of recipes and some are good for one thing and not another. Like Mike says, this stuff does really polish up brighter than other carbides I have used.
I also checked with the sales department at GRS. They have pre-sharpened gravers in various angles for $21.95 each. Then they have a 2MM square blank for $14.90 each.
I don't have part numbers or what angles are available but they are supposed to be in stock now and available to dealers domestically and internationally soon.
I hope that helps clear up some confusion.
By the way, the 2MM square is a handy size as it takes less time to sharpen but is still strong enough not to flex. I don't know if you would want to make a hogging type graver out of it but for general purpose it works well.
I also checked with the sales department at GRS. They have pre-sharpened gravers in various angles for $21.95 each. Then they have a 2MM square blank for $14.90 each.
I don't have part numbers or what angles are available but they are supposed to be in stock now and available to dealers domestically and internationally soon.
I hope that helps clear up some confusion.
By the way, the 2MM square is a handy size as it takes less time to sharpen but is still strong enough not to flex. I don't know if you would want to make a hogging type graver out of it but for general purpose it works well.
silverchip
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
J.B.-You turned me on to NGravers carbides many years ago and I have used them ever since for engraving silver&gold. they even work on soft steel ,I am hoping these will do the same for harder steels,I hope the price is worth it.
Jordi
Member
I just confirm what others said about it. I was able to try it and it works really well.
Hi Silverchip.
I have used Ngraver micro grain carbide 3/32 " square gravers for years on gold for it's non-stick properties and also on hard steel. Glad to have steered you to it.
Geeswein used to have 1/16 " round micro grain carbide blanks that I used to make up as my mini-gravers but I don't see them in their catalog any more. Great stuff too.
I'm looking forward to trying the new GRS carbide mix as Rex seems to find it has maybe a little more toughness in place of some hardness and brittleness.
I think we are always looking for a compromise in our carbide gravers and this may be the ticket for some applications.
I have used Ngraver micro grain carbide 3/32 " square gravers for years on gold for it's non-stick properties and also on hard steel. Glad to have steered you to it.
Geeswein used to have 1/16 " round micro grain carbide blanks that I used to make up as my mini-gravers but I don't see them in their catalog any more. Great stuff too.
I'm looking forward to trying the new GRS carbide mix as Rex seems to find it has maybe a little more toughness in place of some hardness and brittleness.
I think we are always looking for a compromise in our carbide gravers and this may be the ticket for some applications.
Mike Cirelli
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I don't know John, you would know better than me. Sounds right though. I had purchased a boron carbide block a while back. It's to be used for cleaning up a ceramic wheels surface. This thing is almost indestructible on the ceramic wheel with diamond. If you used it for a graver though, it would crumble. Carbide is a complex animal.
Mike Cirelli
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Sandy I got it from a lapidary supply co.. It's suppose to resurface the wheel but it doesn't seem to work very well with the diamond spay used for finishing. A courser grit spray would probably work much better.
What I found to work very well for cleaning is a bar of Lava soup and a stiff brush. I grind the bar over the wheel in the sink a few times and scrub it with the brush. Diamond spray and a folded tissue will keep it fairly clean also. Wipe it while it's running with a clean part of the tissue repeat if necessary.
What I found to work very well for cleaning is a bar of Lava soup and a stiff brush. I grind the bar over the wheel in the sink a few times and scrub it with the brush. Diamond spray and a folded tissue will keep it fairly clean also. Wipe it while it's running with a clean part of the tissue repeat if necessary.
silverchip
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I tried the C-max on some A10 tool steel(some very tough stuff to engrave)for coining dies.Once I got in the groove and kept my tools polished,it worked better than all of the rest of my tools.I wasn't sure that having a round shank on the tool was worth the extra $$$.If you can get the same grade carbide in a plain square configuration for less,it would be an even better value.
Arnaud Van Tilburgh
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
This tool as you all who tried it are so enthusiast, I still can't find these engravers on the GRS website, can someone tell me what is the part number to order them?
As usual I order the GRS tools via the Alexandre School in Antwerp.
arnaud
As usual I order the GRS tools via the Alexandre School in Antwerp.
arnaud
Marcus Hunt
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
I just got my test pieces of square stock yesterday. All I can say is WOW! Fantastic stuff. I'll definitely be ordering more!!!!
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