chris_4622
15-Mar-2011, 14:10
I've made a few pieces of ground glass for my camera over the years and today I needed to make a larger one for a new camera. I've only used the 5 micron powder to grind it and it can take some time with that fine a powder so I came up with an idea I'd like to share.
I have a round Dynabrade Orbital Air Sander. I took an old pad and scraped the foam off the plastic mount. Next I made a square blank out of MDF and screwed the plastic mount to it. Next I took a scrap piece of 2mm glass that I cut slightly smaller than the blank and epoxied it to the blank. Once set up I mixed more epoxy and spread it around the edges of the blank to keep water from soaking into the MDF.
My dad use to have a saying about the tireless arm of electricity and it sure worked well today. The sander did all the work and did it well. I ran the rpm's very slowly. I suppose if I were to get some coarser grit and run the sander at a higher rpm it might move along a little quicker but since I'm not making these to sell I see no reason to rush it. I just needed a method to make it easier. I didn't keep exact time for grinding but I think it was around 25 - 30 minutes for a 6 1/2 x 8 1/2" piece of Schott Borofloat glass.
I was thinking whether this idea could be adapted to a cheap electric orbital sander but it might become a bit dangerous if the speed can't be controlled.
I have a round Dynabrade Orbital Air Sander. I took an old pad and scraped the foam off the plastic mount. Next I made a square blank out of MDF and screwed the plastic mount to it. Next I took a scrap piece of 2mm glass that I cut slightly smaller than the blank and epoxied it to the blank. Once set up I mixed more epoxy and spread it around the edges of the blank to keep water from soaking into the MDF.
My dad use to have a saying about the tireless arm of electricity and it sure worked well today. The sander did all the work and did it well. I ran the rpm's very slowly. I suppose if I were to get some coarser grit and run the sander at a higher rpm it might move along a little quicker but since I'm not making these to sell I see no reason to rush it. I just needed a method to make it easier. I didn't keep exact time for grinding but I think it was around 25 - 30 minutes for a 6 1/2 x 8 1/2" piece of Schott Borofloat glass.
I was thinking whether this idea could be adapted to a cheap electric orbital sander but it might become a bit dangerous if the speed can't be controlled.