What grit for grinding Tungsten

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I need to replace one of the stones on my bench grinder and use it as a dedicated wheel just for my Tungstens and figured I might as well get a nice Diamond wheel for the job butwhat grit Diamond stone should I get for grinding Tungsten. The stones range from 60-1500grit from the ones I looked at but will it make any difference other than the rate of removal?TIASr
Reply:You dont want huge gouges in your tungsten, but you dont wast to stand there forever gringing. Id go with something in the middle.Go hot, or go home!
Reply:80 works well, anything smaller than 120 IMO takes to long.Have we all gone mad?
Reply:What about a sanding belt instead of a stone?  I've seen this in Covell TIG basic DVD and thought it was pretty neat.  Any cons with a sanding belt?USINUM - CNC routing workshopPaco's area - blogspot---Lincoln MIGpack180 (GMAW - FCAW)Miller Syncrowave 250
Reply:Thanks guys I know what you mean about the time thing sn0borderBeing such a newbie I need to sharpen often and find the fine stone on the bench grinder takes a lot longer than the coarse stone, I think the coarse is 80 and the fine is 220.I think I will go with a 120 and split the difference.I have a belt sander but it sees regular use sanding and grinding and it would be too time consuming for me to change out belts to grind the tungstens however I'm sure it would work great.Lincoln Squarewave 255Miller Coolmate IIISpeedway 320Lots of melted mess so far
Reply:I have a $20 belt sander from Harbor Freight (1"x30") that works pretty good for re-sharpening tungstens.  I don't using it for pointing new tungstens as it takes too long.  But for cleaning up while welding, it works great.  Makes less noise than the bench grinder and the belts are cheap, but last a long time.  I'd go with 80 or 120 grit, based on my experiences.Benson's Mobile Welding - Dayton, OH metro area - AWS Certified Welding Inspector
Reply:I use a cordless drill and a coarse wheel to rough my tungsten then finish on a fine wheel.Just make sure your grind lines are going lenth way when you finish.
Reply:A mid range grit leaning towards fine will probably serve you well. I've noticed that tungsten these days seems to be of a lower quality than in years past. It wants to break and crumble just as you're getting a nice fine point. One thing I do when grinding tungsten is that I have a cheap cordless drill ($14) that is dedicated to this purpose. I just chuck up a piece and work it across the wheel so I don't create grooves, til I get the desired point. I make it look like a freshly sharpened pencil on a smaller scale. Also, using the drill saves my fingers on smaller pieces and I can also get a hollow ground profile which I prefer and is difficult to get by hand sharpening. Don't forget your dust mask please. There can be some alloying agents in tungsten that are known carcinogens and radioactive!maniak
Reply:Sr SQ,Diamond grit and abrasive grit wheels are graded differently.My tungsten grinder (dedicated) is a 6" Delta VS.On the left shaft I have mounted a 1"x6" Diamond Cabbing wheel at 100gr.  This wheel is a really coarse cut wheel.  I use it for cutting the tungsten (when used at an angle) and for rough cutting the initial taper when starting a new tungsten.On the right shaft, I have mounted (back to back), a 360 gr diamond wheel and a 1000 gr diamond wheel.  The 360 is used the most and gives an extremely fine finish and is still relatively fast cutting.  The 1000 will put a mirror finish on the tungsten but removes material very slowly.You'll find that by using diamond wheels you significantly reduce the overall dust produced.I use a 9.6 V Makita angle drill to hold/rotate my tungsten when sharpening.When the 1000gr wheel wears out, I'll probably replace it with something like a 600gr. Attached ImagesLast edited by SundownIII; 05-01-2009 at 08:29 PM.Syncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.
Reply:Couple more photos for clarity. Attached ImagesSyncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.
Reply:Oh, and before we get questions on the grinder guards.They were removed.  Will not work with the diamond wheels and aluminum backing plates.  We've had OSHA in the shop since I put this grinder together and they didn't have a problem with the fact that the guards had been removed.  I explained that the wheels were aluminum, not stone which could fracture/disintegrate.  No problems.Since these photos were taken, I've added a simple guide to the 360 gr wheel.  Mounts on the grinder where the original front plate would go.  Allows me to adjust the angle of the grind and maintain consistency between grinds.  Really wasn't that hard to maintain even without the guide.The grinder was purchased from Lowe's for about $79.00The diamond wheels came off e-bay.  Seller, if I remember  correctly, was therocklady.  Just do a search (on e-bay) for lapidary diamond.  The 1" cabbing stone was about $40 and the 360/1000 wheels with backing plates were about $20 each.So, as you can see.  You can put together a rather complete, portable, diamond grind tungsten sharpening station for well under $200.  Lot less than a Sharpie.Syncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.
Reply:Thanks Sundown, that was the info I was look for.The disc's I was looking at on ebay were $44 so seems the price is comparable.I have been using my little 7.2v cordless drill to spin the tungsten (thanks to members here) and it works awesome.Lincoln Squarewave 255Miller Coolmate IIISpeedway 320Lots of melted mess so far