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Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Cool. I am an utter and completely noob to this so when I say "what machine should I buy for the upcoming kit" I literally mean I'd like an answer like "it's easiest on this machine, here's a link" kinda thing.

I have no ideas about where to even buy a starter machine, so any and all advice is welcome.

I'm still in the research phase but the idea I can cut my own superman crystals is tweaking that shiny goblin mode in my brain.

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Scarodactyl
Oct 22, 2015


Ah gotcha. There is a specific machine that goes with the kit, this one from Vevor https://www.ebay.com/itm/145039310594

Soul Dentist
Mar 17, 2009
What is up with Vevor? It's everywhere now and it creeps me out

Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Awesome!

Got it bookmarked, sent a cheap offer in cause I'm on a budget at the moment.

Fingers crossed! 🤞🤞

Scarodactyl
Oct 22, 2015


Soul Dentist posted:

What is up with Vevor? It's everywhere now and it creeps me out
It's like harbor freight but fully online--cheap Chinese stuff but with a veneer of support and maybe some design tweaks vs total generics. They are doing a big brand push as evinced by them having sent this machine free to a few youtubers with relatively low subscriber counts for reviews (presumably they're doing a ton of that, I have only done research on this machine).

In terms of the machine itself they are the only ones selling this variant. Similar machines which are apparently from the same factory are available from the usual resellers, but Vevor seems to have listened to complaints and gotten them made to spec to fix some issues (actually twice since their older model was also customized). The changes take it from 'almost workable but needing a lot of modification' to 'almost workable and only needs minor modification.'
I personally don't understand why they decided to do this with such a niche product but I am really glad they did.

Soul Dentist
Mar 17, 2009
They have a ton of jewelry tools (binocular scope, casting kilns, polish hoods, etc) and I don't feel like I could trust online reviews but they are so so cheap

Scarodactyl
Oct 22, 2015


The faceting machine does still have occasional QC issues, but do far they've all been fixable. For the price it's incredible, they're cheaper than the generic faceting machines and in the US they're shipped free and on your doorstep in like 3 days.

cheese eats mouse
Jul 6, 2007

A real Portlander now
They have a cheap wheel for ceramics too

Soul Dentist
Mar 17, 2009
Ok fine I'm on the Vevorwagon

Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Do you know when the complete upgrade kit will be available?

Scarodactyl
Oct 22, 2015


It's available right now on our webstore: https://store.turtleshoard.com/products/cutkit1-faceting-kit-faceting-for-under-500-dollars-all-in

Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Oh cool it was out of stock earlier I think.

I'll scope it out.

So, let me make sure I have this right:
- gotta buy the faceting machine
-Get the cutkit
-Upgrade is optional?

Scarodactyl
Oct 22, 2015


Yeah, the upgrade just adds a few amenities, a brass knurled nut (a nice upgrade that costs a bit too much to fit in the base kit since we had it custom machined), high temperature wax, an 80 degree index gear (good for d20s and other 5 fold symmetry cuts) and some premium cutting rough. All you need to cut is the Vevor machine, the base cutkit, an alcohol lamp, wd40, paper towels and two buckets for water.

Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Weird question but can I cut big items on there or is that a special machine? I'm doodling out a shining dodecahedron/trapazohedron from HP literally and it's like a fist sided ruby crystal. Is that doable on a machine like this or do I need some big other machine for that?

Scarodactyl
Oct 22, 2015


When Hedron Rockworks tried it he said it didn't have enough torque to cut one of his full sized dice. I am not yet sure what the upper limit is since it chewed through my ruby d20 like a champ. Either way for a super large stone you'd need a specialized setup, probably a 10 inch machine like the Glass Tec. There are further complications in cutting stones that size too (like getting the rough). I do have a ruby that size which a (slightly crazy) friend wants to take on someday though.

Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Whoa, big price diff between around 500 and around 8 grand.

Rough is easy enough, I can just ask one of the crystal factories a friend uses for a big chunk.

I would love a giant natural stone one but I'd imagine finding a ruby that size that looks nice is about the equivalent of buying a new car with cash. Gonna be a BIG price tag on there.

I think the stuff he gets cut is k9 crystal or optical grade. Any idea if that works better than glass or quartz or something on the vevor?

Xun
Apr 25, 2010

I can say for sure the only reason I have an ultratec is that my car got totaled by a truck about 6 months before I moved to Europe so I wisely spent the insurance payout on an ultratec instead of a car

Tunicate
May 15, 2012

Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:

Whoa, big price diff between around 500 and around 8 grand.

Rough is easy enough, I can just ask one of the crystal factories a friend uses for a big chunk.

I would love a giant natural stone one but I'd imagine finding a ruby that size that looks nice is about the equivalent of buying a new car with cash. Gonna be a BIG price tag on there.

I think the stuff he gets cut is k9 crystal or optical grade. Any idea if that works better than glass or quartz or something on the vevor?

IIRC K9 is lead glass, so you might want to avoid grinding it and spreading the powder around.

Generally quartz can be chippy and it has fairly mediocre optical properties

Stupid_Sexy_Flander
Mar 14, 2007

Is a man not entitled to the haw of his maw?
Grimey Drawer
Yea the 9 can refer to the lead content. If I cut that it's gonna be while wearing a respirator.

Target Practice
Aug 20, 2004

Shit.
I have loved lapidary since learning and being around it as a kid and I have been dabbling in it for a bit over a year. I am SO excited that this kit exists because faceting stuff always seemed so out of reach.

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Tunicate
May 15, 2012

Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:

Yea the 9 can refer to the lead content. If I cut that it's gonna be while wearing a respirator.

should wear a respirator with everything TBH, even inert stuff like quartz could give you silicosis (though practically speaking that's usually only an issue with dry cutting those big quartz countertops).

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