Our fused glass projects have hit a snag we think relates to use of metal and diamond saw blades to cut the exact pendant and earring widths needed. We think microscopic bits of metal or diamond are impregnating the glass during the cutting process. You'd think the second near-full fuse at 1425 degrees would melt and gloss over the matte finish after cutting, but it actually seems to seal in a grayish 'scar' instead. The effect is not especially noticeable on more clear glass, but on black it's pretty bad. To remedy we're thinking that a silicon-based wet-sand pass will clean this up.
Unfortunately, a wet sander is a very expensive item! The one Johnny's mom uses is a Covington Commercial Deluxe Wet Belt Sander, which starts at about $900.
My search on Craigslist didn't net out any prospects, but luckily enough, Johnny's mom decided that week to buy a new one. Being constantly in contact with water, little wonder hers had rusted out pretty badly after a number of years, so badly that most of the adjustment bolts were rusted to a mush and the belt couldn't be aligned anymore. They were going to throw it out, so we volunteered to haul it away:
Over a few weeks' time I managed to get most of the rusted metal stripped off and the main component parts separated from the cast aluminum core structure. Most of bolts had be cut off using the grinder:
All parts finally removed and the aluminum structure cleaned up with a wire wheel attachment for the grinder along with some dremel detailing:
On to painting! I found some appliance epoxy at Depot, several coats later:
Repaired some of the damage from the past misaligned belt action:
The base was just a 1-inch thick piece of marine plywood covered in a thin sheet of metal that had almost entirely rusted away. I removed all the metal, gave it a a good sanding then applied 5 coats of marine-grade black polyurethane. Added some rubber feet and bolted the basin back on using all new hardware.
Everything cleaned, painted and ready for assembly:
Fully assembled and adjusted. Built a mock up out of foam core of the plexi water shield we need to create to keep the water off of the motor:
Putting together and notching out the plexiglass shroud:
The final sander, ready for work!
