Anyone make a cutting tool out of a small diamond ?

[hephaestus]

I have a small service award from my Grandpa and
was wondering if I could turn it into a cutting tool
of some kind. I have other things that belonged to him
from where he worked so there's not all that much
sentimental value with it.
I checked ebay and there are others like it not really
selling for much anyway.

[danlb]

A service award... Sounds like the Phone company.

I can understand that it's not worth much, and might not have much sentimental value.

BUT....

He was proud to reach the 30 or 40 years on the job that earned that tie tack, cuff link or watch. It meant that he'd spent decades doing a job that mattered to him. That's the job that paid for your mother or father's food, the roof over their heads. It's the job that paid for the doctor bills when his children were born. It's the one that supported them as the family grew.

When you spend 40 years at one company, it matters. It had sentimental value.

Dan

[EddyCurr]

I am with danlb. That said, many around me are unsentimental.

If the OP elects to proceed, one use for a small diamond is as a tip on a dressing tool for grinding wheels. I recall reading about the cut applied, but details no longer come to mind.

.

[danlb]

Please don't take my post as negative in any way. I was just trying to put a different spin on the concept of sentimental value. I have nothing from my grandfather, and the home where I spent a summer in my youth burned when I was a teen, so there was no chance to even go back to visit it. I regret that.

Since I'm a private person, and an introvert, no one will understand the sentimental value in the boxes on the shelf marked "memories". That's ok with me, but I have to wonder what my kids will invest with their sentiment.

No need to keep everything. But if there is a story then it's worth thinking of it.

Dan

[PStechPaul]

I don't like to think of things like this being destroyed to use for another purpose, but then I have a house full of stuff that I hate to throw away. There are some things that I have forgotten that I have, and when I rediscover them, they bring back memories. I have found that it helps to take pictures of items that are contributing too much to clutter and have no real purpose, and then I am more comfortable getting rid of them. I have also found homes for some things by using Freecycle or giving them to Salvation Army or other charities.

As mentioned above, about the only thing I can think of for something with diamonds is a grinding wheel dresser, or maybe a scriber that can be used to mark hard items like HSS or ceramic.

[DancingBear]

I hate to see a gem-grade diamond being used as a cutting tool. There's plenty of crappy diamonds available for that. I seem to recall hearing that there are 100 carats of industrial diamonds found for every carat of gem-grade.

Have you looked into having the stone remounted into a new piece of jewelry? That way it would be in a piece you or a loved one would use, but still honor his memory.

Walt

[EddyCurr]

Have you looked into having the stone remounted into a new piece of jewelry? That way it would be in a piece you or a loved one would use, but still honor his memory.

Now there's a thought I wish I'd had.

.

[Jim Williams]

A small faceted gem diamond is not the right shape to make a cutting tool out of, except for possibly a wheel dresser. They are usually not worth much, unless they gave him something that has a diamond of a 1/4 carat or so. Take it by a diamond merchant or a reputable pawn shop and see what they offer for it.

Jim

[Rosco-P]

I have a small service award from my Grandpa and
was wondering if I could turn it into a cutting tool
of some kind. I have other things that belonged to him
from where he worked so there's not all that much
sentimental value with it.
I checked ebay and there are others like it not really
selling for much anyway.

Give it to another family member.
Maybe they will treasure it more than you do.

[old mart]

As Jim Williams has said, gemstone facets are not suitable for cutting, in fact it is possible to spoil a gem diamond by scratching glass with it.
Mounted wheel dressing diamonds are cheap and there are no sharp edges on them.
It is probably best to sell it as is and spend the money on tooling more suitable for your purpose.

[mars-red]

If you really want to make a diamond cutting tool, such as the type used by watchmakers to machine ruby hole jewels, buy some of those small industrial grade diamonds. When I bought some a few years back, they were only a few dollars each. Look on YouTube, Steffan Pahlow has a video or two showing the making of such a tool and it's use to machine custom ruby bearings for a watch.

[Evan]

You can buy what are called "point diamonds" which are very cheap and make nice engraving tools for very hard materials. Also just drop in to a local jeweler and ask what they have on hand. They can also be bought online from an outfit in Thailand for very low prices, like 10 or 20 for a buck a piece or so. They are just very poor quality gem cut stones and the bottom point makes a very decent cutting tool when spun at low velocity. You need to use a spring loaded holder and the diamond can simply be glued into a dimple in the end of the holder shaft. Epoxy works fine.

You don't want the tool to get hot. Diamond begins to break down to plain old carbon at quite low temperatures and even breaks down very, very slowly at room temperature. Diamonds are not forever no matter what the ads may say. At room temp it takes millions of years but it still happens.