If you've ever used a diamond blade for cutting or grinding in an industrial setting, you'll be familiar with the sheer power that diamond or diamond dust gives you. Nothing beats diamond for cutting and grinding ability. The diamonds used in industrial applications may not be the perfectly sparkling ones you see in stores, but their usefulness and strength make them infinitely more valuable to you. That being said, diamonds aren't invincible, and just as a jeweler can cut a diamond in two, industrial diamond blades can lose their sharpness. At that point, you have the option of replacing them or re-dressing them.

It Represents the Hardest Grade on the Mohs Scale

Diamonds represent the hardest grade — a 10 — on the Mohs scale, a ranking of gem and mineral hardness. It is very hard to damage a diamond, although it can be done. This hardness means that diamond pieces should be able to cut through most other substances (while diamonds are often considered the hardest substance on the planet, they are actually the hardest natural substance, with some manmade materials being much harder). Not all diamonds can be used in jewelry, so instead of wasting the non-jewelry stones, they're broken up and used in industrial cutting and grinding applications.

Glazing Is Not the End of the Blade

Something that often happens to diamonds used for industrial cutting is that they can appear to glaze over and become dull. This happens because of the intense heat they're exposed to. The cutting and grinding generate friction, which in turn creates heat that can glaze the diamond. The glazing does not mean the diamond is done for. You can recut the diamond, in a way, by re-dressing it. That leaves the diamond blade sharp and ready to cut more.

A Diamond Blade or Wheel Does Eventually Wear Down

Eventually, the diamond blade can wear down beyond re-dressing capability, especially if you use the blade a lot. At that point, you may have to replace it. But re-dressing, or using a wheel dresser, often in the form of a dressing stick, can prolong the life of the diamond blade and save you a lot of money.

It pays to keep dressing sticks and other dressing tools at the ready because you never know when that glazing is going to occur. The tools are easy to store, so you can keep more than one, allowing you to keep all diamond blades and wheels as sharp as can be. For more information about a diamond wheel dresser, contact a local supplier.