"I would imagine industrial diamond dust has a different cost."
I have a tube of diamond lapping compound somewhere in my basement shop. Dirt cheap because its full of inclusions and not clear.
They generally don't use jewelry grade diamonds for industrial work, although to manipulate the market I suppose anything could happen.
I was motivated enough to check amazon for the stuff I have and you're probably doing something wrong or weird if you're paying more than $3/gram delivered. One problem with buying a 5 gram plastic syringe of diamond lapping paste for $5 is the plastic syringe and shipping and handling probably cost a significant fraction... I would bet on industrial 55 gallon barrel scale its under $1/gram.
I have a tube of diamond lapping compound somewhere in my basement shop. Dirt cheap because its full of inclusions and not clear.
They generally don't use jewelry grade diamonds for industrial work, although to manipulate the market I suppose anything could happen.
I was motivated enough to check amazon for the stuff I have and you're probably doing something wrong or weird if you're paying more than $3/gram delivered. One problem with buying a 5 gram plastic syringe of diamond lapping paste for $5 is the plastic syringe and shipping and handling probably cost a significant fraction... I would bet on industrial 55 gallon barrel scale its under $1/gram.