What "EMERY PAPERS" are used in preparing your gravers? => 14 photos

The first photo displays the initial Emery Paper that is needed to improve the quality of the 'well-used' graver.

 The most basic & underestimated 'polishing paper' at your bench is Emery Paper. It comes in many grades of texture, ranging from #800 medium grade to a coarse #240 grit. 

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 Here are three sheets of paper, composed of different grades of strength. The rough-textured paper is seen on the right, and the smoothest on the left.

 This stick is made of rigid plastic and securely holds any piece of paper in place. These emery papers can be replaced with little effort. You can use #4/0 grade of the finest, which is very soft or the coarsest of #240 grit. I approve of this'stick', as it has a long usable shelf-life, plus the graver will be best used on a hard surface.

  These eight sticks of wood, each consisting of 1 grade of polishing paper. These sticks have paper that has been heat-treated, and the paper won't come loose over time.

 When the papers get worn, all that is required is attach another layer of the same grit of paper. Each wooden stick will have another grade of paper.

 You will see that I'm not using any (insanely expensive) rotary disk to hold any paper. Each of these sticks can be purchased for $2.00 each at any local paint store.

 The main purpose of these Emery Papers is not to smooth any jewellery surfaces. On the contrary, I will demonstrate how Emery Paper will aid in preparing a graver blade for "Bright Cutting".

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 Here are my often-used 'Emery Papers', as you can see that I'm not discussing the '(smooth) Polishing Papers' at this present time. The techniques for these specific papers are quite different.

This coarse Emery Paper is just that, very coarse! You can see the granules of the paper being wrapped around the stick.

 These emery papers come in a coarser grit. I just purchased a paper without wasting my time looking for a paper that isn't always available. "Labour and availability of the selected papers" are the main ingredients of success.

The #800 grit paper is relatively smooth and much softer than the #240 grit.

 Here is my second choice of Emery Paper, but it still isn't 'rough & tough' for what we need.

 Under closer scrutiny, you can still see the granules in the paper.

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  I am only using the #240 grit paper to remove any 'rough spots' on the side of the Onglette graver.

 Once these rough-textured spots are cleaned (on both sides), I'll examine the graver point again. The smoothest papers do not remove the defects, but only enhance the need to be corrected.

 When you are running the blade over the paper, only the tip of the blade needs to be altered.

 All of these gravers have seen much use, and I'll resume the cleaning on the series of emery papers.

  I'll lay the graver flat on its side, as this is where the Bright-Cutting action will occur.

 Once the series of #240 & #400 grit paper has been completed, the next level of improvement is with the #600 paper. It is best to apply finger-pressure to both sides of the blade. You should closely examine the levels of cleaning every few moments.

 Don't allow any flat surfaces to occur, as these are not required in any Bright-Cutting. The Onglette blade has a slight curvature. This will allow Bright-Cutting to take place.

 We are on the last EMERY paper for improving the sides of the graver. I wholeheartedly suggest examining what has been done until now. The next phase of refurbishing a graver will be shown in the next essay.