Mesh vs grit vs micron

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flphotog

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Jul 10, 2014
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I seem to be getting a little confused on this issue and hoping someone can help.

I have several DMT diamond hones that I use on my KME sharpening system and I was just looking at the DMT site and saw that there XXF hone is listed as 8000 mesh, 3 micron.

I found a conversion table that doesn't even show 8000 mesh but it's showing that the lower the grit goes the higher the mesh number is, that would tell me that for a very fine hone, it would have a very low mesh number.
Here is a link to the conversion chart I found, http://www.gessweincanada.com/category-s/11328.htm

Can any one explain what I seem to be missing in this?

Edit: Based on what I'm seeing it looks to me like DMT says mesh when they really mean grit, but that does seem a little surprising.
 
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flphotog said:
I seem to be getting a little confused on this issue and hoping someone can help.

I have several DMT diamond hones that I use on my KME sharpening system and I was just looking at the DMT site and saw that there XXF hone is listed as 8000 mesh, 3 micron.

I found a conversion table that doesn't even show 8000 mesh but it's showing that the lower the grit goes the higher the mesh number is, that would tell me that for a very fine hone, it would have a very low mesh number.
Here is a link to the conversion chart I found, http://www.gessweincanada.com/category-s/11328.htm

Can any one explain what I seem to be missing in this?

Edit: Based on what I'm seeing it looks to me like DMT says mesh when they really mean grit, but that does seem a little surprising.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure about the chart you referenced... I won't say it's wrong because I didn't research what they used it for or how they made it... but it's my understanding that mesh size is based on "the number of holes in a screen in a one inch square". So, if I read that right, as the particle size decreases, the mesh # should increase (holes get smaller = more holes = higher mesh # is my understanding). The chart you referenced looks to do the opposite... like they're giving the mesh hole size, instead of the mesh number.

You're right... the DMT # more closely corresponds to what most think of as the grit size.

If you can get the micron #, that's probably the easiest way to compare (since it's a standard measurement). Grit/mesh, etc. all seem to have different scales. I've noticed more and more companies are providing the micron equivalent.
 
That 'mesh' column in the referenced chart does seem backwards. No idea what the source of that is.

'Mesh' is supposed to be proportional to the number of openings in the screen per linear unit of measure, as mentioned. So as the mesh number goes up, the size of each opening decreases; therefore the smaller the particle has to be, to pass through the opening.

I could see how some variability might exist between different 'mesh' scales, depending not just on the size of the opening, but upon the thickness of the wires/filaments used in the mesh screen. Thicker wires would limit or reduce the number of openings per linear unit of measure, with the spacing between the wires remaining the same size.


David
 
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Grit and mesh refer to the number of holes / sieve slots per unit of measure in a mesh/sieve that would allow the particles to pass through. So higher mesh/grit numbers = smaller micron size.

Think of it as taking a window screen and using it to sift dirt. The finer the mesh of the screen, the smaller the particles that will sift through it. So one measurement is the fineness of the screen, the other is the size if the particles that go through it.

Here is a pretty basic explanation along with a chart of the lower mesh sizes. http://www.kramerindustriesonline.com/finishing-guides/mesh-size.htm
 
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