The BATT™ is the standard for tin alloy laps. With more than 8,000 sold, it has established itself in Commerce and Competition time and again.
A SOLID cast tin alloy lap, with two usable sides, it still sells for significantly less than many commercial rolled tin laminated laps.
BATT™ alloy laps are now used by thousands of gemcutters. Because they are solid castings, they may be resurfaced many times, to provide years of use!
A BATT™ lap charged with 3,000 diamond (Or 8,000) provides a perfect pre-polish after cutting with 600, with a surface good enough to allow subsequent polishing in record time, on stones from Fluorite to Sapphire. A BATT™ lap charged with 50K or finer, or an oxide/ Darkside for the quartzes, promptly finishes the stone.
| Alloy | Hardness, Brinell |
|---|---|
| Pure Tin | 5.3 |
| 63:37 Tin/Lead solder: | 14 |
| 95/5 | 14 |
| Britannia Pewter | 22.5 |
| Sn die cast YC135A | 29 |
| BATT™ | 32.5 |
| Commercial Rolled Zinc | 43 |
Like many metal laps, the BATT™ is a permanent chargeable lap. They must be dedicated to a grit size. BATT™ success is its ability to retain diamond, so the user can never go to a finer sized grit once a lap is charged. A lap can be "promoted" to a coarser grit. A 60,000 polishing lap can be converted to a 3,000 prepoloish or 1200 cutting lap for example, but you cannot go back to a finer size.
