A faceting machine cuts and polishes a stone one facet at a time. It holds the stone on a dop at a set angle against a flat, spinning lap.
In more detail
An index gear on the machine sets the direction of each facet around the stone. Faceters cut colored stones and synthetics this way. Diamond is cut with other equipment: it is sawn, bruted and polished on a scaife.
Related terms
- Index gear: An index gear is the toothed wheel on a faceting machine that sets each facet's direction around the stone. Each index is one tooth of the gear.
- Cutting file: A cutting file is a faceting design: every facet's angle and index, in cutting order, for a faceting machine. It tells a faceter how to cut the stone.
- Tier: A tier is a set of facets cut at the same angle, at several index positions around the stone. A faceting design lists its tiers in cutting order.
- Cutting order: Cutting order is the sequence in which a faceter cuts the tiers of a design. Each new tier is cut to meet the tiers before it.