# Shop Made Diamond Tool Sharpener



## Ulma Doctor

I have been contemplating making a diamond tool sharpener to hone carbide lathe bits and carbide scraper blades.
I would like a Glendo or an Accu-finish sharpening system,
but wouldn't use it enough to justify it's expense.
Even on the used market they are several hundred bucks if you are lucky enough to find a used one.
i have been loosely doodling with the idea for a while now
Well, today i did something about it!



i had a 115 Vac, 300 rpm gearmotor that was salvaged years ago from a conveyor system.
i also had a spare footswitch that i bought form ebay a couple years ago very cheap.

this link's for a person interested in adding a decent footswitch that isn't a pocket killer:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TEMCo-Heavy...259?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d3b00b3a3

A month ago, i got a diamond wheel from ebay,
(http://www.ebay.com/itm/75-Concentration-600-Grit-Resin-Bond-Bowl-Shape-Diamond-Coated-Grinding-Wheel/391104426627?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid=222007&algo=SIC.MBE&ao=1&asc=29005&meid=881f1b00eb194373b35184cd97685bec&pid=100011&rk=1&rkt=4&sd=321175099678) 
and contemplated how to put it to work.
an angle grinder spins way too fast for honing carbide, so that was out.

after a few beers yesterday,
(not drunk while working in the shop BTW )
i started thinking about the plan to integrate a footswitch, power unit, diamond wheel & shop made hub, and an adjustable- pivoting table for setting different angles.

i came up with a simple design
(plagiarized shamelessly from other machine tools i have seen-i may add),
that will use a bunch of reclaimed parts.




In the picture above,
i turned a stepped mounting hub for the 4" (100mm) cup type grinder wheel and an end cap from 1.5" delrin
i drilled and tapped the gearmotors shaft for a #10-32 the end of the shaft and turned a stepped cap to retain the grinding wheel and added a set screw to hold the hub to the driveshaft.



heres a top view.
Lucky for me the pre-made mounting bracket will serve as the mount to it's platform, no fuss on my part!

The power unit has been assembled and tested on a few pieces.
there is very little discernable runout upon testing , which will result in a nice degree of accuracy!

coming in part 2: the adjustable table assembly's construction!
thanks for reading!


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## JimDawson

Looks like a cool project, and relatively inexpensive to boot!!


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## Ulma Doctor

Thanks Jim!
i'm trying to see how inexpensively i can pull this one off ,
to show that with a little imagination,
a little time, and a few select materials,
a will, and belief that things can be done simply-effectively ,and inexpensively .
i hope the thread inspires others to pull the same kind of things (and much better) from their imagination!


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## brino

Hey Ulma,

That's a great creed to live and design by.
I will be following your journey.

Thanks for sharing.
-brino


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## ARKnack

Looks like an interesting project. I hope you can finish your projects must faster the I.


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## chips&more

Excellent reuse of random parts! You must have some Yankee Ingenuity in your blood. I don't see any flaking on it?


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## Wes

Very impresive! I like that sort of effective, yet not expensive add ins to home workshop.
Thanks for posting. Appreciate it and will follow with the bits I have in my junk to get similar results.


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## Ulma Doctor

chips&more said:


> Excellent reuse of random parts! You must have some Yankee Ingenuity in your blood. I don't see any flaking on it?




Thanks Chips,
my dad's dad, was the consummate tinkerer.
his workshop, modest tools & tooling and early teachings molded my future in no small way.
i believe he'd be proud of what he started!

LOL, just because you don't see any flaking yet, 
that doesn't mean there won't be any flaking on it when it's done....

thanks everyone for reading and responding,
questions and comments are always welcomed!


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## randyc

Ulma Doctor said:


> I have been contemplating making a diamond tool sharpener to hone carbide lathe bits and carbide scraper blades......



Good job, looks very practical !

You may have just shamed me into completing the same project.  I've had the wheel and the motor laying on a work bench for at least six months.  I even made a CAD sketch of the design however I somehow lost the sketch on this laptop, which gave me a great excuse for dragging my feet


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## Ulma Doctor

brino said:


> Hey Ulma,
> 
> That's a great creed to live and design by.
> I will be following your journey.
> 
> Thanks for sharing.
> -brino



Thank you brino, i hope you get something form the ramblings!



ARKnack said:


> Looks like an interesting project. I hope you can finish your projects must faster the I.



Thank you ARKnack, i got an itch that is beggin' to be scratched!



Wes said:


> Very impresive! I like that sort of effective, yet not expensive add ins to home workshop.
> Thanks for posting. Appreciate it and will follow with the bits I have in my junk to get similar results.



You are very kind Wes, i'll try an insert a video of the working model upon completion.
thanks for reading!!


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## Ulma Doctor

randyc said:


> Good job, looks very practical !
> 
> You may have just shamed me into completing the same project.  I've had the wheel and the motor laying on a work bench for at least six months.  I even made a CAD sketch of the design however I somehow lost the sketch on this laptop, which gave me a great excuse for dragging my feet



No More Excuses Randy!!!!, i didn't even touch my magic computer box for this build other than sourcing parts and writing my spiel

Carpe Diem 
or Carpe Vino if you prefer!!!


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## JimDawson

Ulma Doctor said:


> No More Excuses Randy!!!!, i didn't even touch my magic computer box for this build other than sourcing parts and writing my spiel
> 
> Carpe Diem
> or Carpe Vino if you prefer!!!



I just do what the little voices tell me to do, sounds like you have the same voices.    Who needs the computer thingy.


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## Ulma Doctor

JimDawson said:


> I just do what the little voices tell me to do, sounds like you have the same voices.    Who needs the computer thingy.




Lol,
The "voices" tell me to do lots of things, i just do what sounds plausible.
i can get pretty ridiculous sometimes, daydreaming .

the computer is a useful tool, but try not to rely on it fully.
there may be a time, where a pencil and paper and a brain will be the computer again.


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## mattthemuppet2

looking good Mike, but I sure would be able to see the grinder more clearly with some decent LED lights to help with the photos, nudge nudge


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## Ulma Doctor

mattthemuppet said:


> looking good Mike, but I sure would be able to see the grinder more clearly with some decent LED lights to help with the photos, nudge nudge




you have an excellent point! thanks for the reminder!!!


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## randyc

Ulma Doctor said:


> No More Excuses Randy!!!!.....



Ulma Doctor, I'm curious about what speed you are running the wheel.  According to the link below, 5,000 - 6,000 SFPM is appropriate for diamond on carbide ...  My little motor is 3,000 RPM which gives me just a bit over 3,000 SFPM with the 4 inch cup wheel.  That's too low according to the link, but I already had the motor so I'll live with it 

Would like to know what you ended up with and how it works although obviously you can't yet comment on wheel life, LOL.  Muchas gracias !

http://www.diamondtooling.com/article_wheel_operation_01.html


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## Ulma Doctor

Hi Randy,
i have used glendo and accufinish sharpeners.
in operation,their wheels turn slowly, i'm just copying the idea.

i surmise the high SFM's in the link are for flooded cooling ,
i'll be applying squirts of windex.  

i can't tell the glendo or accu finish's wheel's exact RPM by eye,
but, i'd put it somewhere between 300 and 500 RPM- if i were to guess.

this set up may not be suitable to sharpen endmills and other exotic endeavours.
it's being designed on the go primarily , for honing my carbide scrapers and lathe tooling .

de nada, amigo!


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## Wes

Ulma Doctor said:


> Thank you brino, i hope you get something form the ramblings!
> 
> 
> 
> Thank you ARKnack, i got an itch that is beggin' to be scratched!
> 
> 
> 
> You are very kind Wes, i'll try an insert a video of the working model upon completion.
> thanks for reading!!




Awesome ! Looking forward to it!


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## randyc

Ulma Doctor said:


> ...i surmise the high SFM's in the link are for flooded cooling ,
> i'll be applying squirts of windex. ..



Ahhhhhh - that makes perfect sense !


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## 18w

I have a baldor carbide grinder. It is rated at 3450 rpm with 6" wheels. I have a diamond wheel on one side and a silicon carbide on the other. It is a great machine for grinding. I think both of yours will work just great as a final finishing machine, something the baldor is not. After all, lots of folks including myself, use diamond hand laps for a final finish and I know my arm doesn't generate a high sfpm.  
I really like both Mike and Randy's ideas for a slower speed finishing grinder.

Darrell


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## randyc

18w said:


> I have a baldor carbide grinder. It is rated at 3450 rpm with 6" wheels. I have a diamond wheel on one side and a silicon carbide on the other. It is a great machine for grinding. I think both of yours will work just great as a final finishing machine, something the baldor is not. After all, lots of folks including myself, use diamond hand laps for a final finish and I know my arm doesn't generate a high sfpm....



Darrell, that sort of validates the use of the (free and therefore desirable) 3000 RPM motor and 4 inch wheel that I have.  Ulma Doctor's application, at least as I understand it, is fine finishing while my own usage sounds more like yours.  I need to rough-shape carbide tools maybe refine with a green wheel but always hand-lapping with a diamond tool as the final step.

I've been roughing with the green wheel before lapping but it takes some time and throws off a lot of debris   Thanks for your reply and I'm hoping that Ulma Doctor will also put in a word - I may have wrongly inferred how he's using his grinder.


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## 18w

Randy, I think you will like your setup just fine. You are right, those green wheels shed a fair bit of grit. The only reason I keep one on one side is it can be dressed for grinding a radius. Otherwise I would have two different grit diamond wheels, one on each side.

Darrell


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## Ulma Doctor

thanks for reading guys,
i was able to put in some more work on the sharpener this morning.
i took a couple snapshots and made a short video to go along with it.
enjoy!



i have the cast aluminum slab that was reclaimed from a piece of meat portioning equipment. the casting was broken by a careless operator and left 2 nubs that you see rising above the casting.
the 1956 Atlas MFC Horizontal mill got the shoulder tap to work on this job.
i like to hear the little mill work, and she does a pretty dang good job



the aluminum casting has more junk in it than Hong Kong Harbor, but it will suffice for the purpose.
the endmill cut easily and quickly , i was taking .035" cuts very easily.



here's a look at the next to the last roughing pass.

and the short video of the mill in operation!


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## Ulma Doctor

chips&more said:


> . I don't see any flaking on it?



Here ya go chips&more,







just for you!!!
as you can tell it's not precision scraped, but it is Flaked!!!

oil flaking is easy in aluminum!!!


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## chips&more

Ulma Doctor said:


> Here ya go chips&more,
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> just for you!!!
> as you can tell it's not precision scraped, but it is Flaked!!!
> 
> oil flaking is easy in aluminum!!!


That’s more like it! Don’t let it happen again!    PS: wish I could do that!


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## Ulma Doctor

i don't have any magical powers.
you live close enough and i could show you how!
put aside a Saturday or Sunday and drive over the Altamont!
shoot me a PM if you're interested!


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## Ulma Doctor

i got some more done on the sharpener, a few pictures







i used 3-  3/8-16 x 5" hunks of all-thread and a bunch of nuts and washers to mount the platen to the baseplate.




The Platen is parallel to the baseplate, the motor is tilted to 3*, the gap from platen to wheel will be around .035".
both the platen and the motor are adjustable for other angles should the need arise.





i still need to attach the motor to the base and permanently wire the footswitch in.
i'll need to contemplate an easy off mount for the motor for when wheel changes are necessary......







thanks for reading the saga, there's more to come!!!


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## Ulma Doctor

well, i finally got the build together and fully tested and set to my specifications.
i chose a simple mount consisting of some 1/4"x 1" x 6" aluminum that i drilled for attachment with 4 screws to the baseplate.
here's a picture of the angle cube referencing the shaft angle in relation to the baseplate, the platen is parallel to the baseplate.

the reading is 3.00*



heres a picture of the platen zero'd in, sorry for the blurr




heres a video of the contraption in use!





thanks for reading, watching and commenting!
it was a lot of fun to make and it really works!

i hope others will take my example and make something they want or need for the shop, in the shop!


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## brav65

Hey Mike, first of thanks for sharing... as usual absolutely awesome project.  I wish we were neighbors as I would love to be a fly on the wall as you do what you do.  Second, what is your relationship with Windex?  You remind me of the guy from My Big Fat Greek Wedding.  You seem to use it for everything. Does Windex have some special properties I am unaware of?


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## Ulma Doctor

Thanks for commenting Brooks!
I wish we were neighbors too, we'd sure have a lot of fun and PO the neighbors for sure!!!
Hopefully my threads give the impression of being there, i guess it's the next best thing!

My relationship with windex is strictly platonic....

It's a very inexpensive cutting agent.
I learned of it's value from Richard King's scraping class,
we used windex on our work when we were stoning the surface between scraping cycles.
you'd simply brush off the chips and give a couple squirts of windex, stone the area and wipe dry.
then another blue up on the surface plate for the next cycle.
it's cheap and effective.
Care should be taken to dry off the remnants after use, it may rust iron bearing pieces

I have used dollar store window cleaner for cleaning the bores and chambers of my war relic rifles after shooting corrosive primers.
the ammonia/water ratio in the cheap window cleaner neutralizes the corrosive salts left behind when the primer in the shell goes bang.
after the treatment of a patch with the cheap stuff, i'll run it down the bore until it comes back 90% clean, then i'll break down the bolt and treat the firing pin and bolt face with a patch soaked in the cheap window cleaner.
i'd then clean the rifle as normal and re-oil for storage.
corrosive ammo will literally eat your firearms if given half a chance!

thanks for reading!!!


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## brav65

Ulma Doctor said:


> Thanks for commenting Brooks!
> I wish we were neighbors too, we'd sure have a lot of fun and PO the neighbors for sure!!!
> Hopefully my threads give the impression of being there, i guess it's the next best thing!
> 
> My relationship with windex is strictly platonic....
> 
> It's a very inexpensive cutting agent.
> I learned of it's value from Richard King's scraping class,
> we used windex on our work when we were stoning the surface between scraping cycles.
> you'd simply brush off the chips and give a couple squirts of windex, stone the area and wipe dry.
> then another blue up on the surface plate for the next cycle.
> it's cheap and effective.
> Care should be taken to dry off the remnants after use, it may rust iron bearing pieces
> 
> I have used dollar store window cleaner for cleaning the bores and chambers of my war relic rifles after shooting corrosive primers.
> the windex/water ratio in the cheap window cleaner neutralizes the corrosion left behind when the shell goes bang.
> after the treatment of a patch with the cheap stuff, i'll run it down the bore until it comes back 90% clean
> i'd then clean the rifle as normal and re-oil for storage.
> corrosive ammo will literally eat your firearms if given half a chance!
> 
> thanks for reading!!!



Thanks for clarifying Mike.  You know your in trouble if you start using windex as a medical treatment


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## Uglydog

Have you found this 600 grit diamond wheel to work well. 

I have also wished I had a Glendo for sharpening scrapers, and perhaps salvaging lathe cutters. 

Does this RPM work well? 

I haven't put enough thought or research, so I guess this is the beginning of the project. 

I've got several scraping projects lined up for the summer.

Any idea what was used before diamond wheels? Carbide goes back farther than diamond wheels, doesn't it?

Thanks,
Daryl
MN


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ulma Doctor

Hi Daryl- thanks for reading ,

the 600 grit works very well indeed.
the RPM may be a tad slower than the accu finish or glendo, i don't feel that it will be much of a hinderance.
it leaves a very nice edge on the carbide i have sharpened so far,
i don't think i'd change very much if i was to do it again.

I didn't put a lot of thought into the project,i  basically had a few beers and built it in my head while i was at a party.
i made a couple changes to the original idea on the fly and came up with what we got here today!

i have a bunch of projects as well, it's going to be fun!!!

I can't say for certain what they used for sharpening carbide in the old days, 
i'm thinking that they probably used the green grinder wheels before diamond wheels, but it's only a guess.
the subject is certainly worthy of research .

all the best
mike


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## Uglydog

I had the privilege of spending the day with Richard King. I neglected to ask about the history of sharpening carbide. However, I did ask about speed and grit. Historically, he used a 250 (roughing) and a 600. Both at 300-350rpm. Recently he stumbled on some 1200. He remains convinced that all are appropriate depending on the objectives. He uses a glendo and swaps out the diamond wheel as needed.

Fortunately, I've got a solid set up that meets those rpm needs specs. OK it weighs 200 pounds but it's already here! I'll need to create an tiltable table and fashion a method to attach the diamond wheels. 

It's terrible to be relegated to long days in the hobby shop trying to figure out a problem!


Daryl
MN


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## Ulma Doctor

Sounds like you have the power plant and diamond wheels.
the platform might be able to be constricted with some 1/4 plate and some angle iron.
i'm sure you'll come up with a masterpiece of your own!
keep us informed, i'd sure like to see it!


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## randyc

Ulma Doctor said:


> ...i don't think i'd change very much if i was to do it again...



Since you wouldn't change it much if you had it to do over, then I'd say that it has met it's design goals !

Recalling our earlier discussion about wheel speed, while watching your video an advantage of slower speed occurred to me.  With very slow RPM, out of balance conditions aren't important because the wheel and associated rotating parts never approach critical speed.

(Critical speed, for those unfamiliar with the term, is when a rotating object reaches a specific RPM that causes the center of gravity to shift toward the center or rotation - the effect is somewhat like a vibration resonance.  Hours could be spent balancing a wheel statically but once it approaches critical speed, it's a whole new situation, usually a _bad_ one !)

Thanks for all of the detailed information.  Using Windex is an interesting idea - intuitively I'd not embrace it but if Rich King likes it then so do I, LOL


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## Ulma Doctor

I initially didn't like the idea of windex, but after using it for a couple years, 
i am becoming a little like the father in my big fat greek wedding as Brooks(brav65) pointed out earlier! 
it really works!

thanks for reading, and the input of information as well.
i hope the information may help others to take a stab at creation!


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## hman

Here's my version of this type of grinder.  I started with the motor from a ceiling fan that a neighbor was throwing away.  It's a single speed motor that runs at about 200 RPM.  Most ceiling fans are multi-speed, and one of them might have been better - but this one was _free_.


Turned a hub of Delrin.  Added a Harbor Freight #37081 "funnel tray" and a sleeve around the hub.  Used "Go2" glue to seal around the sleeve and washers, so I could some day add flood coolant.


Very fortunately, the diamond wheel that comes with Harbor Freight #98862 and the 240 grit diamond wheel I got from Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/uxcell-100x32...766198&sr=8-8&keywords=diamond+grinding+wheel
both have the same 20mm center hole (as does the 600 grit wheel that Ulma Doctor found on eBay - THANKS, UD).  Note the outer sleeve on the hub - cut from a vitamin pill bottle.  It and the inner sleeve attached to the tray _should_ keep coolant (and grit/swarf) out of the motor.


The allen wrench goes into a 5/32" hole in the hub, ala "tommy bar", to keep the shaft from rotating when I (hand) tighten the 1/2-20 bolt.


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## planeflyer21

Awesome job Hman!


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## Rick Leslie

Very timely that I stumble on this thread. A while back a good friend gifted me two cup wheels. I made an arbor for the mill and use one for a poor substitute for a surface grinder. The other is slated for tool grinding. Now, I just need to make some time and shamelessly copy these ideas. Thanks for the info and photos.


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## C-Bag

Good thread Doc! Man you’re engineering pile is to die for if this project is any indication.

When I was going into the different packing houses I used to see all kinds of juicy stuff in their bone piles. Just the stuff a junkyard dog like me can’t resist.

Thanks for putting up the link to this thread as it was long before I joined H-M so was not aware of it.


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## Ulma Doctor

C-Bag said:


> Good thread Doc! Man you’re engineering pile is to die for if this project is any indication.
> 
> When I was going into the different packing houses I used to see all kinds of juicy stuff in their bone piles. Just the stuff a junkyard dog like me can’t resist.
> 
> Thanks for putting up the link to this thread as it was long before I joined H-M so was not aware of it.


Thanks Tony for reading!
i try to keep it moving when it comes to projects and learning stuff!
some would argue that my garage is a huge bone pile!!!!
i can't resist trying to repurpose many of the materials i come across
when i come across a new treasure, if i can't use it right now, or i see potential, i'll keep it 
if not it may end up at the scrapper, but not very often 
i'm happy that an old thread was thought provocative, if nothing else!


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## C-Bag

Making a low speed lap is on my long range list. There was a really nice Leonard grind-r-lap on CL in LA but it was not clear how you’d mount disks on it and the guy wanted too much $$. So it went away. 

There is just stuff you look at when you been a bodger all your life and you know it will be useful. Maybe not right now, next week, but maybe 10yrs from now. The last couple of years has seen a lot of my cool old scores get used up. So I’m always on the look out. I have way more plans than I have materials or time.


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