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Graphite Powder Ground from Plumbago
Plumbago, the black lead of Borrowdale, is natural graphite: soft, lead-grey and greasy, it cuts with a knife and blackens the fingers. Andrew Ure (1839) lists its uses against friction, for crucibles and for glossing cast iron. Pick it clean of rock, grind it and sift it to a fine powder. Wear a dust mask.
The picture: a lump of natural graphite.
Beginner
Two hours
Instructions
1
1
Dress the lumps
Dress the lumps
Break the plumbago with a hammer and pick out the pieces of rock, as the Borrowdale miners sorted and dressed it by hand.
Materials for this step:
Plumbago (Natural Graphite)1 kgTools needed:
Ball Peen Hammer
Rubber Gloves
Balance Scale2
2
Grind and sift
Grind and sift
Grind the clean pieces in the mortar a handful at a time and shake them through the sieves, finest last. Grind what stays on the sieves again.
Tools needed:
Mortar and Pestle
Sieve Set (Graded Mesh)
Dust MaskRubber Gloves3
3
Store
Store
Weigh the fine powder and keep it in a closed jar.
Tools needed:
Balance Scale
Glass Jar4
4
Powder from your plumbago
Powder from your plumbago
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Materials
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Tools Required
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