[ATM] Polishing with WAO?

[Mel Bartels]

> and the possibility of using them on a pitch lap. It would certainly
> destroy the lap for any conventional work, but could it provide some fast
> figuring for deep curves? I have been working on a RC secondary which


No.  Aluminum oxide is not nearly as efficient as cerium oxide or iron oxide
in stripping oxygen atoms from the glass.  See
http://www.bbastrodesigns.com/chemical_mechanical_polishing.html 

Some including the author Howard and others in Sky and Telescope magazine
notes have suggested using silicon carbide as a pre-polish.  I experimented
extensively and found little advantage.  But then I polish extremely
efficiently, completing a 6 inch in an hour, a 10 inch in two hours, and
larger work in six hours.  For others who struggle with efficient polishing
times, pre-polishing might be a timer saver.

Mel Bartels