The Cabking is a multi-wheel cabbing machine manufactured in the United States, long associated with Diamond Pacific Tool Corporation and subsequently marketed under the Cabking name. Since its introduction in the 1970s, it has become one of the most widely recognised cabbing units in North American lapidary workshops, serving both serious hobbyists and small-scale professional cutters. Its combination of robust construction, a logical grit-progression wheel sequence, and straightforward maintenance established it as a benchmark against which other cabbing machines are routinely compared.

Design and Configuration

The defining feature of the Cabking is its horizontal arbor, along which multiple wheels are mounted side by side, allowing the operator to move a stone through successive stages of grinding, sanding, and polishing without changing machines or repositioning the workpiece on a separate unit. The standard six-wheel configuration typically includes:

• One or two coarse diamond grinding wheels (commonly 80 and 220 grit) for initial shaping and dome formation.
• Expandable rubber sanding drums fitted with silicon-carbide or diamond-impregnated sleeves at progressively finer grits (typically 280, 400, and 600).
• One or more polishing wheels — leather, felt, or similar — used with oxide polishing compounds such as cerium oxide or aluminium oxide.

The Cabking 8, an expanded variant, accommodates additional wheel positions, enabling a finer grit progression and reducing the risk of scratches carrying forward from one stage to the next — a practical advantage when cutting harder or more inclusion-prone materials.

Water Delivery and Cooling

All grinding and sanding stages require continuous water flow to cool the stone, flush swarf, and extend wheel life. The Cabking employs a drip or flow system directed at each wheel, with a splash guard and collection tray channelling waste water away from the motor housing. Consistent cooling is particularly important when working heat-sensitive materials such as opal, malachite, or certain dyed agates, where thermal shock can cause cracking or colour alteration.

Materials Commonly Cut

The machine is suited to the full range of materials typically fashioned as cabochons in the lapidary trade: agate, jasper, chrysocolla, labradorite, moonstone, turquoise, rhodonite, and softer ornamental stones. With appropriate wheel selection and polishing compounds, harder materials including nephrite jade, aventurine quartz, and even lower-grade corundum rough can be worked, though dedicated faceting equipment remains preferable for transparent gem-quality material intended for faceted cuts.

Place in the Lapidary Trade

The Cabking occupies a middle position in the lapidary equipment market — more capable and durable than entry-level combination units, yet more accessible in price and footprint than industrial trim-saw and grinding installations. Its prevalence in gem and mineral club workshops across North America means that many cutters learn the cabochon sequence on a Cabking or a closely comparable Diamond Pacific machine, giving the brand a degree of cultural familiarity within the hobby community that few competitors have matched. Replacement wheels, drums, and sleeves are widely stocked by lapidary suppliers, which contributes to the machine's longevity in active use.