Grinding equipment uses abrasives as consumables . Each abrasive material has its own characteristics, characteristics and operational properties that allow it to cope with a certain range of tasks. In turn, the sanding belt forms one of the widest segments in the group of abrasive consumables. It is characterized by efficiency in the workflow and convenience in physical handling.
Ribbon Assignment
There is a whole class of grinder machines that use grinding skins (belts) as work tools. The rotation of the electric motor with the shaft helps to achieve high speeds, which makes it possible to process different surfaces - from soft wood to solid stones and even concrete. But most often, a belt sander is used in the refinement of soft-body blanks. Another thing is that the equipment itself can have different designs.
In addition to machine tools, there is a wide category of hand grinders. These are small-sized machines that are also complemented by tape abrasives. They provide a low rotation frequency, but due to the small area of the equipment they make it possible to accurately adjust the edges of small wooden products. Obviously, the grinding belts for the grinder themselves are designed specifically for a certain type of equipment.
Varieties of tapes
As for compatibility with machines, narrow and wide ribbons can be distinguished. Accordingly, they are suitable for a compatible landing jack. However, there are universal machines in which the supporting mechanisms allow you to adjust the grip width of the abrasive. The sanding belt also differs by the type of material used in the basis. The most commonly used fabric and paper, although specialists for special purposes can use combination and polyester abrasives. From the point of view of working qualities, the rough coating itself is more important, which makes the tape abrasive. Typically, silicon carbide or electrocorundum is applied to the surface of the substrate. The first option is optimal in terms of reliability, wear resistance and mechanical stress, but adversely affects the structure of adjacent machine parts. Silicon can destroy metal surfaces. As for electrocorundum, this material is good for its electromechanical protection, which is important in certain operating conditions, but as an abrasive as such, it is far from the best option.
Size Specifications
When choosing a sandpaper, you should be guided by two main parameters - length and width. As for the length, it can be 400-600 mm on average. That is, in essence, a circle is formed, which is fixed as a snap on a manual grinder or machine tool. The width of the sanding belts varies from 30 to 140 mm on average. The most popular width format is 76 mm. Under it, both manual devices and machine tools are oriented. In the marking for grinding skins, you can also find such a characteristic as infinite. This is a tape that just forms a vicious circle that rotates with the functional rollers.
Grain Characteristics
If the coverage area depends on the size of the tape, then the granularity directly affects the efficiency of the machining. Whether it is stripping or surface grinding, a large abrasive in a shorter period of time can remove more particles from the surface of the target product than a fine-grained counterpart. Grain is marked with numerical indices. For example, a sanding belt with a grain size of 40-60 will provide rough cleaning. This option is suitable if you need to remove a layer of old paint without worrying about the condition of the base. Skins with a grain size of 80-100 are considered universal. They are used to level the surface by getting rid of pronounced defects - tubercles or pits.
Fine processing is carried out on tapes with grit from 120 to 300. The higher the indicator, the finer the finishing will be. A value above 300 indicates that a grinder with such a tape will be able to perform almost jewelry refinement of the surface with an accuracy of microns. Such tapes are used on professional equipment in the manufacture of small parts.
Types of tape connections
It has already been said that the tape can form an endless strip of processing. But in order to make the segment infinite, it is necessary to combine it. To accomplish this task, different techniques are used. For example, an overlap joint allows you to get a strong seam, but in this system a wave will inevitably form due to two layers superimposed on each other. There are models of machines and grinders that are tolerant of this drawback, but they do not include machines designed for fine-tuning. The point is not even in the machine, but in the surface of the skin itself, which will not be able to provide optimal stripping. Sanding belt for machine tools can be connected and butt-joint. In this case, the quality of material processing will be significantly higher, but the strength of the blade in the machine - on the contrary, will decrease.
Conclusion
When choosing a grinding tool, it is worth proceeding from two main factors - the requirements of the machine and the parameters of stripping the material with a specific set of characteristics. Obviously, the choice of skins for concrete surfaces and wood will be different. As well as the choice between tapes for hand grinder and industrial machine. The only thing that combines different types of sanding belts regardless of purpose is the characteristics of wear resistance, reliability and durability. A high-quality sanding sheet, even in harsh operating conditions, shows the proper processing effect, removing the millimeters and microns laid to it. However, checking the quality of the tape without practical use is hardly possible. Experts recommend immediately after acquiring a grinder contact its manufacturer to test the working equipment of this brand. At a minimum, the products of one brand will be compatible in terms of basic operational parameters.