Bench grinder or belt sander?

davidUK · Wednesday at 12:57 PM

For a project, I've had 1,243 stainless steel discs between 13-51mm laser cut out of 0.5mm thick sheet.

They are held in the sheet by a small tag approx. 0.5mm wide and each disc is then twisted out of the sheet.

The separated discs have a tiny tag "stump" to one edge which I've been hand filing off in prototype stage (maybe 22 discs for one instrument) but for this larger quantity I need to remove the stumps more quickly.

What would be best... a bench grinder or a bench belt sander? I could buy a small machine which has both but I may be going down the wrong pat with either!

What would you suggest? If you have a type of machine in mind please post a link. Many thanks.

Something like this?...

ChazzC · Wednesday at 1:51 PM

I would use a Belt Sander ("Belt Grinder), with a decent sized table. I would not buy a grinder/sander as pictured: combo machines are always a compromise (and on that one something is probably not going to be running at the correct speed).

davidUK · Wednesday at 4:51 PM

Could you link to an example please?

I've also seen disc sanders where half the disc shows above the table.

Vietti · Wednesday at 5:31 PM

I agree with Chazz, I have a belt sander, a rotary stone grinder, and a disc sander. I find the 1 inch wide belt sander is used far more than the other two combined. The ability to quickly change cutting grits is very handy.

davidUK · Wednesday at 5:35 PM

Will a belt sander be OK coping with stainless steel, albeit a very small amount to remove?

Something like this?:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/VonHaus-Be...hvtargid=pla-1036030158160&psc=1&gad_source=1

Scott_M · Wednesday at 6:59 PM

Hi David
I use a similar Harbor Freight sander for a specific finishing operation. This is the unit I have Link to Harbor Freight it is just the belt sander, no disc. I have always felt that a disc sander is almost useless unless it is a large diameter. They eat up discs really quick ( limited surface feet and speed )
The job I use it for is on 1018 Steel ( not S.S. ) the job is a large corner bevel on 2 sides of part that is about about 10mm long on a 3mm thick part. I have been using this cheap 1x 30 belt sander for this operation for more than 10 years. And it works good ! The first thing to do when you get the sander is throw the cheap belts it came with away. Get some quality belts from a know good source ( like 3M ) The difference in performance is amazing. The worst thing about the cheap belts is the splice. ( like going over a really bad set of RR tracks ) A good belt you won't even notice the splice.
The next thing to do is make a nice fixture to position your parts so you can just pop one into the fixture turn it by hand and grind the nub off.
If you like I could take pics of my old setup t show the fixturing I used for my job.

Yes I think the belt sander will do nicely for your tabs on S.S. parts.

Scott

timo_gross · Thursday at 1:41 AM

Using SiC belts. ( not sure if that is the best choice

)
I agree with the belt sander crowd. Cleaning and deburring laser cut parts is much better with the belt sander than with a bench grinder.

I personally would go for one of those monsters, if I only could get belts for it here locally

I did not find a source for the belts, so I abandoned the project.
These are expensive, because everything is big and heavy duty.

I built one for the belts that I can easily get in the hardware shop. 2nd hand motor and other materials were approx. ( minimum ) half as much as the store bought item. (time and fiddling on top) Was it worth doing? I am not so sure

With the 1hp industrial motor I can run that thing as long as I want without any issues. The angle between belt and work rest is quite spot on, belt changes are easy and the dust box is a good add on. (Works better than it looks!)

The box for the grid was not the worst idea. (the things make a mess)

Making the work rest and the belt angle adjustable turned out to be unnecessary. Did not use it once, would change the entire setup If i were to built another one. The machine is used frequently.

The curvy thing was a random shape, cut off that fitted by coincidence. It allows to release belt tension and keeps the spring compressed when I pull the lever out. (makes belt change easy)

I made a stepped pulley, which I never used. I usually use the VFD between 20 Hz and 90 Hz. (slow down is nice for plastic, for metal it is always full speed)

Store bought machine lives on the bench, because a friend found it too messy for the workbench at his place. (missing work rest)

Conclusion:

Belt sander is underrated equipment; I use mine all the time.
check what consumables the machine needs and what you can get locally
do not buy a too small machine 1hp motor is not overkill. (1/2 hp is usable, I would not go lower)
DIY was not horribly difficult. Mild steel rollers without any rubber or specialty work fine. Crown wheel just two straight tapers made with lathe compound.

Greetings Timo

davidUK · Thursday at 4:45 AM

How about this type? Doesn't appear to be much of a table for parts placement though?
Are quality belts available in this size?

https://www.zoro.co.uk/shop/tools-and-machining/belt-sanders/belt-and-disc-sander-370w/p/ZT1028161X

ChazzC · Thursday at 10:01 AM

davidUK said:
Could you link to an example please?

I've also seen disc sanders where half the disc shows above the table.

Links wouldn’t be useful since the models I have may not be available in the UK. However, I have the same (but old) Harbor Freight 1” x 30” belt sander as @Scott_M

this lives next to my 8” Delta Bench Grinder (Scotch-Brite deburring wheel on left, white AlO2 wheel on right) away from other machines in the shop. I use the to touch up edges on lathe bits, grinding screws to length and other low-level work (the grinding wheel is reserved for shaping lathe bits and the Scotch-Brite wheel is only suitable for breaking the edges on milled/turned parts - it can remove a lot of material, but not economically).

In the garage I have a Ryobi version of the Kobe 100mm sander you found, but primarily in the horizontal mode for cleaning up the faces of larger parts:

The disk is removed and the shaft covered (I don’t like the location/orientation of the disk).

For your specific application I would use my (stock photo: mine hasn’t been this clean since I unboxed it) decades-old Craftsman 2” x 42” belt/6” disk sander/grinder that shares a mobile cart in the garage with the Ryobi:

I use the belt for fast material removal and the disk for final finishing.

Ken I · Thursday at 10:07 AM

David, If you look at the first image in that link, there's a table for the disk and a stop bar for the belt which doubles as a small rest when the belt is vertical - I have that machine but the Ryobi version pictured in prior post.
No problems with belt size or quality abrasives - just don't buy the cheaper version which is all sheet steel construction has no mass and is a pile of junk get the machine with the cast heavy base.
I have had mine about 20 years and it has never given me any trouble.

I make vaccuum sucker grippers for bakeries and each bellow is held in place by two washers (38mm diameter x 0.9mm thick) - I do a couple of thousand washers a year.

Washers are Det-22- in image below and may not have any sharp edges as it damages the silicon rubber bellows.

I have them laser cut - even without a tag there is a small "pip" where the kerf ends meet.
I de-pip using the disc sander and then I radius the edges by tumbling them with abrasive media for 24 hours. Doing that by hand is way too tedious.

I use a friend's vibrating tumbler but you could use a cement mixer or one of those they use for gemstones.

You could ask a local press shop (they usually have one) to quote you.
It gets rid of most of the "pip" but not quite good enough for our purposes so we do that first - just a touch, it's a quick operation.
Just a thought...

Regards, Ken I

Roger Taylor · Thursday at 10:24 AM

I built this little edge sander drill press attachment for deburring slightly larger parts than your example. A similar unit was actually offered as a drill press accessory back in the 50's. I got the idea from an ad in popular mechanics. The variable speed Clausing drill press provides plenty of power and the 2" x 24" belts are very common. For the drill press sp[ndle drive pulley, I used a Harbor Freight abrasive sleeve arbor bored out to 5/8". That makes for a contact wheel in addition to the platern backed belt.

Richard Hed · Thursday at 10:46 AM

davidUK said:
For a project, I've had 1,243 stainless steel discs between 13-51mm laser cut out of 0.5mm thick sheet.

They are held in the sheet by a small tag approx. 0.5mm wide and each disc is then twisted out of the sheet.

The separated discs have a tiny tag "stump" to one edge which I've been hand filing off in prototype stage (maybe 22 discs for one instrument) but for this larger quantity I need to remove the stumps more quickly.

What would be best... a bench grinder or a bench belt sander? I could buy a small machine which has both but I may be going down the wrong pat with either!

What would you suggest? If you have a type of machine in mind please post a link. Many thanks.

Something like this?...

View attachment 162701

Stainless should not be ground on a grinding wheel. it tends to clog and eventually cause the wheel to burst. Also, only use a grinder for ordinary steels. Never never never never use it with alum. brass bronze.

awake · Thursday at 10:54 AM

After many years of thinking about it, I built a 2x72 belt grinder out of scrap material that I had on hand. As is true of many of my DIY projects, I was not entirely sure whether it would be something I would use once in a great while, or something I would use on a regular basis. Turns out it is the latter - once I started using it, I wondered how I had survived without it. It can peel off a LOT of material in a hurry, but it can also delicately fine-tune a shape just so.

As I recall, I posted plans here - not that my plans are anything to get excited about; there are a bunch of different designs "out there." I chose the things from other designs that I thought would best suit my needs and the materials I had on hand. After using it for several years, I don't know that I would change a thing, other than perhaps the electronics that drive the repurposed treadmill motor - I re-used the rather bulky board that came from the treadmill, but "one of these days" would like to shrink that down do a better size.

Richard Hed · Thursday at 11:07 AM

timo_gross said:
Belt sander is underrated equipment; I use mine all the time.

Au Contraire. I would say "now-a-daze" it is the grinder with stone that is OVER-rated. I believe most people prefer a belt sander. Belt sander can do almost everything a stone grinder can do and even more in some cases. The grinder is infinitely more dangerous than a belt. MY preference for tool grinding is to use a belt and when the tool is shaped right, to finish it on a stone grinder. There are a few things that a stone work better for, I'm sure, but what they are, can't thimpfk of a single one.

awake · Thursday at 11:17 AM

I would say that I can get a better grind on a HSS lathe bit using a bench grinder. There is a HUGE caveat when it comes to bench grinders - if anyone is attempting to grind HSS or any other tool steel using the hard wheel that comes standard with 99% of bench grinders ... don't. It is counter-intuitive, but one actually needs a softer stone to grind the harder steels. (No, this does not carry over to carbide - entirely different issues at work there.) When I switched over from the terrible standard stone to a proper H hardness stone, it revolutionized my tool bit grinding. When I began using the belt grinder, it revolutionized other types of grinding. Of course, it may just be that I haven't found the proper belt and speed combination that would make me use the belt grinder for tool bit grinding ...

ChazzC · Thursday at 11:47 AM

Roger Taylor said:
I built this little edge sander drill press attachment for deburring slightly larger parts than your example. A similar unit was actually offered as a drill press accessory back in the 50's. I got the idea from an ad in popular mechanics. The variable speed Clausing drill press provides plenty of power and the 2" x 24" belts are very common. For the drill press spindle drive pulley, I used a Harbor Freight abrasive sleeve arbor bored out to 5/8". That makes for a contact wheel in addition to the platern backed belt.

I guess my wife is right: I have “too many tools;” I forgot about this:

Although intended for wood, I’ve used it mostly on metal, both ID and OD sanding, like customizing this hook spanner:

20241219 Spindle Sander Hook Wrench.jpeg

davidUK · Thursday at 2:07 PM

davidUK said:
How about this type? Doesn't appear to be much of a table for parts placement though?
Are quality belts available in this size?

View attachment 162724

https://www.zoro.co.uk/shop/tools-and-machining/belt-sanders/belt-and-disc-sander-370w/p/ZT1028161X

There's one of these Kobe machines for sale used near me for £55. Might get him down a little. Would that be a good enough choice?

ChazzC · Thursday at 4:37 PM

davidUK said:
There's one of these Kobe machines for sale used near me for £55. Might get him down a little. Would that be a good enough choice?

Take a couple of disks with you and try it out: if you’re happy with it that’s all that matters.

Check that the belt tracks (and the tracking adjustment works), that the sanding disk clears the guard & table and that the table can be adjusted to be 90 degrees to the disk with a minimum gap.

timo_gross · Thursday at 11:46 PM

davidUK said:
There's one of these Kobe machines for sale used near me for £55. Might get him down a little. Would that be a good enough choice?

I would think what can possibly go wrong? At that price the risk is limited. If you cna try as ChazzC suggested and if you can ask the previous owner where to get belts should be good to to. I guess, always depends what you want. Really "hardcore" belt sanders can cost 10x or 20x as much. A basic one as they are common here is about 200 UK-money.

p.s. I just bought four belts. They cost me about equivalent to 14 UK-money.

davidUK · Friday at 5:42 AM

Looking again, the one I pictured doesn't show the disc table or belt rest. I think that's a "no" although I've asked the seller if he has them.

Bench grinder or belt sander?

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