You should put some images in here with certifications like the Better Business Bureau or any awards General Cutting Tools has. February 18, 2010
Coated Abrasives Grading Systems
Here are the grading systems for coated abrasives from VSM and General Cutting Tools aka Cutting Tools Chicago. A grade number identifies the size of the coated abrasives’ mineral. There are several systems used to assign a grade number. Some of the most common include:
- FEPA, Federation of European Producers of Abrasives;
- ANSI, American National Standards Institute
(Formerly, CAMI, Coated Abrasives Manufacturers Institute) - JIS, Japanese Standard
The chart below shows the conversion between some of the most common grading systems.
Splices and Form Codes
There are two categories of splices, lap splices and butt splices.
Lap Splices
The overlap splice is a single directional splice that should be run in the direction of the arrows printed on the backing. This splice has three variations: unskived, light top skived and full top skived.
Un-skived
Retains a full coat of mineral on the top lap.
Light Top Skived
Part of the mineral is removed from the top lap.
Full Top Skive
The entire mineral is removed from the top lap.
Additional Form Codes
B: Manufactured sheet
BPSA: Manufactured pressure sensitive adhesive sheet BSTFL: Flutter sheets (cloth only)
RBGKR: Slashed loading
R: Roll of material
RGKR: Slashed roll-Designated by a drawing number
RPSA: Pressure sensitive roll
RSPA: Economy or Shop roll of KK114F
SAO: Round disc with an arbor hole
SAGE: Round disc with an arbor hole packaged in shrink-wrap SAO131: Round disc with an arbor hole banded in 100 pieces
SAOD8: Delappe dics – 8 wing configuration
SAOD1 6: Delappe disc-16 wing configuration
SAOD24: Delappe disc-24 wing configuration
SCI: Round disc with slotted arbor
SFO: Plain or Velcro discs (see SFOK)
SFOF: Round disc with pressure
SFOK: Velcro discs
SXO: Disc with a rosette edge sensitive adhesive
ZRV13: An overlap or lap joint used exclusively for pump sleeves
Butt Splices
The butt splice is able to run in either direction. The butt joint has three variations: butt splice, sine wave splice and top butt splice.
Butt Splice
The ends of the belt are angle cut, butted together and joined with a filament tape.
Paper Belts
Standard Splice
- EV13 standard for 18″ wide and under
- EBRV1 3 standard for greater than 18″ wide
Available on Request
- EV06 for 18″ wide and under
- EBRV06 for greater than 18″ wide
Cloth Belts
Standard Splice
- EV07 standard for 18″ wide and under
- EBRV07 standard for greater than 18″ wide
Exceptions
- Portable Belts – EV14
- Pump Drum and Sleeves – ZRV13
|
0 |
7″, |
8″, |
9″ wide x 7-15/32″ |
|
0 |
7″, |
8″, |
9″ wide x 10-5/8″ |
|
0 |
7″, |
8″, |
9″ wide x 13-3/4″ |
|
0 |
7″, |
8″, |
9″ wide x 20″ |
|
0 |
7″, |
8″, |
9″ wide x 26-5/16″ |
Special Application Splices
Mold Sanding Belts – EV14
Edge Sanding Belts
- Cloth – EV14
- Paper – EV13
Stroke Sander Belts
- Cloth – EV14
- Paper – EV13
“Dead-Head” – EV14
Planetary splices – Use Drawing Number B-118
Drawer Sander – Use Drawing Number B-117
Storage & Handling
Storage and handling are the two of the most important factors in obtaining the best usage and maximum life from coated abrasives.
Storage Facilities
The ideal storage (stock) room for coated abrasives would be one in which all the walls are inside partitions, rather than the outside walls of the building.
- A constant temperature of 60 – 80 °F
- A controlled relative humidity of 35 – 50 %
- Coated abrasives should be kept off concrete floors and away from hot air ducts and all sources of dampness.
Handling
- Coated abrasives should be kept in closed original containers until the product is ready to be used.
- Rolls should be piled on curved side, not on roll ends. Narrow rolls may be stacked.
- Belts not in original boxes can be draped over large cylinders or racks.
- Keep large paper and cloth discs in their original package.
- Keep resin fiber discs in their original package.
- Keep carton stock in their original packages to facilitate handling and stocking.
Safety
- Using coated abrasives safely necessitates adhering to guidelines these principal areas: Personal Protection and Equipment Precautions.
Personal Protection
- Eye protection – Impact-resistant protective glasses with side shields should be worn at all times on all operations, including hand sanding, without exception. On abrasive disc and offhand belt grinding, a full face shield should also be worn.
- Body protection – It is recommended that safety shoes, arm guards, leather gloves and aprons should be worn.
Equipment Precautions
- Always observe safety recommendations supplied by the equipment manufacturer.
- Never remove safety guards from machines.
- The machine should be disconnected from the power source before making any abrasive or machine adjustments.
- The sparks created by grinding should be directed downward and away from face and body.
- All grinding machines and power tools should be operated in a well-ventilated area, preferably with an exhaust hood. Dust masks are recommended as a practical means of minimizing dust inhalation.
February 16, 2010
Quality Coated Abrasives from VSM
VSM along with General Cutting Tools are dedicated to providing customers in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and the rest of the US with superior products and solutions for their coated abrasive needs. Quality products are not just produced but are created by understanding the entire production process and how the coated abrasive product performs in an application.
VSM forms a versatile product line drawn from a proven formula that assures dependable performance. This proven formula includes a variety of minerals, backing and bonding systems.
Minerals perform the basic job of grinding, cutting, finishing, and polishing. VSM manufactures abrasives using four man-made minerals:
Aluminum oxide, Silicon carbide, Zirconia alumina and Ceramic alumina.
VSM abrasive minerals
Backings are the platforms that carry and support the mineral grains. VSM uses four types of backings: Paper, Cloth, Vulcanized Fiber and Combination.
The paper backings are further divided into weights designated A, B, C, D, E and F. Cloth backings are designated by their flexibility, identified as E, F, J, T, X and Y. Mechanical flexing the coated abrasives creates this range of flexibility.
Types of flexes employed by VSM (in order of stiffest to most flexible) include: Single Flex, Double Flex, and Full Flex. This flexing procedure creates a controlled cracking in the bond system that ensures consistent flex characteristics and enhances stock removal through better grain regeneration.
The flex of a coated abrasive product is inversely related to the life of the product.
As a rule, use the stiffest product possible for an application.
There are two layers of resins, which create the bonding system for coated abrasives. The first layer of resin is called the make coat, which anchors the grains to the backing. The second layer of resin is the size coat, applied over the grains, which further anchors and stabilizes the grains. VSM manufactures coated abrasives exclusively with resin over resin bonding systems. With stateof-the art production facilities, VSM has formulated the raw materials utilized for resins into a winning combination of long-life and flexibility for the entire line of products.
Abrasive minerals can be applied to backing in several ways. The gravity coating process, the abrasive grains are dropped from an overhead hopper onto the adhesive coated backing.
In the electrostatic coating process, the adhesive coated backing and the abrasive grains pass through an electrically charged field. This electrically charged field propels the abrasives grains upward toward the backing traveling upside down above the grains. These grains are imbedded in the adhesive with the sharpest edge of the abrasive grains exposed, ensuring uniform cutting characteristics.
With these coating processes, the grain coverage can be modified to produce, either open coat or closed coat products. Traditionally, any product with grain coverage of approximately 60% was considered open coat. A closed coat product would have 100% grain coverage of the backing. Today, coating densities vary from 30% to 100% coverage of the backing.