improved sanding procedures

[Rasper]

I mostly polish stainless, which requires heavy machine sanding. My methods have evolved. One has to be creative in this field. Tool manufacturers are not exactly rushing to provide equipment for metal polishers. Here is my latest tool:

I bought a five inch hook and loop backup pad, drilled a large fender washer to bolt it to, brazed the washer to a 5/8-11 coupling nut, and now I have a five inch pad for that Makita 1400 rpm polisher you see there. I use store bought hook and loop sanding disks up to 150 grit. From there on I cut disks from sheets of wet or dry sandpaper in 220, 400, etc., and glue those to one of the 150 grit hook and loop disks with 3M number 77 spray adhesive. I use motor oil thinned with kerosene instead of water to sand with. Sandpaper seems to last longer with oil. Of course no sandpaper lasts very long on stainless. The stuff eats sandpaper.

I do the same with a smaller sander:

It's a Chicago Pneumatics air polisher. It turns at 2500 rpm, and uses three inch disks. This is my favorite tool. I love it.

Getting stainless ready to go to the buffing wheel is still a lot of work, but these two things sure make it go faster with fewer headaches.

R

[woodjames]

Good tips, this could be the start of a good thread.
To continue on with things -

After I buff with white compound, I use q tips in a dremel/die grinder to get in all the tight nooks and crannies. I've found the wooden shanked ones, or the plastic stemmed with a drill bit pushed down the hollow center work the best. Both styles yield pretty close to 1/8" shank - which directly "chuck's up" in a dremel, or die grinder smaller collet. I don't even have to apply compound, I just buff with the excess compound that gets built up in the places the wheel won't reach.

[Rasper]

Q Tips! I'll try it for sure.

R

[baz]

I mostly polish stainless, which requires heavy machine sanding. My methods have evolved. One has to be creative in this field. Tool manufacturers are not exactly rushing to provide equipment for metal polishers. Here is my latest tool:

I bought a five inch hook and loop backup pad, drilled a large fender washer to bolt it to, brazed the washer to a 5/8-11 coupling nut, and now I have a five inch pad for that Makita 1400 rpm polisher you see there. I use store bought hook and loop sanding disks up to 150 grit. From there on I cut disks from sheets of wet or dry sandpaper in 220, 400, etc., and glue those to one of the 150 grit hook and loop disks with 3M number 77 spray adhesive. I use motor oil thinned with kerosene instead of water to sand with. Sandpaper seems to last longer with oil. Of course no sandpaper lasts very long on stainless. The stuff eats sandpaper.

I do the same with a smaller sander:

It's a Chicago Pneumatics air polisher. It turns at 2500 rpm, and uses three inch disks. This is my favorite tool. I love it.

Getting stainless ready to go to the buffing wheel is still a lot of work, but these two things sure make it go faster with fewer headaches.

R

if you get a machinist to make an adapter that fits your polisher on one side and that fits your sanding pads on the other you could easily change pads witout having to go through that welding part

[FigureLLC]

i have 5-6 adapters for that chicago pneumatic polisher. i think they came with a 3m hook-it II pad kit.

[baz]

i have 5-6 adapters for that chicago pneumatic polisher. i think they came with a 3m hook-it II pad kit.

i meant an adapter for the bigger makita polisher

[Rasper]

For the Chicago Pneumatics polisher, I found some one and one-half inch hook-it pads at my automobile paint store. I bought all they had. That's the kind of thing you see once and then never see again. It had a 5/16 connector so I had to make an adapter.

Here's the good part: I made a cutting die by forming a circle 1 and 1/2 inches in diameter using a piece of bandsaw blade fastened with silver solder. I ground the teeth off and sharpened the edge. When I wear out a 3 inch disk, I cut the center out of it with this cutter and a mallet and I have a nice new (free) one and one-half inch disk.

R