How to Select the Right Sanding Disc For Your Work

Sanding discs are part of a sander that does all the diligence. There are a ton of various discs for various jobs and going to know the precise type that you simply need for the work you've got to try to do is significant for anybody employing a sander at work or reception.

Choosing the proper disc for the work is important, as failure may result in a poor quality finish or damage to what you're trying to sand. Thankfully, we stock a spread of various sorts of Sanding Discs and have something available to fit your requirements, whatever they're.

It is often a touch confusing, what with all the various sorts of sanding discs available on the market today. Thankfully, this guide details the various sorts of sanding discs available from Empire Abrasives and what they're best fitted to use on. we'll assist you to make sure you're using the proper sanding disc for the work whenever, and intrinsically, minimizing damage to your stock while getting the simplest value for money possible.

What is a Sanding Disc?

Early sanding discs and abrasive sheets like Sandpaper Sheet were composed of natural materials like garnet, flint, pumice, and emery adhered to a paper backing with varnish or glue. Today's more modern abrasive discs feature man-made synthetic materials like carbide, alumina, ceramic, et al. . Man-made materials leave greater control over tolerances, sizes, and capabilities which makes for higher-quality abrasive discs. These materials are often made to exact sizes, will maintain abrasive properties longer, and have greater heat resistance to permit them to face up to tremendous machining speeds.

How to Select Right Sanding Disc?

With the big variety of sanding discs available, from flap discs to floor sanding discs for various applications starting from finishing and blending to grinding and floor polishing, it can sometimes be confusing to understand which disc to settle on that job. Here's a glance at popular discs and the way to use them.

Fiber Discs

These are ideal for general-purpose applications starting from heavy stock removal to surface blending. Featuring a heavy-duty coated abrasive disc, fiber discs are often used with a back-up pad on portable angle grinders for paint and rust removal, deburring, portable grinding, cleaning and detailing in industries including collision repair, metal fabrication/welding, and manufacturing/industry.

Flap Discs

With abrasive flaps affixed to a rigid backing plate, flap discs are often used with right angle grinders to grind and finish at an equivalent time. They're great to use for stock and material removal during blending work also for beveling, finishing, and cleaning, and detailing work. Flap discs are frequently utilized in building and construction, auto repair work, also as energy and transportation industries.

Paper Discs

 Likely the foremost common and widely known sanding disc, these are traditional dry sanding discs used with random orbital and rotary sanders. they're used for light stock removal to fine finish on wood, plastic, fiberglass, composite, primer, and sealers. Paper discs are typically available in PSA and hook & loop styles, and are tremendously versatile during a wide selection of grits. they will be used for paint preparation and removal, sanding, smoothing, and stripping. Paper discs also are good for rust and stock removal, along with side blending, finishing, and micro finishing. Often they're utilized in collision repair, home and leisure projects, paint and drywall operations, manufacturing, industry, and more.

Film Discs

With a polyester film backing featuring exceptional flexibility, tear resistance, and flatness for an excellent finish, film discs are designed for final finishing on primed and painted surfaces, composites, and varnishes. With a hook & loop backing and alumina abrasive, film discs are used for finishing and micro finishing in collision repair, transportation, and manufacturing, and industry.

Cloth Discs

Frequently used on random orbital and stationary disc sanders, cloth discs are ideal for blending, paint prep, polishing, stock removal, and stripping for collision repair jobs, home and leisure projects, metal fabrication, welding, building and construction, and more. With a PSA or hook & loop backing, when paired with a rubber back-up pad, it provides the rigidity needed for hard-to-grind steels and alloys.

Quick-Change Discs

With a twist-on/twist-off fastening system and tool-free attachment design that saves time and maximizes productivity, quick-change discs offer excellent blending, deburring, and grinding into smaller, hard-to-reach areas. Used with portable grinders and disc sanders, quick-change discs are often used for paint prep and removal, body panel surface repair, finishing and deburring, stock and rust removal, blending and beveling, surface prep, and grinding. Quick-change discs are ideal to be used in collision repair, janitorial work, metal fabrication, welding, and in industries like transportation, energy, and environment, electronics, medical, and manufacturing.

Surface Conditioning Discs 

Use with portable grinders and disc sanders, alongside bench, pedestal, and floor stand grinders and rotary floor buffers. Ideal for a spread of applications, including body panel surface repair, floor sanding, paint prep and removal, parting line removal, stock and rust removal, and portable and surface grinding. Surface conditioning discs are often utilized in manufacturing and industry, medical, transportation, energy and environment markets, the janitorial sector, and collision repair. These versatile discs are attached by hook & loop, speed-lock or speed-change fastener, and center-mount fastener.

Foam Discs

Utilized in collision repair, manufacturing and industry, and transportation applications, foam discs are designed for moist finishing clear coats, varnishes, and gel coats to deliver a semi-polished surface. This provides for quick and straightforward buff outs on fiberglass and composite finishes. The froth backing is meant to evolve to material contours during use.

Floor Sanding Discs

These are designed to make a flatter surface and finer finish on floors compared to a traditional belt or drum machines. Used with portable disc sanders or floor sanding and maintenance equipment, they're the disc of choice for commercial floor sanding professionals and are popular within the building and construction industries, also as for home use.

Edger Discs

Along with side floor sanding discs, edger discs provide the ultimate touches to hard-to-reach areas of hardwood floors that belt and drum machines can't access.

Diamond Discs 

To be used on fiberglass and composite surfaces, diamond discs feature the aggressiveness and sturdiness of diamonds on a versatile backing. utilized in a spread of producing applications, they're commonly used with portable right angle grinders or random orbital disc sanders.

Net Discs

With an open mesh backing, net discs provide a cleaner, healthier work environment with less sanding dust released into the air. Ideal for paint and drywall work, collision repair, metal fabrication, building and construction, floor sanding, and more, net discs are often used with portable disc sanders, floor sanding and maintenance equipment, and even hand-held sanding blocks. a flexible disc, it's used for applications including smoothing and stripping, plastic structural and cosmetic repairs, paint removal, cleaning and detailing, blending, and body filling.