Do you ever wonder the pro’s and con’s of specific abrasive products and what qualities make them stand out amongst others?

Grain and Bond Combinations
In order to optimize workflow, you must determine which abrasive grain and bond combinations are best suited for your metal finishing needs.

Grain:
Although the options may seem overwhelming, don’t just go with what you know! Choose the right one for the job! Knowing the qualities of the wheel composition can help you choose correctly like grain friability, grain hardness and bond type. The abilities of an abrasive depend on the combination of all three factors.
-Every abrasive has the ability to self sharpen as it breaks down. The rate of this is called friability.
- Grain with high hardness and a sharp natural breakdown will create a more aggressive grain. If you choose a grain that is not hard enough for the specific job, you will go through grinding wheels at a much quicker rate. If the grain is too aggressive, you might remove more metal than intended.

Bonds:
-The bond used in the making of an abrasive wheel has a significant impact of the performance. The same abrasive grain can act differently depending on the bond used.

Combinations in detail:
Resinoid wheels: tough and used for rough griding applications. The abrasive grain is combined with phenolic resin to create resinoid products.

Vitrified wheels: strong and rigid, made with finely ground clay and fluxes with abrasive grain throughout.

Cotton fiber abrasive wheels: non-woven cotton fabric. As the cotton wears, the wheel will constantly reveal more abrasive grain allowing for a consistent finish.

Unitized wheels: Web material impregnated with abrasive grain that is combined into a resin slab. They are typically used for a very light metal removal.

The consequences of choosing the wrong ones?
Extended hours to produce only just average quality parts.