Introduction of the Coated abrasive Flap wheel – Flap Wheel are basically a coated abrasive product designed for multiple industrial metals grinding, polishing and finishing applications, most demandingly for fixed larger machine applications of grinding and polishing. This wheel is the most important product in coated abrasive segment. Wheel are made up from coated abrasive bunch of squire and vertical rectangle shape flap strips using a resin-bond with arranged flaps uniformly radially on two circular metal flanges, these abrasive flap strips are flexible and provide shape of the workpiece. This design makes flaps to bend and reach to access the deep and critical areas.

What are the applications scope and use of Flap wheel?

This wheels are used in many small and big grinding activities, wide range of sizes makes wheel versatile and suitable customer to use in all most every sector of manufacturing  industries like automotive, auto ancillaries, cock-ware, all types of metal pipes manufacturing Squire pipe, round pipe, angular pipe, aluminum dia casting, ferrous and nonferrous, rubber grinding, fiber glass, alloys alloyed steel, wood working industries.

Fiber, plastic based equipment, hardest stainless steel based engineering project, dairy equipment, aircraft manufacturing, wood and metal furniture, sports equipment manufacturing, used in all above industries on hard and rough surfaces for stainless steel, copper, aluminum, soft steel and any types uneven shapes to grinding and polishing applications.

Wheels also used in POWDER COATING INDUSTRIES & METAL CHROME PLATING INDUSTRIES, which required for pre-polishing requirement before the powder or plating to apply, some of these industries requirement in consumable items is almost 100% of the coated abrasive flap wheel only.

Small wheels uses in smaller types of work like such as deburring, grinding, finishing, polishing, cleaning, material removing with hard and smooth application, die grinders, flexible shaft tools, high speed portable drills, fabrication and welding spot removal.

Theses some of small wheels internal diameter is manufactured with a reinforced wood bush and is adequate for use on threaded shaft. It made for easy fitting and eliminating from machine effortlessly.

 The versatility of the coated abrasive flap wheel makes a very effective abrasive tool for all industrial abrasive applications in world wide.

Generally people think that “Flap Disc” and “Flap wheel” are more like similar products because of both made from coated abrasive flaps, but wheels is made very specifically for wide range of uses in bigger machines based grinding and finishing projects & applications. Earlier we made blog for “flap disc” you can check and compare difference in both products.

What are advantages of flap wheel use.

• Flap wheels provides better polishing and finishing than any other grinding wheel also can perform very efficiently on hard and rough surfaces preparations.
• Ability to vary the pressure as required for manually grinding uses and on machine based grinding machine provides high and low pressure automatically as per the application require.
• Flap wheel can use in the internal diameter of the job like cock-ware all the inner grinding and polishing done by wheel with unique pressure and auto setting with machine without creating a needless manual adjustments.
• Finish quality is one of the exceptional factor in wheel polishing we cannot compare finish quality with any other coated abrasive wheel.
• Use on flat, bowl-shaped, curved surfaces and irregular shapes for cleaning and grinding of welding seams.

What are the sizes and design of the Flap wheel?

Wide range of sizes are in the wheels as we seen in Flap disc have limited standard sizes, but in Flap wheels three type of sizes small, medium and big.

1) Small wheels sizes

• • Standard Outer diameters =75mm,100, & 150mm
  • Standard Inner diameters = 16mm, 25mm, & 32mm
  • Standard Widths                 = 20mm, 25mm, 40mm & 50mm
  • Grit sizes                               = 60 grit to 600 Grit

2) Medium wheels sizes

• • Standard Outer diameters = 175mm, 200mm, & 225mm
  • Standard Inner diameters = 25mm, 32mm, & 127mm
  • Standard Width of wheels = 15mm, 25mm, 40mm & 50mm
  • Grit sizes                                = 60 grit to 600 Grit

3) Big wheels sizes

• • Standard Outer diameters = 250mm,300mm & 350mm
  • Standard Inner diameters = 25mm, 32mm, 127mm & 181mm
  • Standard Width of wheels = 25mm, 40mm, 50mm, 75mm & 100mm
  • Grit sizes                               = 50 grit to 1500 Grit

In all above sizes outer diameter and inner diameter can be vary in special case or as per user’s requirement.

What are the grits uses in Flap Wheel?

Grit size is actually the abrasive grain size of the material and the application specifies us to select the grit size. If you are a regular abrasive user or customer or follower you must know the grit size and grain relation with the application.

As Flap wheel user grits are categorized finishing wise as Courser grits, Mid courser grits, Mid finer grits, Extra finer grits & Micro finer Grit.

• • Coarser grits sizes                36 to 50             heavy material removal
  • Mid Courser grits sizes       50 to 150            lighter material removal
  • Mid Finer grits sizes            180 to 320         Scratch mark removal
  • Extra Finer grits sizes         400 to 600        High quality polishing
  • Micro finer grit sizes           800 to 1500      Mirror finishing/polishing

What is the abrasive flap’s backing material?

• Flap wheel flap’s backing material is cotton:- The abrasive flap which backing is made from cotton cloth were gives a strength to maintain high and low pressures during operations when it comes to consume there unique life with resign and grains when grains and backing get consumed during running operations cotton backing automatically withdraw the life without making any unnecessary marks or rubbing spots on the job and eventually the polish or finishing quality get maintained precisely. And this keep happing with the flaps during the use from start to end of wheel, that’s why Flap Wheel provides us uniform and consistent required finish on various metals and maintain required average.
• The coated abrasive flap are mostly manufactured from Aluminum Oxide grains.

What is the safety recommendations use of Flap wheel? 

Using Wheel you must use quality personal protective equipment kit (PPE), need to ware equipment identical Eye guard glass, Ear Safety ear set, Hand Protection Hand gloves, Dust Mask for Lung protection from smoke. Always follow the safety briefings, Grinding Machine speed essential to not exceed than speed suggested on wheel.

Summery

The coated abrasive flap wheel are more in demand these days in world wide and will increase the demand because they are more accurate and can made for very specific types of grinding operations and required almost all manufacturing and micro job work industries in metals and other uses. Flap wheel providing us amazing and ultimate finishing and grinding experience.

Thanks for now

Alka Bhalekar