Buffing and polishing wheels

Some buffing wheels are described as Muslin, some as Cotton, some as Cotton flannel, and Canton flannel.

Muslin - it is a woven cotton material ranging from light soft and fine to coarse heavier fabric. The buffing wheels are mostly made out of cloth 64/68 threads per inch.
Flannel - is a soft twilled woolen material with a little nap (pants are made of this)
Flannelette - a soft warm napped cotton material RESEMBLING flannel, used especially for pajamas. Is this the "Cotton flannel" used for Jewelers buffs?
Felt - fabric made by pressing and rolling wool, hair, fur etc. (camel) with size or lees. Some imported from Spain, and now from India.
Sisal - a strong fiber used for making twine, cordage etc., obtained from the leaves of Agave sisalana, cultivated in Java, East Africa and Mexico, mostly imported from Yucatan, Mexico..

TYPES OF THE MOST USED WHEELS

Sewed Muslin - is very versatile wheel available, it can be used with any compound successfully. 1/4" and 3/8" wheels can be stacked up and glued with sizing glue to make 1-1.5" wide face.
Too wide a face will guzzle up your compounds without any added benefit.

Loose Muslin - they are the most flexible wheels used mostly for clean up, because you can get in crevices and uneven surfaces.
Caution! - they will wash out screw holes, rust pits and round off your grind lines!
Most common use is with the rouges to produce a bright mirror polish on metals, plastics and woods.
Use for knocking a burr of the sharpened edge for that razor effect every time.

Polishing wheels - These wheels are made in number of densities from extra soft to extra hard.
Hard Polishing buffs are super hard sewed and glued muslin sections which have glued canvas outside covers.
They are available from 4" - 18" in diameter and 4" in thickness. They last longer than the sewed muslin wheels, are much firmer and work very well with the grease less compounds, or glue and abrasive grit
Use with Cut and Color bars - metals, plastics, wood.
Also used a s contact wheels for abrasive belts.

Bias Cloth buffs / Airway Buffs - Bias type cloth buffs are the workhorse of the buffing industry.
These buffs are constructed of high grade buff material that is first cut into bias stripes than wound and constricted into a metal clinch ring center.
This gives the buff its pleated appearance and closed compact face.

Sisal wheels - specialized wheels developed for use with Cut and Color bars.
Do NOT use with grease less or rouge compounds, because these will not stick and the fibers are too abrasive to color your work or produce a mirror effect.
When loaded with Cut and Color compound, these wheels can whisk away light scratches and leave your work virtually scratch free. However, they leave a dull satin finish.
Stack together 3-6 wheels for a good working width.

Felt wheels - These are available in SOFT, MEDIUM, HARD and EXTRA HARD density.
Soft wheels - are very good on rounded surfaces and jobs requiring very little pressure or cutting action.
Medium wheels - good for both round and flat surfaces
Hard and Extra hard wheels - use mostly on flat surfaces, inside hollow grinds to polish up to and preserve your grind lines.
Good for heavy pressure, you can reshape the face round or knife edge.
Grease less grits work well on these wheels, but not recommended to use with the LA555 or LA 544 because they will get hot and will burn.

Loose buff

sewn buff

Flannel/Jewelers

Sisal buff

Felt wheels

Inside the following tables a pointer hovering over bullet will reveal the supplier name - clicking on a bullet will get you the supplier direct contact information

Size

1/4"(20 ply) Thick x 6" 8" 10"

1/4" Thick x 4" 6" 8" 10" 12"

1/4"(20 ply) and 1"(90 ply) Thick x 6" 8" 10"

SEWN MUSLIN BUFF

- 1/4"(25 ply) and 3/8"(30 ply)Spiral sewed 3/8" from center out
- 3/4"(70 ply) sewn in concentric rows 3/8" apart.
- 1"(90 ply) sewn in concentric rows 1/4" apart.
A bit stiffer than loose buffs, have better cutting action.

Size
Spiral 1/4"(25 ply) Thick x 6" 8" 10"

Spiral 3/8"(30 ply) Thick x 6" 8" 10"

Concentric 3/8"(30 ply) Thick x 2"

Concentric 1/2"(50 ply) Thick x 6"

Concentric 3/4"(70 ply) Thick x 4", 6" 8" 10"

Concentric 1"(90 ply) Thick x 8"

Razor Edge Buffs are made for use on a tapered spindle.
A stitched muslin buff which is tapered from the center to a thin razor edge.
The edge / center of the buff is reinforced with a leather disk to keep it rigid on a tapered spindle. For polishing areas as small as 1/8".

Polishing wheels are made available in number of densities from extra soft to extra hard.
The hard polishing buff is made of spiral sewn sections of cotton cloth 64/68 tpi which are glued together under pressure to provide a hard. resistant wheel.
Canvas disks are usually cemented on both sides to protect the sewing and keep edges from breaking down.
It is used with coarse cutting compounds, or with glue and abrasive grain as a set up wheel, or fine compounds for final polishing
They are also used as a contact wheels for abrasive belts.
It is particularly good for polishing flat surfaces, where the full width of the face can be used.
OK for softer metals but not recommended for handle material.

Size

6" 8" and 10" x 1" thick

4" - 18" diameter x up to 4" thick.

Most popular is spiral sewn 1/4" apart, but 3/8", 1/2" and 5/8" are also available.
Other types of sewing available are Concentric, Straight Spoke and Radial Arc.
The yellow treated buff has starches and a small amount of wax added during the manufacturing process. It is a stiffer buff and will produce a faster cut than sewn muslin buff. It is not suitable for applications where flexing is desirable.

Size
6"

Many Diameters, Materials and Thicknesses

Made to fit on tapered spindle and are usually sewn in concentric rows 1" apart.
These buffs are soft and pliable and made of either 64/64, 80/80, 86/82 unbleached, 86/82 treated or canton flannel
Especially useful in finishing operations with a very fine rouge

Size

90 ply = 1" x 8"

Many different diameters

Because of their price, they are the obvious Cadillac of the polishing and buffing world
Constructed of wool fibers compressed into wheels of varying hardness from extra soft to flint hard.
Most common are SOFT, MEDIUM, HARD and EXTRA HARD.
Felt wheels can be used in every step of polishing, from set up wheels with grease less or glue based compounds to the final buffing with a coloring compound for a mirror finish.
Best suited for preserving your grinding lines (without washed-out or blurred lines)

The construction of the Bias or Airway buff helps eliminate fraying and results in an economical, long lasting buff.
When used with a perforated metal center insert, air passes between sections and helps the buff to run cooler.
Bias buffs work great for hand, semi-automatic and automatic operations.
They are used in almost all buffing and polishing shops for cut down and coloring operations. Excellent for heavy work, this buff runs much cooler than stitched buffs, it is more flexible and does a better job on contour work.
The steel center and rigid construction allow greater pressure and faster cutting speed.
These buffs can be made of all types of buff material. For more firmness, mill treatments are added of buffs can be dip treated after they are made. For color buffing or plastic work, Bayland Products, Inc. can supply this buff made with soft untreated cottons or flannels.
Airway Buffs can be ordered in a number of different densities by adding additional cloth. This is called the "Class" or "Pack". The higher the class number the more dense and firmer the buff.

Sisal buff - full disk sewn in spiral rows 1/4" apart. or 1/8" apart
Sisal is the strong fiber of the Agave plant and is imported from Yucatan, Mexico. The sisal is formed into twisted strands and than woven into a coarse heavy cloth. The cloth is than cut into disks and sewn together.
These buffs are used extensively for cutting operations to remove quickly marks left by belt grinding operations - used with a coarse grease based compound
It does not hold the compound well so it must be applied frequently. finer grease compounds is also used for blending operations prior to polishing

Sewn in concentric rows 3/8" apart, it is made of woven nylon fabric impregnated with aluminum oxide. It is designed to make an even surface of very fine scratches, thereby imparting a brushed or satin finish to a polished surface.

Excellent for clean up of oxidation / corrosion on metals. It leaves a very nice satin finish.

This wheel is a real time saver. It does not remove metal, yet it seems to redistribute the metal back into the scratch so it can be removed later by buffing operations.
This wheel replaces the previous 3M Scotchbrite. You will probably like it better. Leaves really nice satin finish and will remove the oxidation from heat treated blades. Good for clean up of almost anything on metals.

Same as the Anderson Utility wheel above
It is made from a non-woven synthetic fiber mesh impregnated with abrasive grain and bonded with heavy duty resins. Permits even dispersement of grain throughout the web. The result is a cushion-like abrasive product that is continually exposes new sharp grain as the old material wears away.
Open structure prevents loading, will not rust or contaminate metal. Washable, water proof, use wet or dry.
Bright finish on hard surface such as stainless and titanium.

LEATHER WHEELS

For those who want razor sharpness in your knives, load up with Light Green rouge and you will be amazed at the edge you can produce.

These wheels are completely covered in leather. Hone from side or of a face of the wheel. Special process permanently bonds leather to wood core for a solid surface honing wheel. These are 1" thick. Drilled with 1" hole it is supplied with adapters for 1/2", 5/8" and 3/4".

Made of solid plywood and special process developed by Surge-Sharp bonds leather permanently to the wood. These are 3/4" thick. Drilled with 1" hole it is supplied with adapters for 1/2", 5/8" and 3/4"

SIZE	Leather 6"	Leather 8"	CLAD 6"	CLAD 8"	FACE 6"	FACE 8"
SUPPLIER			>

The wheels are made of layers of hard paper poster board (or compressed fiberboard), die-cut, glued and then turned for balancing.
Kits usually come as a two wheel systems for sharpening or reconditioning knife blades on a bench grinder, small motor or a buffer. The kits usually contain a glued up cutting wheel to sharpen the blade and a second wheel for white buffing compound to remove the wire edge and polish the cutting surface.
Included in the kits is a small amount of buffing lubricant to soften the cutting action of the cutting abrasive, a supply of Silicone Carbide and Aluminum Oxide grit to use with glue to re-grit the cutting wheel as needed and a block of white buffing compound for the second wheel. The polishing wheel is slotted Extra grit and grease, wheel glue and arbor bushings are available for these wheels.

SIZE	6" x 5/8"	6" x 1"	8" x 5/8"	8" x 3/4"	8" x 1"	KITS	Arbor Hole 1/2"	Arbor Hole 5/8"	Arbor Hole 1"
SUPPLIER

BUFFING & POLISHING WHEELS & BELTS DEFINITIONS

TYPES OF THE MOST USED WHEELS

SEWN MUSLIN BUFF

LEATHER WHEELS

SUPPLIERS Direct Contact Information