SUHNER has written a guide on polishing stainless steel workpieces, claiming to have the key to good results at low costs.
According to Suhner, polishing stainless steel workpieces can be costly and exhausting, depending on the demanded surface quality.
By having the knowhow to combine the correct combination of abrasive and machines, it is possible to lower costs and attain excellent results.
Stainless steel surfaces may be published for a variety of reasons, such as visual appeal or hygiene. Machines in food and pharmaceutical applications, for example, require particular attention.
Suhner says the initial steps of polishing stainless steel should not begin with overly coarse abrasives. The first grinding operation should therefore not use a grain size exceeding 60. If the workpiece shape allows this, grinding in a crosswise fashion facilitates subsequent polishing.
In the following steps it is important that successively finer grain sizes are used if they are to remove the grinding marks left by the previous grain completely. Depending on the abrasive used - normal grain or 311 Trizact abrasives - this process should continue down to a grain size of 600.
After rough grinding the required surface is generated in a three stage polishing process: prepolishing, polishing, and finishing. The polishing process does not involve actual removal of material, so it is important to have a polishing paste with the suitable polishing wheel and the correct speed.
Equally as important is the application of a powerful drive motor. Flexible shaft machines are ideal for these applications because then the powerful, heavy drive unit is isolated from the actual tool, therefore making the work easier and far less fatiguing.
Suhner specialists provide onsite stainless steel polishing consultations free of charge as part of its demo services.
Add a comment