Belt Types and Brands

bquinlan

bquinlan

Joined
Jan 5, 2001
Messages
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Would anyone care to offer a newbie some opinions on the various types and brands of 2"x72" grinding belts? My new Coote should be here late next week and I need to lay in some supplies. I tend to assume that the more expensive belts will probably last longer, but it would be nice to know a little more before I part with my hard-earned cash. :)

Any recommendations?

--Bob Q
 
The red and yellow 3M belts are 3x the value of the belts that cost half as much.................
 
tom mayo said:
The red and yellow 3M belts are 3x the value of the belts that cost half as much.................
Click to expand...

OUCH! Trying to figure that math is hurting my brain this morning! What a week to attempt to eliminate caffeine from my diet! Hehehee! :)

But alas, Tom is right. Those belts just keep on going! Even when they are worn out I use them to hog off scale and profile too. I will have to plug the Norax belts though. They are fabulous so far, but I haven't had them long enough to see if they outlast the 3M Cubitrons. :D
 
:) I agree with the two above posts, but would add that cheap belts are good for shaping your handles down to size.
 
I'm personally pretty fond of Klingspoor blue zirconia belts in heavier grits (50-120 grit). In 220s I use Klinspoor J-flex in Aluminum Oxide, and for finer grit belts I go with Norax (400-1200).

I think that backing materials have much to do with how I like or dislike a specific belt. "Y" weight backing is so thick and stiff that I only use if on the flat platen. I much prefer "X" weight in the heavy grit beltls, and like the more flexible backing as the grits get finer.

As for the specific type/brand, I think that's a matter of what works best for you.... in your shop. As you use belts, and order new ones, try various types/brands until you find what works best for you.
I recently tried the new "gator" belts, and wasn't impressed. They do cut for a long time, but the finish they leave is terrible, and they're not much for flexibility.
 
Ed has a good point.
The type of grinding you do makes all the difference in the world.
Certain operations require new clean crisp belts. Others do not.
Some take flexible belts some dont.
This all depends on the way you make the knife also.

Start with a few of each brand and weight belt and make your own decisions from there.
I will say that the 976 3m yellow belts are one of my favorites for certain operations.
They take a lickin and keep on tickin.
 
The Norax belts I use for grinding in the slack area work much better than anything else I've used (Blue Zirc, 3M 967/977, Gator, etc.)

The 3M 967 is great for profiling against the platen - just hogs the steel off. But leave plenty of room for the higher grits because the scratches are deep!

Maybe I could offer a few belts not to use:
(lessons I've learned)

Don't use A/O "X" belts below 120 grit for hogging. Messy, ugly and awful.
Don't use A/O "J" belts below 220. Takes metal off too fast.
Don't use Blue Zirc over 120.
Don't use Scotchbrite Coarse belts for anything! :rolleyes:
Don't use cork belts on carbon steels you don't intend to mirror-polish.


I should point out that I don't use a big contact wheel for grinding. The list above is experience gained from flat-platen and slack-belt grinding. I'm sure there's more....just can't think of any....but if I go out and start grinding, bet I will. ;)
 
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