The abrasive belts practical guide 07 April 2022

Everything you need to know about abrasive belts!

Abrasive belts are indispensable in the cutlery industry and many other trades. They allow a multitude of sanding and polishing operations.
There are many models, from the most classic to the most recent technological innovations, and it is sometimes complicated to find your way.
SPAP SOUCILLE has therefore prepared a small guide with the types of belts we offer.
First of all, it is essential to define some terms for the good understanding of the continuation of the article:

• The abrasive grain :

An abrasive belt is composed of a support (paper or cloth of various kinds) on which are distributed grains of abrasive more or less large and more or less hard. It is this abrasive grain, or rather these hundreds of thousands of grains that will perform the work of removing material.
The size of the grains, or granulometry, is governed in Europe by the FEPA standard (Federation of European Producers of Abrasives) which lists, to date, no less than 23 grain sizes from P12 to P2500 for coated abrasives. Tables of particle size equivalence are widely available on the Internet.

The grain size of abrasive belts is determined in Europe by the FEPA standard and corresponds to the average size of the abrasive grains expressed in micrometers (microns). To remember: The higher the FEPA (P) standard, the finer the abrasive grain and vice versa.

• The supports :

The abrasive grains are applied on supports which can be of different natures, which gives them rigidity or, on the contrary, a great flexibility.
X : rigid
The X belt supports are made of cotton or polyester cloth, which makes them very resistant. They are polyvalent and perfectly adapted to production environments where longevity is essential.
J: flexible
J belt holders are ideal for polishing profiled parts. Their flexibility allows them to adapt to all surfaces, even the least flat.
F : very flexible
These cotton cloth supports allow you to easily follow the contours and perfectly fit the profiles of your parts.
Once all these notions are understood, it is now necessary to make the difference between the different types of abrasives and their distribution on the support. Here again, don't panic, we explain everything.

• Types of abrasives :

Ceramics :

Let's start with our ceramic abrasive belt and its beautiful red color. With a hardness of 7 on the Mohs scale*, the ceramic grain is the sharpest and most aggressive, which makes this belt perfect for heavy removal of material from hard materials such as steel, aluminium, nickel and cobalt alloys. It has a long life and self-sharpening capability, which allows it to maintain its cutting power throughout its use. This belt combines high performance and competitive cost.
Choose from our wide range of grits and media (X, J and F).

SPAP SOUCILLE's tip: a 36 or even 40 grit ceramic belt allows you to remove large amounts of material quickly without putting too much pressure on the belt, and to make cuttings. For the sharpening of your blades we advise you to use a 240 grain.

Zirconium :

The zirconium grains, with a hardness of 7.5 on the Mohs scale*, allow the removal of material from hard materials such as alloyed or stainless steels, non-ferrous metals or even wood! Very practical to work on your blade and handle without changing bands! Here, it's a little less complicated, since this band exists only in rigid support but still with differents choice of grains.

Corundum (or aluminium oxide):

Commonly called "corundum", aluminum oxide, with a hardness of 9 to 9.3 on the Mohs scale*, is an economical abrasive of high quality, ideal for working on alloyed steels and woods. Its applications are multiple. This abrasive is also suitable for your finishing work thanks to our very fine grains available.
Like all our abrasive belts, you can choose between a rigid, flexible or very flexible backing.

Some belts have an additional adhesive coat of STEARATE. This is the case with our 532F belts, which are also made of corundum. This additional coat considerably reduces the retention of dust and residues for a longer belt life and a significantly higher material removal.

Silicon carbide :

Silicon carbide abrasive, with a hardness of 9.3 to 9.5 on the Mohs scale*, is an ultra-hard ceramic mineral abrasive that can be found in nature in a very rare form: moissanite.
It gives the strips a clean and shiny cut. It is very effective for working on specific materials such as glass or stone. Its wide range of application also allows to work non-ferrous metals, non-alloyed steels or composite materials. The polyester or cotton fabric backing is waterproof, allowing the belt to be used dry, wet or even oily.

Finally, here is our advice to not skip steps when using your abrasive belts:
Do not skip any steps and go too fast if you want a good result. There is no particular rule, each cutler has his own technique but it is preferable to use the grits in this order: 40, 60, 80, 150, 240.400. 600. If, for example, you use a 40 grit and then directly 120, it will leave marks in the first step, and it will be necessary to press much harder with the 120 grit which will make the band suffer.

So remember: all the time you think you'll save at the beginning will be time lost at the end!