Tumbling-Media

manufacture of the finest mass finishing equipment and supplies in the marketplace.

You are currently browsing the Finishing Compounds category.

Go For A Smooth Finish With Finishing Compounds

Finishing is a term used to define the process of cleaning, polishing, deburring, coloring, separating and smoothing of parts or components, generally metals. Finishing compounds are compounds used in the process of finishing - they are defined as substances or materials that are used to give surface properties like softness, smoothness, flexibility, resistance to fire, resistance to corrosion, resistance to rusting and so on - to metal parts, wood, textile, leather etc. It is possible to impart a high quality to a finished product with finishing compounds so that the product comes out with the correct functionality, fit and aesthetics.

Mass finishing compounds are used to finish several parts together using machines like tumbling barrels or vibratory systems. The compounds are used to aid in deburring, descaling, polishing of ferrous and non ferrous materials etc. The typical mass finishing process involves putting the parts together with finishing media, water and finishing compounds into a barrel or vibratory machine and allowing them to vibrate or tumble together. As a result, the parts rub against each other or with the finishing media; the rough edges are smoothed out, debris and deposits are cleaned out and specific surface properties are imparted to the parts.

The finishing compounds can be used in closed loop and open loop finishing processes, which involves automatic or manual feeding of finishing media and compounds respectively. There are compounds that are made for wet use and those made for dry use. Compounds are also available for specific use with tumbling systems and those that work well with vibratory systems. There are some special properties given to the finishing compounds when they are manufactured. For example, deburring compounds are made to keep the deburring debris suspended during the finishing process to ensure that there is no re depositing. This way the surfaces are continuously kept ready to accept the abrasive action. Descaling compounds have properties needed to remove scales and assist the finishing media in descaling. Compounds used for polishing are made to provide conditioning to water, detergency, impart rinseability and brightening plus suspension properties to make sure that the debris is kept at bay.

Finishing media are used in the finishing process to clean, polish and deburr. Corn cob media comes under the head of dry finishing media. It is made from treating and powdering of corn cobs to provide abrasive action on parts being finished. As they are made from natural products, corn cob media is bio degradable and environment friendly. It is long lasting and reusable; it is also cost effective. It can be used in both vibratory and tumbling systems. The grit size of the corn cob media is determined by the finishing requirement – it varies depending on whether the finishing process needs to be gentle or rough, the nature of the surface being deburred etc. The corn cob media has very good absorbing properties and can absorb both water and oily substances with ease; proves very effective in degreasing and cleaning parts. To gain further insights into finishing products, log on to http://gravcollc.com/

Posted 10 months, 3 weeks ago at 8:35 pm.

Add a comment

Obtaining A Great Finish With Finishing Compounds and Plastic Media


Finishing compounds come in 2 main varieties – wet compounds and dry compounds. There products for different purposes including cleaning, rust proofing, burnishing, colouring and ferrous cutting. These compounds also come in standard packaging sizes of 5 gallons and 55 gallons. Among the wet compounds, AQUA-2000 and A-400 are used for cleaning jobs; AR-614-L and AR-620 are ear marked for anti rust jobs; the BC series like BC-300 and BC-351 are used for burnishing parts; CLC series is used in cleaning; U-620 is used as all metal cleaner and inhibitor while U-2339 is used for acidic burnishing.

Dry finishing compounds (which are in powder form) are typically used in burnishing, colouring, cleaning and cutting. BC-311 produces heavy lather and is used in tumbling barrels for burnishing all kinds of equipment. CC series is used for colouring of high energy equipment to create a bright part; they can be set on zinc and aluminium. The D series is meant for cleaning purposes - D4 is an abrasive cleaner while D7 is an alkaline metal cleaner. The FGC series is used specifically for ferrous cutting. FGC-100 is a paste mixture with soap. It acts abrasive in suspension mode and is meant to be used where dust is a concern. FGC-131 is non-abrasive and is used in removing oil and grease from oily parts. The NFC series is used in non-ferrous cutting; they are mildly abrasive and alkaline in nature and can be used with any media type.

Plastic deburring media for use in finishing metals are available. The plastic media are used for faster cutting and fine finishing. The media are of high quality and are long lasting too. With a vast experience in the metal finishing industry a company can boast of being able to find a solution for any type of finishing requirements. Plastic media come in different shapes and varying sizes. Shapes include cones, TET – 3 sides, pyramids, stars, triangles, wedges and diamond shaped pyramids. Sizes range from tiny to more than 2 inches in height. The main types are standard plastic media and speciality synthetic plastic deburring media. They come in packaging sizes having 50 numbers each.

The Lusterwhite series are good for very low Ra finishes and provide excellent wearing. For good wear and pre plate finish on all metals, Superbrite series is used. Gravilon series provides excellent wear and pre plate finish; they have variants and come with and without zircon. Gravilite is used for fast cutting needs. Gravilox is used for fast cutting and matt finishing. For very fine, fast cutting and fine finishes on exclusive metals, the speciality synthetic plastic media is used. For further information on finishing media and compounds, log on to http://gravcollc.com/

Posted 10 months, 3 weeks ago at 7:01 pm.

Add a comment