Polishing and Buffing Machines

Polishers and buffing machines are used to impart a fine (low Ra) surface finish on the exterior of a part. To improve surface finish, they use use abrasive grain slurries or compounds on buffs, bobs, cloth naps, laps, very fine grit nonwovens, and coated abrasives. Many types of polishers and buffing machines are available. Choices include disc finishing and centerless finishing machines, buffers, cylindrical polishers, honing machines, lapping machines, orbital devices, polishing lathes, superfinishing equipment, vibratory or oscillatory machines, and specialty devices.

Disc finishers, buffers, and centerless finishers are common types of polishers and buffing machines. Disc finishing polishing machines and buffing machines are abrasive grinders or grinding wheel face-grinders. Buffers and buffing machines are used to improve a surface’s brightness or finish. Buffers drive either non-woven abrasive pads or buffing pads that are loaded with buffing or polishing compounds. Centerless finishing polishers and buffing machines are used for grinding or finishing. Applications for centerless polishers and buffing machines include rolls, rollers, connecting rods, valve systems, and other precision symmetric shapes. Centerless machines are used in high-volume production applications, which include throughfeed and plunge grinding.

Cylindrical, honing, and lapping polishers and buffing machines are available. Cylindrical or outer diameter (OD) polishers and buffing machines are used in grinding and polishing in small spaces, such as shafts, rolls, cams, valve systems. Cylindrical polishing machines and buffing machines may be used in additional applications. Honing machines use bonded, abrasive stones or superabrasive sticks mounted within a fixture. The fixture rotates and reciprocates when it’s applied to the surface. Honing equipment corrects the alignment of holes to produce the correct surface for the application. Lapping polishers and buffing machines generate flat surfaces with find finishes. They use a loose abrasive in a carrier fluid where parts are processed between large lap plates. Lapping removes much less material than grinding and polishing

 Additional types of polishers and buffing machines include polishing lathes, superfinishers, and vibratory or oscillatory equipment. Orbital polishers and buffing machines use an orbital motion during finishing or grinding. Polishing lathes are specialized polishers and buffing machines that produce smooth or fine surface finishes. They have two tapered shafts that provide tool holding chucks. Superfinishing polishers and buffing machines produce surfaces with very low roughness. Vibratory or oscillatory polishers and buffing machines use a vibrating motion during finishing. Specialty polishers and buffing machines are also available. Applications include scarifiers, power files, scrapers, thermal stripping, and wafer thinning.

• Banging out balls
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Part Numbers for Polishing and Buffing Machines