Metal finishing is an important step that helps finish the surface of a metal product. Metal finishing uses different materials but many of the machines that do this use either loose abrasives, plating, buffing, tumbling media, or powder coating to achieve the finish and look the customer needs. Below, we are going to look at the equipment you need to ensure high-quality finished metal products.
Barrel Finishing Machines
Barrel finishing machines use a rotating drum to surface treat, deburr, or round metal. In the six or eight-sided drums, abrasives, lubricating agents, and tumbler media are used to make the main abrasive material more effective by providing the friction required to complete the process.
Vibratory Finishing Machines
Instead of using abrasives, these machines use high-frequency vibrations for their finishing process. They are best suited for situations where the smoothness of the surface is required to be very high or for products with tubular recesses or deep cavities. For operations that need the cut-rate to be very low, such as burnishing, water is often used as a dampening medium.
Metal Sanders
Metal sanders are very versatile as they can be used to prepare the metal for painting, ensure the metal has a smooth finish, or even to brighten the surface. For most metal ships, a wide belt sander is the better option as it allows you to work with metals of different widths.
When choosing a metal sander, you should talk to someone who has extensive knowledge about these machines. They will advise you on the best metal sander according to your needs. As outlined in this intro to metal finishing, you should let them run the materials you will be working with through their machine, so they can adjust your new machine and ensure it can provide you value and help you produce your best products.
Blasting Machines
Blasting machines direct granular sand, metal pellets, and steel shots at high speeds towards a material to clean and finish it simultaneously. The finish can be adjusted by adjusting the angle as well as the speed and size of the material being used.
You can choose between direct blasting, siphon, or wheel machines. Direct blasting machines use very little pressure, so they do not warp the material being worked on. Although they allow for faster finishing, siphon machines cause a lot of warping while wheel blasting machines have a wheel to direct the cleaning material towards the material being worked on using centrifugal force. Since they do not use compressed air, wheel blasting machines are a lot cheaper to operate than the other options.
Other Types of Equipment
Metal plating machines add a thin layer of material to the metal’s exterior. This helps improve corrosion resistance and appearance and can be used to bond two materials. Buff polishers provide a very smooth and high-quality finish and that is why they are often used for decorative products. Powder-coating machines apply a material that looks and feels like paint but that is more durable.
Metal finishing equipment is a critical part of any metalworks shop. The type of equipment you need will depend on the materials you work on as well as the types of finishes you are looking for.
