Diamond Cup Wheels generally vary in shape and material composition. Those variations complicate tool selection strategies. To simplify matters, start by assessing your needs. That’ll help you to determine the right cup wheel size and segment shape. Actually, less about your needs and more about a specific job’s requirements, let’s focus on tool features that’ll provide an efficient, surface-dedicated workflow.
Intelligently Selected Diamond Cup Wheels
There’s no room for gambits here, just solid planning, as made possible by an informed set of buyers guidelines. Granted, there are different manufacturers, and they do employ different fabrication methods. Extra vents are added by some to dissipate large heat loads. A second manufacturer might handle this issue by widening a smaller array of cup apertures or adding an extra layer of heat-resistive solder to the segments. However, regardless of manufacturer inconsistencies, certain fixed features can be clearly evaluated on all of these products.
Regarding Effective Surface Area
The effective grinding surface area of a cup will vary. Larger tools rotate slower and perform less aggressively than low-cross sectional grit areas. To correctly figure out diamond cup wheel cross-sectional areas, you’ll want to count the number of disc segments and multiply that number by the dimensions of a single segment. A 175mm, 24-segment cup with 40-grit surface abrasion strength perfectly fits this description. Incidentally, 175mm wheels are also used as high-speed tools. Remember, it’s the number of segments that determine surface area, not the diameter of the cup. Although this second disc is also a 175mm tool, it only includes 6 medium-bond segments.
A Closer Look at Segment Characteristics
Typically, sharper segment geometries deliver more attack power while tapered edges are better suited as waste material dispersion aids. Next, just like any other diamond-packed tool, the bonding agent used to cement the abrasion-resistant crystals must wear away at a predetermined rate so that new diamonds are exposed as the old ones flake away. While still on the subject of “grit,” this is the final ingredient required to create a diamond cup wheel that’s right for your job. Those little crystals must feature a specified build quality, a structure that’s neither too fine nor too coarse.
There is a sense of Goldilocks-like tweaking about the work. Grit ratings must be “just right,” as must the softness, the wear rate of the segment bonding medium. Segment number, heat dispersion aperture numbers, and cup grit area coverage all impact the operational speed of the equipment, then there’s the shape of those segments to further augment surface grinding power. Finally, job specifics will directly impact the selection process. Before all else, check to see whether this is a pre-polish assignment, concrete levelling task, or some kind of paint or sticky removal job.
