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USEFUL INFORMATION

SUPERABRASIVE SPECIFICATION

If you are unsure which product best suits your application please provide us with the following to allow us to recommend the most appropriate superabrasives:

1. Material to be ground
2. Coolant type if any
3. Machine type
4. Amount of stock/metal to be removed
5. Spindle speed
6. Surface finish required

Why use superabrasives instead of traditional grinding wheels

The principle reason is the reduction in grinding costs.

Superabrasive wheels are used in place of conventional grinding wheels for a number of reasons.  This is achieved through increased stock removal, longer wheel life and therefore reducing the time lost in wheel change-over when compared to traditional grinding wheels.

SUPERABRASIVES

There are two types of Superabrasives Diamond and CBN.

DIAMOND  SUPERABRASIVES

Diamond is the hardest material known to man and has unsurpassed resistance to wear. Industrial diamond used in wheels will either be natural or synthetic.

Diamond superabrasive grinding products have been developed for high precision and difficult to grind applications and materials which include Ceramics, Carbide, Glass, Stone and sintered materials.

The requirements for higher quality, longer life and faster grinding cycles from machine tools are the key reasons for using superabrasives with traditional grinding wheel products.

Diamond superabrasives are available in a wide range of grit sizes.

Grit size is available Coarse D181 to D126, Medium D107 to D76, Fine D64 to D54 and Extra Fine D46 to D25.

Electroplated wheels often use grit sizes considerably coarser to achieve greater metal removal when grinding carbide.

Diamond wheels are manufactured in 4 concentrations 50/75/100 and 125. 100 concentration is equal to 4.4 carats of abrasive per cubic centimetre. Other concentrations are proportional.

Most commonly used shapes are readily available and non-standard products can be manufactured to suit specific applications.

BOND TYPE

This is dependent upon the application and we request as much application detail as possible to allow us to recommend the most suitable bond.

CBN SUPERABRASIVES

CBN (Cubic Boron Nitride) is the second hardest superabrasive. CBN superabrasives are made from man-made material and were developed specifically to grind ferrous materials such as Steel, Hardened steel / Tool steels and Steel Alloys. 

Longer life and faster grinding cycles are the key advantages when comparing CBN superabrasives with traditional grinding wheel products.

CBN superabrasives grit sizes are available as Coarse D181 to D126, Medium D107 to D76, Fine D64 to D54 and Extra Fine D46 to D25.

CARBIDE GRINDING WHEELS

Carbide grinding wheels are manufactured in light green silicone carbide abrasive. This is a very sharp friable abrasive used on carbide, non-ferrous materials and non-magnetic stainless steel.

Grain sizes are available Extra Coarse 16/20/24, Coarse 30/36, Medium 46/54/60 and Fine 80/100/120/180, Extra Fine 220/240/280/320/400.

DIAMOND GRINDING WHEELS

Diamond grinding wheels are also termed as superabrasives.

Diamond grinding wheels are used to grind Carbide, Ceramics, Glass, Fibreglass and Stone.

Grit size is available Coarse D181 to D126, Medium D107 to D76, Fine D64 to D54 and Extra Fine D46 to D25.

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ABRASIVE WHEELS

Also known as grinding wheels are multi point cutting tools that are available in a wide range of sizes and shapes to meet the requirements of the operation. 

They are manufactured from a mixture of synthetic abrasives either Aluminium Oxide types or Silicon Carbide and a bonding agent and then pressed to the required size.

GRINDING STONES
GRINDING WHEEL
GRINDING WHEELS
ABRASIVE GRINDING WHEEL
ABRASIVE GRINDING WHEELS
ABRASIVE WHEEL

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ALUMINIUM OXIDE GRINDING WHEELS

Aluminium Oxide is a synthetic abrasive material that can either be used in its basic form or treated further to produce an abrasive that has different properties to suit a wider range of materials.  Its basic colour is brown but it is also available in white, pink, ruby, semi-friable and ceramic coated.  These are often mixed together to produce custom made products.  Aluminium oxide abrasives are recommended for most types of steel.

BENCH GRINDING WHEELS

The bench grinder wheel is used on a machine that is exactly as it sounds bolted on to a work bench.  They are used for ‘off hand’ grinding of tools. There are usually two wheels mounted, one on each end.  They can be either 1 coarse and 1 medium or fine in Aluminium oxide for steel or 1 coarse Aluminium oxide and 1 medium Silicon carbide which is used for carbide.  The wheel sizes are more often 150, 180, 200, 250, and 300mm diameter.

CARBIDE GRINDING WHEELS

To grind carbide tools a diamond wheel is required, because of the hardness of the material.  These are available in a wide range of shapes and sizes.  Different concentrations of diamond abrasives are available and when are these combined with a fully automatic grinding machine excellent results can be achieved.

CARBORUNDUM GRINDING WHEEL

This is a term used to describe a Silicon Carbide abrasive which is synthetic and is a very hard, sharp and brittle abrasive.  This makes carborundum grinding wheel a good product good for grinding cast iron, non ferrous metals and non metallic materials.

CBN GRINDING WHEELS

A CBN grinding wheel is made from CBN (Cubic boron nitride) are used to grind very hard steels usually in excess of 60 Rc.  Because CBN is harder than other conventional abrasives it resists wear and so has a much longer wheel life combined with a faster grinding cycle.  It is available in the same grit sizes as diamond wheels.

CENTRELESS GRINDING WHEELS

Centreless grinding is the method used to describe grinding the outside diameter of a cylindrical work piece, supported on a work blade and which is rotated by the control wheel.

There are two types of centreless grinding - Plunge where the components are held in position and ground to the required diameter and Throughfeed where the component is passed through the grinding area at a predetermined speed.  This method is used for large numbers of parts that are all the same size, or very long bars or tubes. 

CENTRELESS RUBBER CONTROL WHEELS

Rubber control or regulating wheels are essential to the operation of centreless grinding as they assist in the generation of the component by providing a smooth surface for the work piece to rotate against while it is held on the work rest blade, so that the grinding wheel can remove the material. They need to be wear resistant but generally the specification is independent of the type and size of material being ground.

These products are also known as:

RUBBER REGULATING WHEELSMANHATTAN RUBBER
CENTRELESS CONTROL WHEELS
CENTRELESS GRINDER CONTROL WHEEL
CONTROL WHEEL
GRINDING CONTROL WHEELS
MANHATTAN RUBBER CONTROL WHEELS
RUBBER REGULATING CONTROL WHEEL

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CUP GRINDING WHEELS

These wheels are also described as Taper or Flaring cup wheels.   This describes a special shape of grinding wheel.  They are more commonly used for tool grinding operations on high speed steels and they are used on a narrow area of the side face not on the periphery.  They are used without coolant. Common sizes are 80, 100 and 125mm diameters and they are available in 46, 60 grits for tool grinding.

STRAIGHT CUP GRINDING WHEELS

This describes a special shape of grinding wheel.  They are more commonly used for tool grinding operations on high speed steels and they are used on a narrow area of the side face not on the periphery.  They are used without coolant.

They are also available in larger diameters to suit surface grinding machines and in this case are often supplied in coarser abrasives with softer grades to prevent burning the component.

HONING WHEEL

Honing or lapping wheels are used to generate very high finishes with minimal stock removal.  This is a very specialist operation and requires the right combination of machine and correct selection of the abrasive. 

INTERNAL GRINDING WHEELS

Internal grinding is the term used to describe grinding the inside diameter of a bore, in a circular component, while the component itself is held externally in a chuck on a cylindrical grinder. 

Because of the larger area of contact softer grade wheels need to be used, typically I to K.  High performance internal grinding wheels are recommended.

METAL GRINDING WHEELS

Aluminium oxide wheels are suitable for steel and Silicon carbide is for cast iron and non ferrous materials. CBN is excellent on hard steels and Diamond is recommended for carbides ceramics and sintered materials.

RESIN BONDED GRINDING WHEELS

Resin bond grinding wheels are manufactured from a mixture of abrasive and phenolic resin and other fillers which are added to improve the grinding properties. 

Resinoid wheels are stronger than vitrified wheels, so they are more often used for very heavy duty metal removing applications.  However they are also very successful in cutting metal in the form of a cut off wheel and also very fine finishes can be achieved using the finer abrasives. 

RUBBER GRINDING WHEELS

Rubber bonded wheels are mainly used as control or regulating wheels, but they are also very successful when a fine surface finish is required, and for cutting thin wall tubes.  Because of the fumes rubber wheels need to be used with coolant.

SILICON CARBIDE GRINDING WHEEL

Silicon Carbide is a synthetic abrasive that is very hard, sharp and brittle.  This makes it very good for grinding cast iron, non ferrous metals and non metallic materials.  Grinding wheels are available in the full range of shapes and sizes to suit all applications.

SURFACE GRINDING WHEEL

The operation here is to grind a flat surface.  The workpiece is mounted on to the machine bed which will either rotate or reciprocate but the effect is to increase the area of contact between the wheel and the workpiece, compared to cylindrical grinding.  This means that the wheels usually have softer grades typically H – J so they are free cutting.  Surface grinding wheels can be plain, recessed or cup type wheels.

TOOL GRINDING WHEELS

Toolroom grinding wheels are usually used dry to regrind and produce new cutting tools in the full range of tool steels.  The wheel shapes used are Plain, Recessed Taper and Straight cups and Dished. The size and shape of the tools determines which shape is used, as much as the operation. We can offer a wide range of wheels to suit these applications including our AZ range of free cutting wheels and our AS3 range for the harder materials

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GRINDING WHEEL DRESSING

A term used to describe preparing the working face of a grinding wheel so that it can grind to its optimum performance. 

Dressing means removing the dull abrasive grains from the cutting face of the wheel.  This is achieved with the use of diamond dressers (and wheel dressing equipment) on precision wheels and with more vigorous methods on coarse vitrified and resinoid wheels.

Dressing can also alter the shape of the cutting face so that contours can be ground. On precision grinding machines the diamond is controlled by the machine.

Grinding wheels can be dressed in a variety of different ways depending upon the operation and the machine type.  The most common way is with a diamond tool which contains either one stone (single point) or several stones (multipoint).  More specialist applications often require blade or chisel points. Hand held dressing sticks are also commonly used.

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DIAMOND TOOL DRESSING TIPS

1. Dress dry when dry grinding, dress with coolant when wet grinding.
2. Never turn coolant on to the diamond once a dry dressing cycle has started. The thermal shock could damage the diamond.
3. Always ensure that a generous amount of coolant is flowing onto the diamond during a wet dressing application.
4. Always ensure that the dresser is mounted into the correct type of holder and that it is secure.
5. Do not allow the tool to overhang more than is necessary - this will stop vibration.
6. Always turn the diamond to ensure that a point is maintained, this will make the diamond tool last much longer.
7. The diamond should be mounted on the centre line of the wheel with the diamond pointing down at 10 to 15 degrees.
8. Always use the correct size of diamond.

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DIAMOND DRESSING TOOLS

Diamond dressing tools are used to dress and shape grinding wheels. 

There are several types available including Single points, Blade, Chisel, Impregnated and Multi point dressing tools.

SINGLE POINT DIAMOND DRESSERS

Consist of a single diamond brazed into a steel holder. 

The diamond size range normally starts at 0.25 carats and goes to 3 carats.  Depending upon the quality of the stone they can either be disposable or reset when worn. To reduce the wear rate from wheel dressing, they need to be turned at regular intervals. Diamond dressing tools are mainly used to dress aluminium oxide wheels in the 46 – 120 grit range. They can also be used for straight and profile dressing.

DIAFORM CHISEL TOOLS – CHISEL POINT DIAMOND DRESSERS

Diaform Chisels are precision diamond tools that have been ground to a specified angle which is usually 40 or 60 degrees with a radius of 0.005” – 0.020”.  They are used on Diaform attachments on surface grinding machines to produce very accurate profiles. They can be manufactures using either natural diamond or PCD polycrystalline.  They are available in a range of carat sizes, and can be reground if required to increase the tool life.

MULTIPOINT DIAMOND DRESSING TOOLS – CLUSTER DIAMOND DRESSING TOOLS

Multipoint diamond dressing tools are manufactured with many whole diamonds set in to a matrix, in a regular pattern.  The diamonds are usually smaller than those used as a single point.  This means that they have a longer life and a lower cost.  They are mainly used to dress aluminium oxide wheels in the 46 – 120 grit range.  The tool is made in a disposable or re-settable design.

IMPREGNATED TOOLS

Impregnated dressing tools have many small diamonds set at random in a matrix, providing a lower cost alternative to Multi point or Single point dressers. They are also disposable. 

BLADE TYPE DIAMOND DRESSERS

These are precision tools designed primarily to dress a profile on to a grinding wheel.  They give consistent results, and can often be used in place of a chisel point ground diamond. The surface finish on the wheel profile can be varied by altering the traverse rate during the dressing operation.  They are manufactured to be disposable tools.

DRESSING STICK

This is an abrasive stick 25 x 25 x 150 usually made from silicon carbide combined with coarse abrasive in a very hard bond.  They are used to manually dress a grinding wheel, so that it will become free cutting again.  The term is also used to describe the fine abrasive white dressing sticks which are used to condition CBN and diamond wheels.

DIAMOND HONING STICKS – DIAMOND HOING STONES

Diamond honing sticks are selected because they have a consistent wear pattern and are ideal for fully automated processes.

ELECTROPLATED DIAMOND & CBN PINS

Also known as mounted wheels.  These are made from diamond or CBN electroplated on to a steel body, which has a spindle mounting.  The size range starts at 1mm diameter by 6mm long and increases in diameter by 0.5mm increments up to 6mm, and then by 1mm increments up to 12mm.  The spindle sizes are 3 or 6mm diameter.  This is an excellent product for removing stock from inside holes or ports on harder materials.  The specifications are defined as fine, medium or coarse.

FORM DRESSING TOOLS

These products are usually Blade or Chisel type diamond dressers but could also include roller dressers.

GRINDING WHEEL DRESSING EQUIPMENT

If this excludes diamonds then there is the Huntingdon dresser for foundry applications.  All parts of these hand tools can be replaced as spares are available. Also included are 25 x 25 x 150mm C30 TV dressing sticks.  These dressers are used manually.

WHEEL DRESSING EQUIPMENT

For precision wheels diamond tools can be used.  They are available in various designs including Single point, Multi point, Blade Chisel point and conglomerate dressers and also diamond roller dressers.

Dressing sticks 25 x 25 x 150 in coarse Silicon carbide can also be used for tool room applications.

To dress coarse vitrified and resinoid wheels the best method is to use a Huntingdon dresser which is manually controlled.

POLYCRYSTALLINE PCD TIPS

These PCD Tips are used as turning and cutting tools as well as for dressing aluminium oxide grinding wheels.  If used for dressing wheels they are usually chisel points.

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SAW SHARPENING

Wheels for saw sharpening high speed steel circular saw blades are usually free cutting vitrified bond and can be plain or dish shaped. Most popular sizes start at 1.5mm wide.

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BANDSAW SHARPENING - CIRCULAR SAW SHARPENING GRINDING WHEELS

Carbon steel and high speed steel Bandsaws are usually sharpened with vitrified wheels.

Saw sharpening is usually done dry and the wheels need to be free cutting. 

Products are also know as sawmill blade sharpening wheels, profile cutter sharpening wheels and satellite tipped wide bandsaw sharpening wheels.

PROFILE CUTTER SHARPENING GRINDING WHEELS

Sharpening profile cutters in high speed steel, requires a wheel that is free cutting and capable of holding the form. 

Vitrified wheels are the best when used on mechanical tool grinders.  Coolant is not generally used when saw blade sharpening. 

STELLITE TIPPED WIDE BANDSAWS

Sharpening heavy duty wide tipped bandsaws is usually done with 46 or 60 grit medium/hard grade wheels because of the severity of the grinding and the material.
 
WOOD CUTTER PROFILING GRINDING WHEELS

Unlike profile cutters, woodworking tools are often sharpened with very soft vitrified wheels using water.

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DIAMOND LAPPING COMPOUND

This is a mixture of diamond powder, suspended in a viscous compound which has been formulated to lubricate the diamonds while they polish the component.  There are various grades of diamond powder available, to suit the finish requirements to be achieved.

DIAMOND PLATED NEEDLE FILES

Diamond needle files are electroplated with medium to fine diamonds and are a normally sold in sets of various shapes.

COATED ABRASIVES

LINISHING BELTS

Linishing belts are excellent for grinding and finishing processes and are equally useful on metal or wood and composit materials.  They are available in a wide range of sizes combined with abrasive types and backings to suit the finish requirements to be achieved.

POLISHING BELTS

These are also known as linishing belts and are used to finish metal products.  They are available in a wide range of sizes.

They are matched with different backings and surface coatings to give complete flexibility in use.

The range of abrasives is available up to 800 grit.    

SANDING BELTS and SANDER ROLLS

The term sanding is used to describe an abrasive belt used primarily in connection with the wood working industry.  Belts can be supplied in a wide range sizes with paper or cloth backings to cover all applications.  The abrasives which are available up to 800 grit are treated to enable them to cope with hard and soft woods and manufactured sheets, as well as paint or varnish.

SANDING ROLLS

Paper or cloth backed abrasive rolls are supplied in 50 Metre lengths and are available in
all of the popular grit sizes, covering the metal and wood working industry.  The rolls are designed for manual use, or to be used on hand held machines. 

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PBR ABRASIVES

Since our foundation in 1969 we have become one of the leading independent grinding wheel, superabrasive and abrasive product distributors serving customers from throughout the UK and in Europe.

Manufacturing effective competitive products and providing a service directly to customers is the challenge which we have risen to through having long standing relationships with our suppliers and our own highly experienced team of technical representatives.

PBR have the unique ability to remanufacture grinding wheels to bespoke sizes. We source the best products to suit our customer’s application, budget and finish requirements and provide a friendly and willing service.

Sometimes a telephone call or email is all it takes for our customers to get the answers they need. Often the highly specialised nature of our customers’ machining processes means that our experience is key to providing reliable products that achieve the safety, performance and quality of finish they need.

We serve all industry sectors and every size of business, our commitment is to provide value, quality and excellent service in all that we do for our customers.