# Sanding Belts



## mr drinky (Jan 25, 2013)

I have a small 1x30 belt sander and I am looking to buy a range of intro belts to start working on knife projects. I also got my aluminum heat diffuser in, but it seriously needs the edge taken off of it. It's really sharp; sharper than an OOTB Henkels 

I know there are a lot of people who use various belts and have preferences. Does anyone have recommendations for a good set of belts for dealing with wood handles and some metal work such as rounding spines, refinishing blades, and some sharpening? And of course chamfering my aluminum heat diffuser edges is another project.

For wood I have seen members here mention J-flex, Aluminum Oxide, and Zirconia. And for metal I see references to Silicon Carbide, 3M gators (Trizac), and Scotchbrite. 

Of course grit suggestions would be helpful too. I am sure there are some elaborate sanding regimes out there.

Thanks.

k.


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## vicv (Jan 25, 2013)

Not sure about wood but for metal the 3m micron belts Lee Valley sells are very good. Only problem is they're very thin and flexible so need to be carful not to twist them and they're basically useless on the platen as there just isn't any cushion against the steel backing. The 15u sic belt is especially good and leaves a fantastic polish. As for 3M there are in fact two types of Trizacts. The gator and the regular and they're very different. The gators are more for grinding as in knife making. The normal Trizacts are better finishing i.e. sharpening belts and leave an amazing even finish and you can go all the way to 3u. I can't find them but 6u is very fine. For shaping and thinning and reprofiling I really like Klingspor Blue zirconia belts. The 120 will usually put a new edge on a very dull knife in one pass. All these belts have a stiffer cloth backing. Don't forget about the leather belt and some compound for power stropping and final burr removal. I prefer the leather on the platen as I find the edge can be slightly rounded off if you're not careful off platen. The scotchbright belt will quickly remove rust and patina if you're refinishing an abused knife


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## mr drinky (Jan 26, 2013)

Thanks vicv for the info. That was helpful. And I actually deleted out of the OP the leather and felt belt part, but that will come later I figure. 

I also see that the mods moved it to shop talk, but I may do some deep searches on KKF and the old forum and resurrect some of that past e-knowledge.

k.


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## vicv (Jan 26, 2013)

No problem.


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## HHH Knives (Jan 26, 2013)

K. Shoot me a email when ya get a chance. I have some info and a couple suppliers your gona like!


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## vicv (Jan 26, 2013)

but I want that info too! Always looking for new stuff even though I currently have enough belts for 5+ years


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## Dream Burls (Jan 26, 2013)

Check out Klingpor's Woodworking at woodworkingshop.com. They have a vast variety of belts in different materials and grades at reasonable prices. Take a look at their "box of belts" for some really good deals.


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## vicv (Jan 26, 2013)

that linen belt looks interesting to see if it's different than leather but as for the rest I think other options are superior to the klingpor sharpening belts. I do like their mean coarse belts though. Impregnate them with beeswax for a great way to keep the steel cool


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## Heath Besch (Jan 31, 2013)

I have been very happy with the norton trizac and their blaze for courser grits. Minot sure if they make them in 1x30 though.


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## vicv (Jan 31, 2013)

They do. The blaze are norton. The trizacts are made by 3m. If you're referring to the norton structured abrasives they're called Norax


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## l r harner (Jan 31, 2013)

i use gator belts (cant get them at supergrit.com) but the rest of my belts i get at supergrit they have just about any size you could ever find and also jsut about any grit (saw the other day when i was there diamond belts)


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## Don Nguyen (Feb 1, 2013)

Butch what belts do you use for most of your removal?

I don't really like the ceramic belts from Super that much - they don't cut that well and burnish the steel pretty quickly. I like how fast the blue zircs cut though.


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