Buffing
I don't know about all of you, but I have a relatively small shop and limited budget. So, I am wondering what you all use for buffing. Large buffing machines are expensive and... well...large.... I have tried some of the disks embedded with compound from Allied supply in combination with my Dremel tool...but it leaves streaks. Anyway. Just wondering what techniques, you all use!
Reply #2 - Oct 22nd, 2007,
I had a very limited budget, too, but a former employer turned me onto just getting an old, discarded clothes dryer motor, bolting it to a bench, and putting a buffing wheel on the shaft. (He used one for brass hardware.) Didn't work on small stuff, made a mess underneath, but still, it took me quite a way!
Reply #3 - Oct 22nd, 2007,
I have a buffing wheel (7" disc) in my bench motor chuck. great for small stuff but I need to get creative in large areas. Not as fast as the nice big ones. But better for small stuff.
Reply #4 - Oct 23rd, 2007,
Well....it's embarrassing to say...but I don't even have a bench motor. When I have to, I just chuck my Dremel in my vice and go for it or do it by hand. If I were to take apart a clothes dryer, where would I find the motor and what would it look like? This sounds interesting and inexpensive. I might just give it a shot!
Reply #5 - Oct 23rd, 2007,
I would imagine that with the web, you could find out the make-up of any make and model with a little digging, and probably not just for dryers, but anything that would use a good enough HP/RPM motor. Mine ended up looking very similar to Kenton's... (in the old days, we used to have to fight off the flying dinosaurs just to chisel them on rocks!)
Reply #6 - Oct 23rd, 2007,
All you need is a motor, it could come off an old table saw, etc.
Oh, I just got to thinking, for a long time before I got my buffer, I used my drill press. It really worked pretty well, and for a while I used it along with the buffer, because I had gotten used to how the drill worked, and the buffer seemed strange.
Reply #8 - Oct 25th, 2007,
A bench motor is just a motor that has feet on the side (side mounted motor).
I drive nails through the holes to position the motor where I want it. The shaft on the motor sticks out a way and I mounted a Jacobs Chuck, that I salvaged off an old drill.
You may be able to find such a beast at the pawn shop or talk to a local business that redoes motors. You may be able to get the washing machine motor from a business that sells used appliances. Many times, they must pay to get rid of old machines.
Reply #9 - Oct 26th, 2007,
The problem you mention seems to be caused by the compound that come with the Dremel tools. I have had the same experience with all the compounds that came with such tools. I think they are too hard.
The blocks that are sold for larger buffing wheels usually work better, also on the small Dremel tools. These tools take the power that your engine can provide, and often a little more. I have noticed that the hand tool gets quite warm, that is why I use a flexible axle with a little larger 24V motor on the other end. It is the viper motor from a truck, with the reduction gear removed.
Reply #10 - Oct 26th, 2007,
The Allied Rouge and Tripoli compound wheels do a nice job as an intermediate step. And steel wool and Ferree's scratch brush mounted on a drill also help.
But, for a final step, getting something that can handle a buffing wheel is going to be almost necessary. And, although smaller options like drills, etc. may seem cheaper at the time, using them as a buffer is going to over-work them, and they are not going to last long. So, putting together (whether it is a dedicated buffing machine, or a converted washing machine motor) some setup with a strong motor that can run for long periods of time, is going to be more satisfactory and cheaper in the long run.
Space for it is another issue. The durn things are messy. I don't have a lot of space, and after getting tired of having the debris all over the shop, I hit upon putting shower rails up (well I used plastic pipe) all around the buffer and then hung shower curtains all around the buffer. I also put a stationary 10 inch 'skirt' at the top to cover the distance between the ceiling and the shower rod. But when I'm not using the buffer, I can pull the curtains, so the space is available.