# belt sander



## Reg (May 26, 2014)

Can anyone tell me the correct surface speed per minute when sanding metal
Reg


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## Terrywerm (May 26, 2014)

First, welcome to H-M! You should be able to find answers to just about any question you may have here. Feel free to post about your projects too!

I cannot say that there is a prescribed speed for sanding or any other abrasive operation. Many small belt sanders have a 4" drive wheel mounted on a 1725 RPM motor, giving a speed of 1805 SFM.  Naturally, the faster the speed, the faster the removal of material will take place, and the more you may create sparks when sanding ferrous materials. 

I have always been of the belief that faster is better when it comes to grinding or sanding. Slow speeds just create a lot of heat without removing much material. I believe faster speeds will also tend to give you a better finish than slower speeds, especially if a little finesse is used. 

Many of the high end belt sanders run belt speeds up around 3000 SFM, and some even run 4500.

I guess the choice is yours.


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## JimDawson (May 26, 2014)

I don't know that there is a correct SFM for sanding metal.  In a quick internet search I did find this on grinding.  http://www.abrasiveengineering.com/speeds.htm

I would assume that this would apply to sanding also, since the material removal method is the same.

Hope this helps.


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## melsdad (May 30, 2014)

A quality heavy grit belt like the Norton SG Blaze R980P in say 36 grit likes speed, and they like to eat. There are so many variables involved that to state "this speed is what you want" is difficult. Depends on what material you are grinding, what contact wheel your using. etc. etc. The finer the grit belt the slower you need to run to keep from burning your material. That is why I built my own 3 H.P. 2"x72" machine that is variable speed and runs from 0-5200 S.F.M.


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