belt sander, for tube polishing/prep?

dnsfailure

dnsfailure

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I have noticed that when I'm using tube that has been sitting around for a while and it has some surface rust on it, it sticks in my aluminum bender dies a bit more than normal (Rogue fab bender), and more importantly I've noticed the rollers are starting to show some minor galling. :emb:

I was hoping there would be a cordless version of these tools, but after a quick search it seems like most of them are corded, I'd be OK with a corded.

Are the cheap ones just fine for prepping tube? I assume a 3m/scotch brite or similar belt would be what I would need for surface rust, rather than a sanding/grinding belt? I'm not actually looking to polish them, just remove the rust down to bare metal more-or-less.

Anyone use one of these? they work well? Trying to save some time and get better results than using 3m prep pad sheets and WD40 by hand, I hate cleaning up old tubes, which is why I've just been sending them in the bender without much prep work, but I think I need to stop doing that before I damage the die rollers anymore.

Any brand recomendations? both for the grinder, and belts? Vevor ok for this? This would be for a garage fab guy prepping a few tubes every month, not someone prepping 60 tubes a day.


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Shorter pieces of tube (5' or less) I can chuck in the lathe and clean up by simply running the lathe and holding the prep pad sheets against it as it spins, I have over 2" through bore, but the lathe itself isn't very long, so even flipping the tube 1/2 way through I can only clean up about 5' of tube comfortably/safely.

I do have a rotating welding positioner that I could setup for long pieces of tube, and a support on the end, have it turn the tube as fast as it will go (still pretty slow) and just run the belt tool down the length a few times, in my head this would work really well.
 
 
dnsfailure said:
oh, I found these that apparently go onto an angle grinder (could use it on an M18!) Shoot, for $43 I think I might just buy it and give it a try.

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I have a version like that on an HF grinder, so I don’t have to swap it out.
Works great. Sounds like the bearings are about to eject, but it keeps going.
 
I couldn't get mine to fit on a M18.
Would need to machine an adapter I guess.
Fits on a cheap corded grinder.
 
thanks fellas! I'll order one and see how it goes :)
 
AKnate said:
I couldn't get mine to fit on a M18.
Would need to machine an adapter I guess.
Fits on a cheap corded grinder.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the heads up! I can make an adapter, but I'll put it onto one of my corded grinders to see if I like it enough to machine an adapter for the M18.
 
dnsfailure said:
oh, I found these that apparently go onto an angle grinder (could use it on an M18!) Shoot, for $43 I think I might just buy it and give it a try.
Click to expand...

I was going to say that all the ones I have seen have been basic grinder mounted, so you should be able to do something to adapt it to a cordless one.

We have one at the shop - no idea what brand, not name brand. It works, but is a bit awkward to use. Our issue was more in trying to polish up tube that had been bent, so it would probably work better for your use - just a straight tube.

Awhile back I saw a video of someone inverting a sanding belt so the grit was on the inside and running it off of something homebrew to clean up tube. Of course I could never find it again.

Searching for it, I did find this:


That led to this:
 
Wouldn't take
dnsfailure said:
Thanks for the heads up! I can make an adapter, but I'll put it onto one of my corded grinders to see if I like it enough to machine an adapter for the M18.
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If I remember right the part that clamps wasn't that thick on the M18, so the sander barely would attach and it put the drive pulley not inline.
It fit perfect with a $29.99 120v grinder I had kicking around, likely designed for that style.

Having the higher rpms on the 120v would be a benefit as well.
If I'm doing a bunch of grinding, I don't bother with the M18 ones. The 120v are something around 2000-3000 rpm faster.
 
PAToyota said:
I was going to say that all the ones I have seen have been basic grinder mounted, so you should be able to do something to adapt it to a cordless one.

We have one at the shop - no idea what brand, not name brand. It works, but is a bit awkward to use. Our issue was more in trying to polish up tube that had been bent, so it would probably work better for your use - just a straight tube.

Awhile back I saw a video of someone inverting a sanding belt so the grit was on the inside and running it off of something homebrew to clean up tube. Of course I could never find it again.

Searching for it, I did find this:


That led to this:
Click to expand...

That new pipe is way nicer than the **** I'm cleaning.

Last use was 36 or 40 grit to clean old drill stem that's probably been sitting outside since the 80s 🤣

It'd feel like a fever dream if I was building something with not rusted or greasy, or 15 coats of paint steel. Even new steel is rusty as it's normally stored outside.
 
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I use them regularly for finishing out stainless parts, and they work great for removing mild steel plate mill scale.
I've never tried them on tube, though.
They do come in different grits, maybe your polishing were fine.
 
I use a scotch brite belt and then clamp the grinder in the vice and just spin the tube.

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My belt attachment appears to bolt to most 4 bolt grinder head patterns, so could be converted to a cordless setup. But I just leave it on the corded grinder since I don't use it that much, generally it's faster for me to just flappy disk the part of the tube being welded unless I want to clean up a long section of tubing.

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Yeah, I'm wanting to get basically the entire length of the tube, or at the very least the parts that will be touching the rollers and die in the bender. Just for the tubes that have surface rust on them. But yeah hitting just the ends before welding would probably also work better than me doing it by hand with a scotch brite pad.
 
subybaja said:
How about scotchbrite disks? Not gonna help Nate, but they work well on stuff that didn't come from the ***anic.
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I use scotchbrite wheels everyday, been a gamechanger for me:smokin:. Both on new tube and old ****. Die grinders, 4.5" and now 7" grinders.

Corners/edges eat them up. Also a big difference between brands and even different styles of them. I tried going cheap to start, and it was a waste of time/money. Pretty much just order the 3m stuff anymore. They last a while if you aren't a meathead

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got one of those cheap tube prep things that attaches to a grinder. I'll say this... the design overall works decently. But the details are garbage. They are using rivnuts as spacers? :lmao:. and that roll pin as a stop is not going to hold up. ****ing hell :lmao: :lmao:

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I purchased the Vevor version. Works decent. For longer sections of tube, I stick them in the receiver hitch on my truck. Work a section, rotate, repeat.
 
I have this one. Seems to work fine. I had a 20' stick of 1.5" that got left outside for a few years and it cleaned it up quicker than I'd have expected.

The belts it came with were garbage and shredded almost immediately. The other no name belts I bought seem to hold up better though.




Sackorange 18 Pack 1-1/2 x 30 Inch Sanding Belts for Pipe Tube Polisher Sander- 3 Each of 60 80 120 150 240 400 Grit Aluminum Oxide Sander Belts (1-1/2" x 30"): Amazon.com: Tools & Home Improvement

Sackorange 18 Pack 1-1/2 x 30 Inch Sanding Belts for Pipe Tube Polisher Sander- 3 Each of 60 80 120 150 240 400 Grit Aluminum Oxide Sander Belts (1-1/2" x 30"): Amazon.com: Tools & Home Improvement
a.co
 
I have the steel frame version as you. The rivnuts are laughable. I should’ve spent a few more bucks for the Bluerock brand that has a cast aluminum frame. Storage was always a concern before purchasing this tool. I have a couple of wall/shelf ideas but nothing has materialized yet.
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WiscoF100 said:
I have the steel frame version as you. The rivnuts are laughable. I should’ve spent a few more bucks for the Bluerock brand that has a cast aluminum frame. Storage was always a concern before purchasing this tool. I have a couple of wall/shelf ideas but nothing has materialized yet.
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If you figure out a storage idea that works well, let me know! I'd love to keep a grinder dedicated to the belt setup, but I've come across the same problem, how to store it. I have limited space :emb:

here's how I store my air tools, this belt monstrosity will take up alot of space :lmao:

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Hang mine by the handle on the grinder rack.
I’ll get a pic next time I’m out there.
 
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