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best scouring bands


what bands do you use  

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Over the years many of both the Abrasive Manufactureres and "Convertors" ( people who make various sized bands , caps cones etc for different applications and trades) have tried to gain a foothold in both the Shoe Manufacturing and Repair trades. Companies such as the world famous Minessota Mining & Mineral Co - 3M , Carborundum etc , etc , many with products similar to Norton Abrasives , but always trying to edge in on Price rather ythan Quality .

The "Blue" product we use today was developed several years ago by Norton to meet the varying needs of the Repair Trade , no other indusrty expects one type of abrasive to work effectivly on a multitude of materials as we do , others having a specific product for each type of Material , be it Metal , Wood , Leather , PVC , Polyurethane, Polypropolene, Synthetic Rubbers etc.

What makes Norton so good for us is the type of Grit used , the compound used to bond the Abrasive to the "carrier" , the actual carrier material itself , and the strenght of the Joint on the band , thus giving , compared with some other makes a relativly clog free smoother , quieter Band .

Supply chain problems , coupled with manufacturing plant relocations , and a premium price for a Premium Product may have left a short term gap in the market enabling others to try and gain a prescence , but for us Nozon , at present is the most suited for the many different tasks we ask it to perform on a daily basis .

I am in no way connected with Norton , but in a previous life supplying the Footwear trade for over 20 yrs ( and an HND in Material Science ) i feel more than qualified to voice an opinion , especially having supplied many different brands to both Factories and Repair Shops and listened to the comments made by many users, as well as now experiencing the different performances now myself.

Years ago Norzone always had a presence at ALL the Footwear related shows , both to promote the product , and listen to the comments and views of the end users , thanks to good old "Mr Norzon" -Terry Kingsley ( who i am sure the older members of the Forum will remember well ( he was always ready to hand out plenty of free samples! ).

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Thanks for the comment , i stood the other side of the counter for 20 yrs trying to sell you guys , or should that read us guys now , Scouring Bands , we are probably the only trade that wants one product to perform a multitude of tasks on a wide range of materials , even the Shoe manufacturers would tell you what type of material the want to to scour on each Band , enabling the correct product with the correct Grit and Carrier to be supplied . Us Shoe repairers want a "one item covers all" product , wether it be Abrasives , or opening another can of worms Adhesives ! .

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i remember terry kingsley very well. at power we used to supply a norzon band that was produced in america because it was better than the english one and a lot cheaper - something like half the price. with the current norton bands i am not sure but the backing may be different because we have started seeing (hearing) noise problems and the backing makes a big difference to this. trying different makes of band proves this. the other thing that has been noticeable is the way they are cutting the bands, not straight and as the band slows down it looks like it is moving from side to side although this isnt just norton that has this problem

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We use SAIT on our machines. Performance is fine on most materials, but, as has been said earlier, getting one band does all is difficult.

 

Certainly consistancy can be a problem, all the bands I have used over 30 years in the trade have had good and bad periods. Norzon, though expensive, do appear to be the most consistant but not always the best performing, on leather they are probably the best imho.

 

Keith

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Nice to see the input from the actual Machine Manufacturers and suppliers regarding scouring bands , after all it is there machines that actually drive the bands ! , so it is good that they are taking notice.

It is not just the variation in Materials that can affect the useable working life of any abrasive medium, but also the piece of equiptment that it is fitted to, i am sure that over the years both Peter and Kieth have witnessed some really bad practice regarding the operation of Finishers.

Several cases that i have witnessed come to mind such as "oval" shaped front wheels normally caused by a DIY repair trying to remove dirt from either the Felt or Rubber Pad , or even the operator trying to use the wrong band size , homemade wheel front running wheels " i just stuck a bit of Micro on to see if it is any better " scenarios, along with a problem that surfaced a few years ago regarding "Flat Spots" on Felt Pads caused by an inferior quality Felt being supplied to the wheel manufacturer.

Other things that often affect performance of Abrasives are both the length of the band and the speed of the rotation , thanfully many of the older machines with shorter bands and slower motors have long had there day now and have been replaced by more modern machinery.

It is important to keep any machine with a rotating Abrasive surface well maintained and to the Manufacturers specifications , both from a Health and Safety point of view and to give optimum performance of the piece of equitment and cosumables used on it , often works out far cheaper in the long run to replace wheels sooner than wearing out bands on a quicker basis.

Also used to see people trying to wash old bands to remove clogged materials , and even turning them to run the other way ! , once the cutting edge of the grit is gone you will not bring it back , and Most importantly of all bands are "directional " due to the way the adrasive Grit is "laid on " and due to the strenght of the Join.

Always happy to see other companies trying to enter the market , and we always give the products a try , perhaps one day someone will come up with something more suitable for our varying needs , some years ago i seem to remember a soild front drive wheel with a sintered abrasive face being trialed, but never caught on in the Shoe Trade.

We always seem to go back to the Norzon product , its a case of what suits your workload, and whatever you feel happiest with

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What a cracking topic, something to get your teeth into, now where did I leave MY teeth.

 

I thought Norzone were still doing the exhibitions :roll: I missed the samples of nail files for the wife. :wink:

 

Just one technical point that has been overlooked.

Particles per Inch/CM whatever is used nowadays is just as important as the other criteria, as if they are too close the band clogs on Leather.

Probably there is a need for 2 bands, I always finished scouring leather on a newish band to give better roughage. Not every has the facilities for 2 rough bands though.

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Good post Smulti!! I concur with all that you have said. Particularly the maintenance side. When you consider how little maintenance finishers, scourers and presses need, it does make you wonder why people bodge repairs :shock:

 

We do actually offer a sintered type wheel on our Flexam range, known as Widia. They are far superior to bands, and quieter, but can be a little frightening to use, thats more in the head though. It just takes a little time to get used to it!

 

Keith

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From what I can remember after seeing them at the last exihibition at Epsom they were sort of everlasting, there were different shapes and appeared to be marketed at the surgical trade.

 

I was interested enough to take a photo of the display board with them all on as I saw a big potential for them in the sports trade.

 

These wheels could be incorporated into a Sub Mini Finisher for use as a mobile repair shop or on a Market stall, dust extraction could be a portable unit.

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What about direct drive from the motor 1 wheel on each side like a grindstone.

I'm thinking of narrow wheels not the wide ones, for a Mini Type machine to take up about 2 foot cubed with another motor on top for direct drive brushes. botton moter would have a fixed cutter on the left side of the wheel for trimming.

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Yes if the motor is of the narrow type and cut outs at the side of the tinwork.

Belt drive will not stop you scouring your hand off Peter it will only stop if you get your arm jammed in the works, too much slip on the belt ind the machine will not scour effectively, stopping as soon as any decent pressureis put on the wheel.

 

Many motors used for twin grinding have scalloped ends giving access to the wheels.

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