Are Buffing Wheels just for honing in WW?

[Doug Hobkirk]

The problem with oddball DIY bargains is eventually you actually have to actually "do" the work to make them useful. I have a buffing wheel setup that I picked up from a WW shop estate. I've never buffed. So I need to learn...

The 1/3 HP motor turns at 1725 but the pulleys double that speed. The wheels are a firm 5" x 1.5" and a medium flex 6" x .5".



Is there a web site that explains all this?
Are buffing rigs useful for anything more than honing tools and polishing metal?
Should I find a smaller pulley on the motor so the wheels turn at 1725? (there isn't room to make the pulley at the wheels larger - it's 1.4")
Are these buffing wheels too small? The smallest Grizzly has are 10" - is that indicative of a problem w/ small?
What would be the best honing (polishing?) compounds to use on the two wheels (wide firm and skinny flexible)?
What else should I be asking?

Thanks

[David DeCristoforo]

Here's a good read to get you started:

http://www.caswellplating.com/buffs/buffman.htm

But... buffing wheels are not (IMMHO) the best way to go for edge honing. You can easily end up with a very nicely polished but very dull edge due to the nature of buffing wheels to slightly round edges.

[Brian Kent]

I use the Beall Buffing system on wood all the time for projects the size of jewelry & bandsaw boxes and wooden tools. Their description on Woodcraft shows the steps & polishing compounds.

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=2036&mode=details#tabs

I love the results. I usually add one step - danish wood oil first and then wait a day or too and continue with the buffing.

[Mike Henderson]

But... buffing wheels are not (IMMHO) the best way to go for edge honing. You can easily end up with a very nicely polished but very dull edge due to the nature of buffing wheels to slightly round edges.
I agree with David. It's very easy to dub the edge on a soft buffing wheel. I think most people would do more harm than good trying to hone on a buffing wheel.

Mike

[Jim Kountz]

Most of my luthier friends use a buffing setup of some sort or another for their instrument making.

[Bob Feeser]

Yes Luthiers rely on buffing for an incredible surface. The advantage being they have a larger flat surface to work on. The problem with smaller surfaces is that the tendency to burn, or break through the finish on the edges is a high risk game. Unfortunately break throughs are not easily repairable, especially if a stain undercoat is involved. Even clear finishes present a challenge.
So what to do. Hands down the finest finishes are rubbed. Try as we may to spray a perfect final coat, or wipe it on with wipe on poly's, nothing approaches a super fine paper sand, and then polish out the sanding scratches with a buffer and compounds; finally adding waxes or a glazing material to bring up a "Polished" instead of a "Shiny" finish. There is a world of difference. One can appear artificial, and at times plasticy, and the other like a hand rubbed creation.
Approaching that realm is the popular procedure of wet sanding, or dry fine papering the last coat, and then applying wax for a smooth surface. That is fine if you are going for a satin look, but to get true gloss, you need compounds. The problem is what do you do with the nooks and crannies. My advice is to leave them alone, and only do the flat easily accessible surfaces with any sanding, or compound.
I spent a great deal of time in the automotive application of finishes, and sanding and polishing the final result was a constant. I wish I could apply the same techniques with wood, but it doesn't apply; notwithstanding, doing a dining room table, with a large top flat surface would be a good way to create an eye catching polished surface.
In automotive we had to be careful not to seal in the finish with wax until the paint got a chance to cure; either through evaporation with lacquer, or internally when it came to catalyzed urethanes. If sufficient time wasn't taken, you would wind up with a dulling surface. Since the solvents have no place to go with metal underneath, it was critical. With wood, you have the wood material itself absorbing a lot. So thus far, adding wax to the final product has not caused the same undesirable results with fresh finishes as automotive finishes do.
This is getting kind of long for a single reply. I was reading the links to supplied material enthusiastically. I am on a quest to learn the ultimate finishing solutions, and rubbing stubbornly tops my list.

[David DeCristoforo]

"The problem with smaller surfaces is that the tendency to burn, or break through the finish on the edges is a high risk game."

Not to mention the tendency buffing mitts have of snatching those small pieces out of your hands and sending them flying in unpredictable directions... And the more polished and smooth they get the harder they are to hang onto....

[Ken Fitzgerald]

David,

When I first got my Beal buffing system for use on my turnings....it would grab things and throw them into areas in my shop that I didn't know existed. Earlier this week I ordered my 2nd Beal buffing system so I'd have on I could use one wheel at a time instead of all 3 on a single shaft.

[Ray Gardiner]

David,
....it would grab things and throw them into areas in my shop that I didn't know existed.

Yep, remind me not to buff drawknives... (again)...