What Is the Difference Between Angle Ginders and Flap Discs?

 Dec 20-2017

When purchasing abrasive tools, it is easy to confuse flap discs and angle grinders. Although both of these tools can be used for grinding, they are very different. Below, we will explain their differences.

Differences between flap discs and angle grinders

Different shapes:

Angle grinders are high-speed grinding tools made of brown corundum and other abrasive materials, with resin as the binder and glass fiber mesh. They are bowl-shaped and thicker than buffing flap disc. Small angle grinders are commonly available in sizes of 100mm, 125mm, 150mm, and larger angle grinders have common sizes of 180mm, 230mm, etc.

Flap discs are made up of blades and substrates. The substrate of a flap disc can come in various materials, such as nylon, plastic, mesh, and steel paper. To meet different grinding needs, the blade can be made of various materials. The parameters of flap discs include the number of pages and mesh, and the most commonly used diameter sizes are 100mm and 125mm such as 4 inch flapper disc.

Different characteristics and uses:

Angle grinders have strong tensile strength, impact resistance, and bending resistance, high grinding efficiency and are applied to various metal and non-metal materials, such as cars, ships, machinery, construction and installation industries. They are also very convenient to install and use. Flap discs are made up of multiple pieces of mesh cloth pages on a tray, forming a fan-shaped overlapping arrangement. They have strong elasticity and high tensile bending strength and low noise during grinding. Flap discs are suitable for polishing materials such as stainless steel, metals, wood and marble, especially for grinding welds and stamped edges of metals and stainless steel materials. Zirconia steel jade material is particularly suitable for the processing of stainless steel.

Tips on using flap discs

Flap discs are used for grinding and polishing the grinding material. Therefore, it is best to use flap discs at an angle so that the contact surface of the grinding material is reduced, and the wear of the flap disc is slower. When polishing on a flat surface, the wear of the flap disc is faster. Pressure also affects the wear of the flap disc. The greater the pressure, the faster the wear of the flap disc. However, if the pressure is too small, although the wear of the flap disc can be reduced, the grinding time will increase.

It is also important to choose the right flap disc for the material to be ground. If the grinding surface is angled, a bowl-shaped flap disc can be used. If the grinding surface is flat, a flat flap disc can be used, ensuring the maximum utilization of the flap disc.

Above is the explanation of the differences between angle grinders and flap discs. When purchasing and using abrasive tools, one should choose them according to the material and grinding effect, so as to maintain good grinding efficiency and save costs!

Featured Keying Abrasive Products