I use my bench grinder with a rotary wire wheel to clean parts all the time. It removes rust from parts and dirt from threads on bolts, it is great. I learned today that you don't use it to clean rubber parts. Seems the rotating wire wheel grabs the part and it goes flying across the shop. It doesn't hurt the part, but it grabs it everytime. Seems the wire wheel gets traction on the rubber. Guess I will have to buy a blasting cabinet to clean rubber parts. Just thought I would share.
There are a couple of good chemical cleaners intended for use with rubber, depending on what you are trying to do. But yeah, the wire wheels don't do well there... -Bob C.
I've had some of the same experiences with buffing stainless parts on a cloth wheel mounted on a bench grinder. They also have the tendency to go flying across the shop but in one case I had one grab a headlight retainer ring and come around and hit me in my lower lip. OOOOUCH!!!!! Fortunately the rounded edge hit me but I had a grape koolaid lip for about two weeks. After that I always wear a face shield when doing those things. BTW, beadblasting rubber parts cleans them up real nice and doesn't hurt the rubber.
The wire wheel does a good job of grabbing ANY part and ripping it out of your hands, and sending it flying across the garage....usually somewhere you can't find it.
Set up the buffer/grinder in the garage doorway aimed at the trees across the driveway. I've got 3 near misses on the band of squirrels that have been terrorizing the neighborhood....got 'em scared when they see stainless steel come out!
:laugh: :laugh: That's great!! Another thing I have learned is to wear leather gloves while buffing. No need to ask how I learned that.
No garage is complete without a bench grinder with a wire wheel on one side. :TU: They say John Dillinger was unsuccessful in obliterating the fingerprints from his fingertips using acid. He should have tried a wire wheel.
