Surface refining of metal parts

Refining of surfaces by dry vibration polishing

We design and supply vibrating drums for the superficial refining of parts through dry vibration processes. Our dry vibros offer high-quality grinding and unbeatable aesthetics, while optimizing costs and productivity in surface finishing processes such as deburring and grinding. Ask us to find out which combination of vibrating drums and abrasives is most suitable for your production needs.

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Refining of metal surfaces

Metal surface finishing refers to a finishing or polishing process performed on metal surfaces to improve their appearance, smoothness, dimensional accuracy, or corrosion resistance.

This process is common in the manufacturing industry, where the quality of metal surfaces is a crucial factor in ensuring the performance, durability, and aesthetics of products.

After the manufacturing process, it is common for metal parts to have imperfections and irregularities, such as burrs, protruding peaks, machining marks, or other types of defects that affect their final finish and therefore need to be removed or improved. to meet certain specifications or requirements for the quality and functionality of the part.

To achieve a significant improvement in the appearance and smoothness of these surfaces, the refinishing process becomes an essential stage. A proper finish can improve the functionality, performance and durability of metal parts, as well as provide a more aesthetic and professional appearance.

The refining of metallic surfaces is important in many industrial applications, such as the manufacture of parts for the automotive, aeronautical, electronic, machinery and many other industries.

Surface refining by dry vibration polishing

As we have seen, surface refining is an essential process to obtain much more uniform and soft-touch surfaces that improve the qualities and functionality of metal parts.

The process of refining a metallic surface by means of vibration is carried out together with deburring, although it can also be carried out afterwards. Once parts have been deburred to remove jagged edges or burrs, honing kicks in to polish and improve surface quality.

Dry vibration polishing offers excellent surface refinement of metal parts without the need to use abrasive liquids or solvents. This process is commonly used in the manufacturing industry to improve the quality of metal surfaces and obtain more uniform and soft-touch finishes.

Dry vibros are designed to apply a controlled vibration to the metal parts that are placed inside. The abrasive media used in this process are generally chips or irregularly shaped pieces made of low-abrasive abrasive materials such as silicon carbide, ceramic, or plastic.

The process follows the following steps:

- The metal parts to be tuned are loaded into the vibrating drum, together with the selected abrasive media. The number of parts and the relationship between these and the abrasive media depend on the size of the machine and the type of parts being processed.
- Once the parts and abrasive media are loaded into the vibro, the dry vibratory polishing process begins. The machine begins to vibrate, causing the abrasive media to contact the metal surfaces of the parts. The vibration generates an abrasive action between the media and the parts, leading to the removal of small protruding peaks, burrs, irregularities and other imperfections in the metal surface. Over time, this dry vibration polishing process achieves a gradual smoothing of the surface, improving its uniformity and texture.
- The duration and intensity of the dry vibration polishing process must be carefully controlled, as excessive vibration could excessively wear the metal surface, while insufficient polishing would not provide the desired result.
- Once the desired fineness level has been reached, the dry vibratory polishing machine is stopped. Parts are removed from the equipment and the surfaces are checked for quality to ensure that the desired results have been achieved.

This system for refining metal surfaces offers the following benefits and advantages:

- A uniform and soft-touch surface is obtained. By eliminating protruding peaks and small imperfections, a more consistent and pleasant surface is obtained in contact with the skin or with other materials.
- Tuned parts present a more polished and professional appearance. This aesthetic finish is especially important in applications where appearance is a key factor for the perception of the product.
- Precise fit, by reducing protruding peaks, fine tuning allows parts to fit better together in more complex assemblies and systems. This is essential to ensure an accurate fit and avoid tolerance issues.
- Increased corrosion resistance due to more uniform and smooth surfaces that are less susceptible to corrosion and premature wear. Honing helps remove small irregularities where corrosive agents could accumulate and cause damage.
- The use of abrasive liquids or solvents is not required, making it a cleaner and more ecological process.
- It is suitable for a wide variety of shapes and sizes of metal parts.
- It is efficient and can be automated in large productions.

Other surface refining techniques

In addition to the vibration technique mentioned above, there are other tuning techniques that are used in the manufacturing industry:

- Manual sanding: In cases where more precise tuning is required or on more delicate surfaces, manual sanding can be done using sandpaper of different grain sizes, or similar abrasive materials to remove roughness or imperfections on the surface.
- Grinding: This technique uses abrasive wheels to remove material and obtain more precise finishes on metal surfaces.
- Mechanical polishing: The use of polishing machines that apply pressure and abrasive compounds to achieve a bright, smooth finish on metal surfaces.
- Grinding: A machining process that uses abrasive wheels to achieve close dimensional tolerances and a high-quality surface finish.
- Burr removal (elimination of burrs): Removal of irregular edges or burrs that form during the manufacturing process.
- Electropolishing: An electrochemical method used to polish and improve the appearance of metal surfaces.

The refining process in the manufacturing industry is essential to obtain high-quality metal surfaces. Through the use of abrasive paste and the movement of the vibrating machine, a significant improvement in the uniformity and smoothness of the surfaces is achieved. This translates into a more attractive appearance, a better fit between parts and greater resistance to corrosion. With proper tuning, metal parts can meet the quality standards required in various industries and offer optimum performance in their respective applications.