dremel sanding buffs

[Rick P]

I always suggest 3 discs stacked as a minimum...4 to 6 is best...and run at a slow speed. I was the inventor of these discs at 3M. I hope they work well for you.

Based on rcadges advice, I ordered from Otto Frei. I received them last night and I tried them out. The work well. Pretty inexpensive around 1.10 each bristle. I did find the faster you spin them, the faster they wear out. I put two together. They did a good job.

[Rick P]

As the inventor of these discs, I appreciate your kind words. I'm glad they found a second home in woodworking.

Proctorw,

Pleased to hear that you are happy with the bristles from Otto Frei.

I would not want to be with out them.

[chebytrk]

Hey Rick.... thanks for that great invention. I sure see a big difference by running the dremel at a low speed. Really really extends the life of the bristles. Sure wish I would have known this about $200 (over several years) ago. LOL I usually use 3, but when I get my order in, think I'll try 5 or 6 stacked to see how that works out. Seems like I remember someone saying to even reverse direction with one of the disks in the stack. Does that make sense? Again... Thanks for the invention. Hope you're still getting royalties!

[CNC Carver]

to Greg:
I was the inventor of these little bristle brushes...for the 3M Company...Dremel buys them from 3M...they have a learning curve and you want to run them a slow as possible to do the job you want done. They were designed for the jewelry industry. They come in a 3/4", 1", 2" and 3" diameter. They are available through Rio Grande too and you can make your own brush. http://www.riogrande.com/Search/bristle-brushes ... many pages of brushes.

Rick got any suggestions on how to make these little things ourselfs?

[Rick P]

Sadly no royalties from my invention...3M did eliminate my job and forced me to retire early, so there's that...running one disc in reverse is one method I have not heard of...it's generally a bad idea.

Hey Rick.... thanks for that great invention. I sure see a big difference by running the dremel at a low speed. Really really extends the life of the bristles. Sure wish I would have known this about $200 (over several years) ago. LOL I usually use 3, but when I get my order in, think I'll try 5 or 6 stacked to see how that works out. Seems like I remember someone saying to even reverse direction with one of the disks in the stack. Does that make sense? Again... Thanks for the invention. Hope you're still getting royalties!

[Proctorw]

I always suggest 3 discs stacked as a minimum...4 to 6 is best...and run at a slow speed. I was the inventor of these discs at 3M. I hope they work well for you.

Thanks for the advice. I put these on the "Spindle" that I had for my dremel. Should I order one from otto that would accommodate more, or do you just wedge them in there?

Thanks,

Wayne

[rcdages]

Yes, Rick,

A big thank you for the invention.

[Rbacak]

What would be the most popular size and grit of the radial bristle brushes that everybody uses?

[mtylerfl]

I use 80-grit (yellow in color) almost exclusively now. I used to use 220-grit frequently as well, but once you develop "the feel" for using the 3M radial discs, you won't need an assortment of grit - just vary the pressure and dwell-time to control the sanding process with the coarser grit. I also find using the yellow discs makes them last longer than finer grits because it gets the job done much quicker.

If you want to be "cautious" as you develop the feel for these, I suggest learning on yellow (80), white (150) and red (220) discs. Order a greater quantity of the 80-grit because I think you'll find in a very short period of time you won't be using the finer grits much anymore, if at all.

Also, don't bother with anything finer than the 220-grit...finer grits will "burnish" the wood instead of sanding it. This results in an uneven absorption of wood stain during finishing.

[Rbacak]

I was leaning toward the 80 and 150 grits. Thanks for the info! Has anybody tried any of these?
http://www.3m.com/product/images/Bristle-Discs-300.jpg