Vibra Finish offers mass finishing for a multitude of parts

Vibra Finish advises careful selection of machine, media, and compound for mass finishing.

Finishing metal parts is the specialty of Vibra Finish, which has been satisfying industrial clients for nearly half a century now. The company has mastered all kinds of finishing techniques, including mass finishing, which is the process of finishing multiple parts at the same time: an efficient way to get a lot done.

Mass finishing – which includes deburring, polishing, smoothing, and cleaning – is done with a tumbling or vibratory machine. The Vibra Finish team assembles the parts, media, and compound together in the machine for a complete finishing process.

Choosing the right equipment

The Vibra Finish team recommends choosing the machine, media, and compound carefully before embarking on a mass-finishing task, and that depends on the nature of the parts being processed. Tumbling machines are suitable for parts with edges and rounded corners, and they excel at aggressive cutting and creating shiny polishes, with or without media. Vibratory machines are preferable for delicate parts. They shake parts and media at high speed, causing the parts and media to graze against each other, which deburrs the parts and provides smooth finishes, even on parts with holes and deep recesses. Vibratory machines use a precise, thorough cutting action for top results.

Another advantage of using vibratory machines for mass finishing is their short strokes, which allow powerful cutting action without placing any undue stress on the parts. This makes the machines suitable for large parts, such as wing spans and landing struts. Vibratory machines dislodge bores and other material from holes and recesses, finishing fragile parts without damaging them. It is simple to automate a vibratory machine for sequential finishing processes, including those with large batches.

It is also wise to choose the proper media and compound for mass finishing. For a soft, abrasive effect, natural media works better, like corn-cob or walnut-shell media, while plastic and ceramic media is better for heavy, abrasive requirements. Ceramic media is preferable for deburring applications, and plastic media suits delicate parts. Compounds come in alkaline and acidic variations, to de-grease and descale parts and increase cutting speed.

For more information, contact Vibra Finish.

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