I work at the factory that actually makes the pre-sized sanding belts and disks. I've been doing it for over 25 years professionally, so it's fascinating to see how it can be done manually on an individual basis. I can't disclose our processes for legal reasons since I like my job. But just a couple of very general points for anyone doing this and having issues with their joint not holding: The shinier and slicker the backing, the harder it is to get your joint to hold. If you score "rough up" the backing before joining your belt ends, you'll get a stronger joint. Adhesive, heat, and pressure will also all effect how well your belt stays together during use. If you're using tape or a patch that has threads, cut your joint angle to more closely match the bias of your patch. A joint is much stronger the less shear it is subjected to.
@@SoatMon You are awesome..... What ever made you think that a blue-jean patch would be strong enough?. Been a carpenter for over 40 years but you prove there is always something NEW...Thank you for the time you have taken to help us slow learners...
Don't know if you're still answering questions here. By less shear do you mean that the threads should align (parallel and perpendicular) with the direction of movement, or with the angle of the splice?
While still hot, follow up immediately with a wallpaper seam roller to give added bonding strength, just letting it sit while cooling allows for some springback or separation of the two surfaces.
Linnen-backed is the best for a belt.. (paper is so brittle) Grit 36 is really (to) coarse, grit 60 and up will be better to cut and join. Knee patches is a nice find!! TY! (I think it's best to cut with overlapping belt, that way it will always line-up perfect)
thanks, to be honest your method seems best, other methods always leave a noticeable bump (even OEM/store bought belts), but these iron on patches are not available here (Amazon doesn't ship to my country) so i gotta find something else to use, one of the comments below looked promising though, using contact cement and some old thrift store jeans, i don't supposed duct tape or gaffe tape would work, right ? i guess i gotta try it, but i wanted to see if i can first make my own custom sanding belts since i'd like to build a custom belt sander, something like a 4x72 or 4x96 and those kinda belt are super rare and crazy expensive because of it, but 4" sanding paper is like the default size available anywhere.
The first one I made years ago... I used a piece I cut from some old blue jeans and yellow carpenters glue, it worked just fine. I switched to the iron on patch because it's quicker and easier.
Funny, I made a few belts using hot glue, process: cut the sandpaper to length Remove 1” of abrasive from one end using a utility knife Let the hot glue gun heat up really well, mine takes about 10 minutes Lay down hot glue on one end where you scratched the abrasive using a utility knife Cover the hot glue bead with the other end ensuring straightness Sandwich the joint between 2 flat pieces of wood, ideally steel and apply pressure with a clamp or vise grip pliers until the glue cools This works well, except that the joint is thicker than the rest of the belt and somewhat flexible, but it holds very well! Alternative: Repeat the process above, replace hot glue with double sided tape that’s thin, before applying pressure, use a lighter to apply heat to the underside of the belt, then apply pressure; this works without heat, tho it can fail
I make mine using Evostik contact adhesive - using strips of denim as a backing material. I found that clamping the joint between 2 pieces of wood tightly and leaving for 3 days gave best results
Hey mate I have followed your instructions but I find the course belts work for a while but have a thump every time the join comes onto the platen and than fail the finer belts fail very quickly what am I doing wrong any help would be great
Tried it lasted only a few minutes the friction between the belt and the metal backing exceeds the temperature of the patch. Catastrophic Failure 101 !!!!! 😢
Thanks so much for this! I have a number of heavy duty sanding belts from a flooring mill sander, 5’ wide by 8’ long. I’ll have sanding belts for life!
Thank for the video tutorial. I made a few belts using your method. So far they have held up. I do wood work and metal work, which includes knives. Thank you again.
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I wonder if it failed because of the small diameter wheels? Maybe there is too much flexing required when going around the tight turns on the race track. Regardless, thanks for sharing another useful tip.
I love my little 1/2” handheld finger sander. I’d like to make some myself for it... I wonder how the smaller belts would do if the paper was impregnated with an acrylic glue / water (or silicone / mineral spirits) mix? Would it be enough to keep the paper together while remaining flexible? Just a thought.
I was wondering about cutting them down. I have a ton of 6x48 belts and drum sander strips. I'd like to make some for my 2 inch sander. I think I'll be giving this a try. Thanks for sharing this tip!.
This is an outstanding idea. It is always impressive to see how you come up with uses for things meant for something else. Trouser patches to make sanding belts...who would of thought of that. And it is nice to hear they don't thump. Will be making my own belt not too. Have a good weekend and be safe. Glenn
it's a bad quality belt. your idea is marvelous. I am thinking of trying this for my mini diy drill press because every rubber belt I put it snapped after heating up. gonna make sure that fabric is cloth though not paper
Thank you for your input, I agree the belts are poor quality. That explains why I got them so cheap. Good luck with your drill press, I would be interested in your results if you get a chance to try it.
It may have something to do with the patch material being at 90 degrees to the belt instead of 45 degrees, which might cause the belt to bend back and forth at the point of failure when it's coming around a pulley. I would suggest cutting the belt and the patch at a longer angle like 30 degrees to see if it lets the belt flex more around the pulleys instead of bending. Just a hypothesis, I think it's worth considering, with your setup it would be easy to test, hope it works! I have some unused old 4" X 72" belts that the seams fail immediately on start up with no damage to the belts. I've saved them because I think the seams adhesion failed due to old age and will try your knee patch method. Thank you very much!
