Inovatec MachineryYour Best Tumble Deburring Machine Manufacturer in China

Tumble Deburring Machine – The Definitive Guide

The deburring process has become so popular nowadays, especially with the use of mass finishing deburring machines.

However, these machines can become quite challenging to operate, especially if you do not fully understand them.

In this article today, you are going to understand:

1. What a tumble finishing system is
2. How to operate a tumble deburring machine
3. The benefits of using these mass finishing equipment for the deburring process.

Keep reading this article to find out more.

1. What is a Tumble Deburring Machine?

A tumble deburring machine is a mass finishing machine that is used to remove burrs from the surfaces of parts after modification.

These machines help you to cut down finishing costs because they deburr the surfaces of your metal parts en masse.

Tumble deburring machines are categorized into two groups, that is, the vibratory finishing tumbler and the rotary parts tumbler.

To use these machines properly, you have to understand their working principles.

Compared with the centrifugal disc finishing machine, tumbler deburring machine offer gentle deburring movement.

It perfectly works for big batches of parts processing.

Now, the reason why tumble finishing systems exist is simply because of burrs.

Burrs are the raised, unwanted edges that arise after an element has undergone a given modification.

Modification of surfaces may include

These heavy burrs are removed by the deburring process using these machines.

Burrs make your workpiece look extremely ugly. They further lead to an increase in costs. How?

These burrs bring about miscalculation of dimensions, which further leads to rapid wear and tear of parts and also possible accidents.

2. How many types of tumble deburring machines are in the market?

Now, there are two major categories of tumble deburring machines present in the market today.

The first category is the vibratory tumble finishing systems, and the second one is the barrel tumble deburring equipment.

These machines work differently (as you are going to see later in this article) to achieve a similar goal.

Under the vibratory tumble deburring machines, several machines range in different sizes and purposes.

For example, there is the desktop vibratory tumble deburring equipment. It is used to finish small parts like bolts and nuts.

There is also the industrial size vibratory tumble finishing systems that finishes parts in big batches.

There are also extraordinary tumble vibratory tumble deburring machines in the market today.

These particular breeds of vibratory tumblers are used for fragile deburring elements that would otherwise break should they come into contact with each other.

You can deburr basically anything when working with these deburring tumbling machines.

These machines have entirely revolutionized surface improvement of parts.

The second type of a mass finishing deburring tumbler is the rotary deburring machine.

It has a horizontal rotary barrel – where the target product, deburring media, and deburring compounds are placed.

It then spins on predetermined speeds that are necessary for effective deburring.

3. Is it costly to acquire and run a tumble deburring machine?

Now, acquiring a tumble deburring machine today is not expensive. The reason is that they have become highly popular.

Also, running these machines will depend on how you are going to handle them.

Before starting the deburring process, you have to understand the optimum capability of your machine and the type of part you are deburring.

The reason why this fundamental knowledge matter is because it helps you become more efficient and economical.

Using the appropriate tumbling media also helps you achieve your desired output effortlessly.

These machines can further come with optional settings which help you tumble better and accurately.

A perfect example is a chemical pump that you can use to inject compounds accurately to the mix of target parts and deburring media.

Bottom line:

Running tumble deburring machines is not expensive. It all depends on how you handle these machines.

4. What is the best tumbling media for tumble deburring machines?

The popularly used parts tumbler media for deburring processes in ceramic media

Ceramic media is widely used because of its robust nature. Ceramic media is highly abrasive and can deburr just about anything.

Ceramic media also comes in different shapes and sizes.

The different shapes include the ceramic media triangles, ceramic media balls, ceramic pyramid tumbling media, etc.’

You can use aggressive ceramic tumbling media for faster cutting rate.

You might wonder to yourself:

“Why are these dynamics crucial in deburring”?

The reason is that they can deburr effectively without getting lodged in the cavities of your product.

They are also excellent deburring media because they manage to reach even the most intricate corners of your parts.

The polish exceptionally your parts’ pockets and cavities without being ground.

Apart from being robust, ceramic tumbling media gives off the shiny and sleek look of a metal surface.

You are, however, not restricted to using ceramic deburring media.

You can use other deburring media, depending on what you want to achieve.

You can decide to use plastic media, which is not as robust as ceramic tumbling media, and it will not give you a shiny look.

Plastic deburring media is ideal tumbling media for aluminum parts.

Ceramic media, being robust, can become too inflictive on softer metals. It may end up denting the surfaces of your parts.

You can use it as a polishing media, after tumbling your parts with ceramic media.

This will make your parts even cleaner but will be more costly to tumble twice.

You can also use porcelain tumbling media, which is used to brighten the surfaces of plastics.

Another rigid tumbling media is stainless steel media, which also comes in different shapes and sizes.

You may also want to carry out some light deburring on your parts. Using high-density media will help you complete the process.

All these deburring media work exceptionally well with compounds to get rid of these burrs.

You can carry out both wet and dry deburring comfortably.

5. Can I use compounds to aid in the deburring process when using a tumble deburring machine?

Yes, you can use a deburring compound for deburring your target parts.

Compounds are essential in the deburring process, as they aid the vibratory tumbler media to improve the surfaces more efficiently and effectively.

There are different compounds in the market today. Each compound has its purpose.

You can find a grinding compound, used for grinding and deburring, especially with ceramic or even synthetic media.

You can also find rust inhibitors, which prevent iron parts from rusting.

You can also have a cleaning compound for parts that may become corroded. It aids in cleaning the surface of your metal parts.

There are polishing compounds as well. These polishing compounds are dedicated to polishing surfaces of your parts.

You may also want to dry-finish your parts. There is a unique compound for that – the polishing paste.

It is used to dry polish your parts in an industrial parts tumbler.

6. Can I get custom features on my tumble deburring machine for a more efficient finish for my metal parts?

Yes, you can get additional optional features to help you deburr your parts efficiently and effectively.

These additional settings help you make your work easier. For example, you can have your machine fitted with a chemical pump.

This pump helps you to inject compounds and other liquid deburring agents during the deburring process.

You can also have your vibratory tumbling media fitted with an acoustic sound cover.

The acoustic sound cover will primarily help you reduce noise.

It will also help you keep liquids in the polishing tumbler during the deburring process.

You can also have different separation of media and parts platforms. You can decide to use either:

1. A manual separation handle
2. Reverse separation and
3. Pneumatic separation methods

All these can be added to help you separate tumbling media from your parts.

You can also have another cool feature – a variable speed converter that controls the frequency of vibrations in your metal polishing tumbler machine.

With this variable-speed converter, you can comfortably make your machine tumble according to your desires.

7. How does a rotary tumble deburring machine work?

Now, a typical rotary tumble deburring machine has a horizontal barrel.

This barrel is where the deburring process takes place. It is where the target parts, media, and compounds are placed.

The machine rotates its barrel to create the tumbling effect, which deburrs your target parts.

Now, the machine does not have a round barrel. Its barrel is either six-sided or eight-sided.

The reason behind the unique design is to enhance the tumbling effect.

It enhances the tumbling effect by ensuring that these parts do not just slide at the bottom of the barrel.

This means that deburring will be carried out effectively.

As for the deburring compound, it may be added to enhance the deburring process too.

It should be added in just the right quantity because if you overfill the barrel, the compound will spill out when the barrel rotates.

You can also use a polishing compound for the same process.

You can complete the tumbling process by setting the optimum speed at which the barrel should spin.

Rotary tumbling machines take longer to deburr your parts as compared to vibratory finishing systems.

Also, there is a lot of part-to-part contacts, which is quite inconveniencing, especially for fragile parts.

8. How does a vibratory tumble deburring machine work?

A vibratory tumbler bowl works by vigorously shaking its bowl to create a tumbling effect on your parts.

It uses friction and abrasive media to deburr effectively. Its tumbling bowl also has a unique design.

The bowl is curved downwards to increase pressure on the parts at the bottom of the bowl.

The pressure further enhances the tumbling effect by generating friction when the bowl starts shaking.

You can have an optional custom lid on your vibratory deburring machine, which will help you reduce the tumbling noise.

The lid further helps you to curb spillage of water and compounds when the machine is running.

The vibratory finisher machine is controlled by setting the recommended working parameters through its control console.

You can set the duration in which the machine is supposed to deburr your target parts, and also, you can set the vibrating speed.

The vibratory polisher machine can carry out both wet and dry deburring processes.

Adding excessive amounts of your deburring compound does not improve the deburring process. Instead, it makes the process uneconomical.

If you add it in excess, it will spill out when the process is in play.

The vibratory deburring machine is way noisier than the rotary deburring machine.

However, with the vibratory deburring machine, processes are completed faster than using barrel tumblers.

Also, parts do not tumble on each other, which reduces denting and improves the output.

The vigorous shaking and use of appropriate media allow you to deburr even the most intricate parts of your target pieces.

9. Is it safe to deburr fragile parts using a vibratory finishing machine?

Yes, it is indeed safe to deburr delicate parts using a vibratory machine.

Today, you can deburr just about anything when using the vibratory finishing equipment.

There is a dedicated vibratory machine for fragile parts that has a long tube, which is divided into subsections.

These divisions are what prevent part-to-part contact, which is essential during the process.

The vibratory tumbler is rectangular. The machine also polishes your fragile parts exceptionally well.

The major difference between this kind of vibratory tumbler and the other vibratory tumblers is its shape and working design.

Otherwise, it uses the same deburring principles as other vibratory tumblers.

10.  What advantages are there for using a vibratory finishing machine over a rotary finishing machine?

Firstly, the vibratory tumbler machine finishes these processes quickly than the industrial rotary tumbler machine.

When tumbling using the vibratory tumbler, you can spend only some several hours.

As for the rotary finishing equipment, you can take up to several days to complete the process.

The second advantage of using a vibratory machine over a rotary tumbler is that there is limited part-to-part contact.

The rotary tumbler machine spins its barrel, and parts tumble over each other.

This may cause denting on the target parts’ surfaces. The industrial vibratory tumbler maintains the shapes of your pieces.

The upright design of the machine reduces leaks and also improves inspection of parts during the deburring process.

The major downside of the industrial vibratory tumbler is the cost. It is more expensive than a rotary tumbler.

It is also quite complicated to use than the large rotary tumblers.

It is, however, the ideal machine to use for deburring. It can finish even the most extended parts and the fragile ones too.