US 5,492,498 AGranted

Multi-piece sanding wheel

AssigneeThe Visser Irrevocable Trust 1992-1

InventorsAbel R. Casillas, Jose R. Gutierrez, Frederick C. Schneider, III

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Abstract

A multi-piece sanding wheel having two sanding members mounted about peripheral portions of a disc-shaped support member that is secured to a drive means. Each sanding member includes a C-shaped backing portion with a sanding strip removably secured about its outer periphery. The sanding strip also has two end sections which are respectfully secured over the ends of the C-shape. In operation, the C-shaped backing portions are attached to the disc-shaped support member with the ends of the two C-shapes substantially adjacent to one another and preferably pinching the end sections of the sanding strips therebetween. The disc-shaped support member of the sanding wheel is separately and removably attached to the drive means wherein the sanding members can be removed from the support member without having to disconnect the support member from the drive means. In this manner, the sanding strips and backing portions can both be easily and quickly removed and replaced, all without having to disconnect the drive means.

Claims26

Dependent claims

A multi-piece sanding wheel primarily intended for sanding a workpiece, said multi-piece sanding wheel including:

at least two separable, sanding members respectively having a predetermined, fixed shape and maintaining said predetermined, fixed shape in use, support means, drive means for rotating said support means about an axis, means for removably securing said support means to said drive means, first means for removably securing a first of said at least two separable sanding members to said support means in a predetermined, fixed position relative to said support means while said support means is secured to said drive means, and second means for removably securing a second of said at least two sanding members to said support means in a predetermined, fixed position relative to said support means and to said first sanding member while said support means is secured to said drive means, said first and second securing means being operably distinct from each other wherein one of said first and second sanding members can be removed from being secured to said support means while the other of said first and second sanding members remains secured to said support means in said fixed position relative to support means, each of said sanding members having an outer, sanding surface extending partially about said axis wherein said sanding surfaces together form a substantially continuous sanding surface about said axis when said sanding members are secured to said support means, said substantially continuous sanding surface assuming a first predetermined, fixed shape when said drive means is not rotating and maintaining said first predetermined, fixed shape in normal use when said drive means is rotating said sanding wheel and said sanding wheel is abutting and sanding said workpiece.

A method for removably securing sanding members of a multi-piece sanding wheel to a drive means for rotation about an axis, said method including the steps of:

(a) providing at least two separable, sanding members, support means, and drive means for rotating said support means about an axis,
(b) securing said support means to said drive means for rotation about said axis, and thereafter
(c) separately securing each of said separable sanding members to said support means in respective predetermined, fixed positions relative to said support means and to each other while maintaining said support means of step (b) secured to said drive means, each of said separable sanding members having an outer, sanding surface extending partially about said axis wherein said sanding surfaces together form a substantially continuous sanding surface about said axis, said sanding surface having a first predetermined, fixed shape when said drive means is not rotating said support means and said sanding members secured thereto, and
(d) operating said drive means to rotate said support means and sanding members secured thereto with said sanding members abutting and sanding a workpiece and with said substantially continuous sanding surface maintaining said first predetermined, fixed shape.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.