Flap wheel

Abstract

Abrasive particles are adhered to a first surface of a backing member to define an abrasive-coated flap. The abrasive particles are removed from support portions of the flaps in a pack but only substantially at the positions on the flaps where the flaps in the pack are tightly compressed and supported by retaining members. In addition to being compressed at the support positions, the flaps are compressed at positions interior to the support positions but to a lesser degree than at the support portions because the abrasive material remains on the interior portions of the flaps. An adhesive may be applied to the flaps at the support positions and the interior positions to retain the flaps in fixed position relative to one another. Abrasive strips having compressible properties (e.g. 'Scotch Brite' material manufactured by 3M) may be disposed between adjacent abrasive-coated flaps. In some applications, the abrasive particles may be removed from the support portions and the interior portions of some of the abrasive-coated flaps in a pack to assure that an optimum number of flaps may be provided in each pack while still allowing the packs to be disposed in an annular array in a wheel without physical interference between adjacent packs. Wheels constructed from the packs described above are advantageous in that they have a considerably greater number of flaps than the corresponding wheels of the prior art. They are stronger in construction and safer in operation than the corresponding wheels of the prior art.