finishing 304 stainless steel block

[george0504]

I need to establish an easier & cheaper way of finishing some 304 stainless steel blocks after milling. The milled finish is undesirable and I have opted for a 2nd operation of grinding (for aesthetics only, not precision). The grinding offers advantages in that it looks decent i.e. no machine witness marks, and it also leaves a finish that is not prone to leaving visible fingerprints during handling. The downside is that it is carried out on a different machine at a different location and is expensive.

Is there a way that a similar finish can be achieved in the milling machine to avoid resetting as a result of changing machines. This is purely aesthetics. I have tried bead blasting but the finish is prone to fingerprinting.

Look forward to reading any suggestions

george0504

[sti2011]

Are you just trying to clean them up prior to shipping or are you looking for something for the ultimate end use?

[sti2011]

Just re-read your post and it sounds like possibly "time saving" could work for you. Basically it is a fancy automated belt sander. Kind of overly simplified, but it will put a grain on the part. I have one that will accept parts max 10." wide by 6." min long. The time saved finish does look like it was ground.
As far as in the machine type finishing contact Osborn corp or BRM corp they have alot of options for in machine finishing with brushes.

[JWB_Machining]

If you're trying to not remove it from your table and still "finish the part" I've got an idea. i've never done this and it might be an awful Idea but you could try using a Wire Brush or sanding disk that's mean for a drill and try loading that in the spindle and running it across the part. I know we've gor a Drill Chuck with a Cat-40 Taper here so if you've got sometihng like that it's worth a shot. I've always wanted to try that but never had a reason.

Even if you loaded up a grinding bit for a dremel or a larger tool into your spindle it might work. Granted depending on the size of your part and how long those lil Dremel bits last it might end up being even more expensive.