Grinding Wheels & Accessories

Grinding wheels and discs are the consumable that does the actual work in tool sharpening, stock removal, surface grinding and weld dressing — the bonded abrasive that wears in use and gets replaced as a matter of course. AIMS Industrial stocks 120 grinding wheels and accessories across bench/pedestal wheels, toolroom precision wheels, depressed-centre angle grinder discs, cup wheels, recessed and snagging wheels, plug wheels, diamond cup wheels and mounting accessories — sized from small toolroom wheels through to 400 mm pedestal wheels. Whether you're running a workshop bench grinder, sharpening HSS tooling, dressing welds with an angle grinder or grinding concrete on a job site, the right wheel comes down to matching abrasive type, grit and bond to the material and the machine. For a deeper dive on the standards and selection criteria, see our Grinding Discs & Grinding Wheels: Types, Spec Code & Selection Guide.

Grinding Wheel & Disc Types — Quick Reference

How to Choose the Right Wheel

Four variables decide how a wheel performs: abrasive type, grit size, bond grade and wheel format. Get any one wrong and you'll get premature wear, a poor finish, or a safety issue from glazing and loading.

• Abrasive type: Aluminium oxide (including white aluminium oxide) is the standard choice for steel, HSS and general tool grinding — white aluminium oxide runs cooler and is friable, which suits precision tool and cutter grinding where heat build-up matters. Silicon carbide (green or black) is better suited to non-ferrous metals, cast iron and masonry. Zirconia and zirconia alumina blends give tougher, longer-life cutting on steel where stock removal rate matters. Ceramic abrasives push cut rate and wheel life further again on demanding steel-grinding jobs. Diamond wheels are for concrete, masonry and other non-metallic hard materials — never steel, which reacts chemically with diamond and wears it out fast.
• Grit size: Coarser grits (16–36) remove material fastest but leave a rough surface — used for snagging and heavy stock removal. Medium grits (46–80) are the general-purpose middle ground. Finer grits (100+) are for finishing and sharpening work where you're refining an edge rather than removing bulk.
• Bond grade: Hard-grade bonds hold abrasive grains longer, giving extended wheel life on softer materials that don't dull grains quickly. Soft-grade bonds release worn grains faster, continually exposing sharp new abrasive — which keeps the wheel cutting cool on harder materials that would glaze a hard-bonded wheel.
• Wheel format: Straight bench/pedestal wheels suit tool sharpening and general grinding. Depressed-centre discs mount to an angle grinder spindle for surface work and weld dressing. Cup wheels (straight, flared conical, taper) put more abrasive face-to-work for surface grinding and masonry work. Recessed and rim/back wheels give clearance for the wheel guard on bench grinders running larger diameters.

Diameter, Bore and Maximum RPM — Safety Basics

Every grinding wheel is marked with a maximum operating speed — never exceed it, and never fit a wheel whose bore doesn't match the machine's spindle or shaft without the correct bushing or flange. A wheel running faster than its rated speed can fail catastrophically, and a loose-fitting wheel can shift under load. Standard practice before mounting a new wheel:

• Check the wheel's maximum RPM against the actual no-load RPM of the grinder — not just the diameter.
• Ring-test the wheel (a light tap should give a clear ring, not a dull thud) to check for cracks before fitting.
• Fit nesting bushes or reducing bushes where the wheel bore is larger than the spindle diameter — never force a wheel onto an undersized or oversized shaft.
• Use the flanges and blotters supplied or specified for the wheel, tightened to a firm — not excessive — torque.
• Always run with the guard fitted and positioned, and wear a full face shield in addition to safety glasses.

Bonded abrasive wheels in Australia are covered by AS 1788 (Abrasive wheels) — compliance with this standard, combined with correct mounting and speed-matching, is the baseline for safe use on bench and pedestal grinders.

Matching Wheel to Grinder

Bench and pedestal grinders take cylindrical wheels mounted on a fixed shaft — typically 150–250 mm for workshop bench grinders and up to 400 mm on larger pedestal units, running at a fixed RPM set by the machine. Angle grinders take flat depressed-centre discs or cup wheels mounted to a spindle, with disc diameter (commonly 100, 115, 125 or 230 mm) matched to the grinder's guard and the grinder's rated no-load RPM — a 100 mm angle grinder and a 230 mm angle grinder are not interchangeable on disc size. Right-angle and die grinders running smaller mandrel-mounted plug wheels or mounted points suit internal and bore grinding in tighter spaces. Always match the wheel bore, guard size and maximum RPM to the specific machine — mixing components from different systems is a common and avoidable safety failure.

Storage and Shelf Life

Bonded abrasive wheels have a finite shelf life — the resin or vitrified bond can degrade over time, particularly with temperature cycling and moisture exposure, which weakens the wheel before it's ever mounted. Store wheels flat (for thin depressed-centre discs) or on edge on a proper rack (for straight/cup wheels), away from direct sunlight, damp, and temperature extremes. Rotate stock so older wheels are used first, and always ring-test a wheel that's been in storage for an extended period before fitting it — a degraded bond won't always show visible damage.

Brands Stocked at AIMS

Across the 120 products in this range, Norton is the dominant brand by a clear margin, followed by Pferd and Flexovit:

• Norton — 58 of 120 products (48%). The backbone of our bench/pedestal and toolroom range: white and grey aluminium oxide wheels, recessed and rim/back wheels, straight and taper cup wheels, snagging wheels, plug wheels for internal grinding, and a rail grinding wheel for track maintenance. If you're after a bench or pedestal grinding wheel, Norton is most of what's on the shelf.
• Pferd — 31 of 120 products (26%). German-made depressed-centre grinding discs for angle grinders across steel, stainless (inox), aluminium and cast/stone applications, plus flared conical cup wheels, Polinox unitized/convolute finishing wheels, a ceramic bench wheel, and mounting accessories like the CC-Grind clamping flange set.
• Flexovit — 19 of 120 products (16%). Depressed-centre discs for angle grinders covering general-purpose metal, masonry, aluminium, iron-free (for stainless) and zirconia formulations, plus one Type 41 cut-off wheel.
• Klingspor — 6 of 120 products (5%). Supra and Extra series grinding discs plus a diamond cup wheel for concrete grinding.
• Abbott & Ashby, Dymaxion, Linishall, Abrasiflex and Inox World round out the range with one or two specialist wheels each.

Browse by brand: Norton | Pferd | Flexovit | Klingspor.

Companion Ranges

• Bench & pedestal grinders — the machines these wheels are built to fit
• Angle grinders & accessories
• Flap discs — for finishing work where a rigid grinding wheel is too aggressive
• Cutting-off wheels — for dedicated metal-cutting discs
• All abrasives
• Safety glasses & face shields

Need help choosing? Contact our team for application-specific advice, or request a quote for volume orders.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between a grinding wheel and a cutting-off wheel?

A grinding wheel is designed to remove material from the face or side of the wheel — used for stock removal, surface grinding, and dressing welds. A cutting-off wheel is thinner and designed to cut through material with its edge. Using a cutting wheel for grinding (or vice versa) is unsafe — each is built and rated for a specific direction of load.

What type of grinding wheel do I need for my bench grinder?

A cylindrical bench/pedestal grinding wheel sized to your machine's shaft and guard — most workshop bench grinders take 150–200 mm wheels, larger pedestal units up to 400 mm. Match the wheel's bore to your shaft (using a nesting bush if needed) and its maximum RPM to your grinder's rated speed.

What abrasive should I use for stainless steel?

Look for a wheel specifically labelled for stainless or inox — these use an iron-free bond and additives that avoid embedding ferrous particles in the stainless surface, which can cause surface contamination and later rust spotting. Several Flexovit and Pferd products in this range are formulated specifically for inox/stainless work.

How do I read the size code on a grinding wheel (e.g. 125 x 6 x 22.23mm)?

The three numbers are diameter, thickness and bore, all in millimetres — so 125 x 6 x 22.23mm is a 125 mm diameter wheel, 6 mm thick, with a 22.23 mm centre bore (the standard bore size for most angle grinders).

What's the maximum RPM I should run a grinding wheel at?

Whatever is marked on the wheel's label or hub — never exceed it. Check your grinder's actual no-load RPM against the wheel's rating before fitting; running a wheel above its rated speed is a serious safety hazard that can cause the wheel to fail.

How do I choose between aluminium oxide and silicon carbide?

Aluminium oxide is the default for steel, HSS and general tool grinding. Silicon carbide suits non-ferrous metals (aluminium, brass), cast iron and masonry/stone — it cuts these materials better but tends to glaze and burn the surface on carbon and alloy steels.

What's a depressed-centre grinding wheel?

A depressed-centre (or "D/C") wheel has a recessed hub that sits the abrasive face slightly proud of the mounting flange, clearing the angle grinder's nut and guard so the flat face can be used for surface grinding and weld dressing.

Do grinding wheels expire or have a shelf life?

Yes — the bond holding the abrasive grains can degrade over time, especially with temperature swings or damp storage. Store wheels flat or on a proper rack away from moisture and direct sun, rotate older stock first, and ring-test any wheel that's been stored for a long period before fitting it.

What's a flared conical cup wheel used for?

It's a cup-shaped wheel with an angled, flared face, used on angle and right-angle grinders for surface grinding and weld dressing — the flared geometry puts more abrasive in contact with the work than a flat depressed-centre disc, and Pferd's version in this range is built for cast and stone work as well as steel.

Can I use a bench grinding wheel on an angle grinder?

No. Bench/pedestal wheels are cylindrical, bored for a fixed shaft, and rated for the fixed low RPM of a bench grinder. Angle grinders need flat depressed-centre discs or cup wheels bored and rated for spindle mounting at much higher RPM. Fitting the wrong wheel type to a machine is unsafe.

Which brands of grinding wheels does AIMS stock?

Norton is our largest range (58 of 120 products), followed by Pferd (31) and Flexovit (19), with Klingspor, Abbott & Ashby, Dymaxion, Linishall, Abrasiflex and Inox World rounding out the specialist end of the range.

What's the difference between a grinding disc and a flap disc?

A grinding disc uses a rigid bonded abrasive that cuts fast but leaves a rougher finish — better for heavy stock removal. A flap disc uses overlapping abrasive flaps that present a continuous cutting edge as they wear, grinding aggressively while leaving a smoother finish — a workshop favourite for blending and finishing welds. See our flap discs range for that side of the job.