Hook & Loop Sandpaper Discs

What is a Hook and Loop Sanding Disc?

Also known as hook and loop sandpaper, this is a type of sanding disc made for easy attachment and removal to your power tools like an orbital sander, for example.  One side has an abrasive material attached to it while the reverse has a hook and loop backing (much like standard Velcro) to attach to your orbital sander or disc sander.

How do you Install Hook and Loop Sanding Discs?

These sanding discs were made for the ultimate convenience.  Installing just requires you to have a backing pad connected to your sander that allows you to attach hook and loop discs simply by pressing them on and peeling them off.  The hook and loop system is strong enough to hold them in place while you are working until you need to change discs by hand.

If you do not already have a back-up pad, Empire Abrasives has a variety of these backing pads available in different sizes.

Why are there Holes in Sanding Discs?

You may have noticed that some, but not all sanding discs will have holes circling around the center of the disc.  These holes help to pull dust away from the sandpaper’s surface so it doesn’t become clogged with sanding debris.  Without the holes, the dust would gunk up on the sandpaper surface which would create a layer between what you are sanding and the abrasives, causing it to not effectively work.

Hook and Loop Discs for Metal

If you need a hook & loop disc to sand down metal surfaces, make sure the abrasive is made for that purpose.  You’ll want to look for discs that have a hard enough abrasive material such as aluminum oxide which is capable of sanding a range of ferrous and non-ferrous metals.

Is Hook and Loop the same thing as Velcro?

Kind of, yes.  The hook and loop system uses two different surfaces that connect to each other.  One side has the hooks and the other has the loops.  When pressed together, the hooks temporarily grab the loops until they are forced apart.  That is essentially what Velcro is, except they are a branded version of hook & loop.  They did such a good job branding this system that most people just refer to hook and loop as Velcro.  It is similar to how people call adhesive bandages “Band-Aids” and “Xeroxing” is used instead of saying making photocopies of paper.

These also go by other names, such as hook and loop fasteners, hook and pile fasteners, and touch fasteners.