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Ceramic Tumbling Media
- Description
- Features
- Applications
Ceramic tumbling media is available in many sizes, shapes, and angles, allowing you to tune the cutting action from light refinement to aggressive stock removal. As a bonded, formulated media, it typically offers strong cutting performance and long service life.
Different formulations are used for different applications, but brown corundum (aluminum oxide) is one of the most common abrasives in ceramic media. Media performance also depends on factors such as abrasive grit size, media shape and size, and the finishing compound used.
| Type | Abrasive Power | Specific Gravity |
|---|---|---|
| FP | Fine Polishing | 2.7 |
| P | Polishing | 2.6 |
| LC | Light Cutting | 2.44 |
| MC | Middle Cutting | 2.5 |
| FC | Fast Cutting | 2.53 |
| VFC | Very Fast Cutting | 2.58 |
| Ball | SCT | ACT | SCC | ACC | SCTS | ACTS | SCE | ACE | CONE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2×2 | 2×2 | 3×6 | 3×6 | 4×4 | 4×4 | 8x3x8 | 8x3x8 | 15 |
| 2 | 4×4 | 4×4 | 5×10 | 5×10 | 6×6 | 6×6 | 10x5x10 | 10x5x10 | 20 |
| 3 | 6×6 | 6×6 | 7×13 | 7×13 | 6×13 | 6×13 | 15x7x15 | 15x7x15 | 25 |
| 4 | 4×8 | 4×8 | 12×12 | 12×12 | 7×10 | 7×10 | 25x15x25 | 25x15x25 | 30 |
| 5 | 8×8 | 8×8 | 12×25 | 12×25 | 16×6 | 16×6 | 35 | ||
| 6 | 10×10 | 10×10 | 20×20 | 20×20 | 22×8 | 22×8 | |||
| 8 | 15×15 | 15×15 | 25×25 | 25×25 | 22×22 | 22×22 | |||
| 10 | 20×20 | 20×20 | 28×10 | 28×10 | |||||
| 15 | 25×25 | 25×25 | 35×16 | 35×16 | |||||
| 16 | 30×30 | 30×30 | |||||||
| 20 | 35×35 | 35×35 | |||||||
| 25 | 40×40 | 40×40 |
Ceramic media is available in different cutting grades—fast cut, medium cut, light cut, and slow/non-cut—selected based on the application. Actual performance also depends on the finishing equipment and process settings.
In general:
Coarser grit / larger grain delivers faster cutting, but typically leaves a rougher, duller surface.
Finer grit cuts more gently and produces a smoother finish with a lower Ra value.
Ceramic Media for Tumbling:
- Long Life
- Fast Cutting
- Heavier Than Most Tumbling Media
- Wide Selection of Size and Shape
- Polishing to Aggressive Deburring
- Shorter Process Times
- Steel and Titanium Deburring
- Rust Removal on Iron Parts
- Create a Radius
- Edge Rounding
- Remove Machining Marks
- Removing Slag and Grease on Laser Cutting Parts
- 3D printed parts post-processing
- Plastic parts deflashing
- Porcelain tumbling media use for polishing
- Ceramic tumbling media for brass parts polishing
- Work as Rust removal media
Related Products
Ceramic Tumbling Media — the general-purpose workhorse for deburring, edge radiusing and surface preparation across metals and plastics
Ceramic tumbling media is the most widely used mass finishing media in manufacturing. Its aluminium oxide abrasive matrix delivers fast, consistent material removal across a broad range of part materials and surface conditions — from light edge rounding on machined aluminium to aggressive rust removal on iron castings. Available in a wide selection of shapes, sizes and cutting grades, ceramic media can be configured for applications from fine polishing to aggressive stock removal, and it performs reliably in vibratory finishing machines, centrifugal disc machines and centrifugal barrel machines.
Cutting grade is selected based on the application: fast-cut grades with coarser abrasive grit for heavy deburring and scale removal; medium-cut for general deburring and surface smoothing; light-cut and non-cut grades for pre-plate preparation and final surface refinement. The same base media type covers the full range, making ceramic the standard first choice whenever a finishing application is being established for the first time.
- Brown aluminium oxide abrasive — fast cutting, consistent material removal
- Multiple cutting grades — fast-cut, medium-cut, light-cut, non-cut / polishing
- Wide shape range — triangle, cylinder, cone, ellipse, star, wedge, pyramid, ball and more
- Long service life — harder and more durable than plastic media
- Works on all metals and rigid plastics — steel, stainless, aluminium, brass, titanium and more
- Compatible with all standard mass finishing machines
At a glance
| Media type | Bonded ceramic with aluminium oxide (brown corundum) abrasive |
| Cutting grades | Fast-cut / medium-cut / light-cut / non-cut (polishing) |
| Shapes | Angle-cut triangle, cylinder, cone, ellipse, star, wedge, pyramid, ball, tristar and more |
| Part materials | Steel, stainless steel, aluminium, brass, titanium, cast iron, rigid plastics |
| Machines | Vibratory, centrifugal disc, centrifugal barrel |
| Process type | Wet finishing (with liquid compound) |
Selecting cutting grade and grit size
Ceramic media performance is determined by two parameters: abrasive grit size (coarser for faster cut, finer for smoother surface) and cutting grade (the proportion and bond of abrasive in the matrix). These determine how aggressively material is removed and what Ra the surface reaches after the cycle.
| Grade | Cutting action | Surface result | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fast-cut | Aggressive | Rougher (higher Ra) | Heavy deburring, rust removal, scale removal, laser cut part cleaning |
| Medium-cut | Moderate | Medium smooth | General deburring, edge radiusing, machining mark removal |
| Light-cut | Gentle | Smooth (lower Ra) | Pre-plate smoothing, light deburring on soft metals |
| Non-cut / polishing | Minimal / burnishing | Fine, semi-bright | Final polish stage, surface brightening before plate or inspection |
Ceramic media shape selection
Shape determines how media contacts part geometry. The guiding principle: choose a shape that can reach the surfaces needing finishing without lodging in holes, slots or recesses. Angle-cut variants (e.g., angle-cut triangle, angle-cut cylinder) provide better access to recesses than straight-cut equivalents.
| Shape | Best suited for |
|---|---|
| Angle-cut triangle | General-purpose; excellent coverage on varied part geometries |
| Cylinder (straight/angle-cut) | Parts with slots; stable tumbling behaviour in vibratory machines |
| Cone | Parts with holes and recesses; point contact for edge radiusing |
| Tristar | Complex internal geometry; three-lobe form resists lodging |
| Ellipse / ball | Parts where rolling contact without edge impact is preferred |
| Star / wedge | Aggressive deburring with high surface contact area |
| Pyramid | Similar to cone; good penetration into recesses with stable seating |
Typical applications
| Application | Recommended grade |
|---|---|
| Steel and titanium deburring | Fast-cut or medium-cut |
| Rust and scale removal on iron/cast iron | Fast-cut |
| Edge radiusing and rounding | Medium-cut (shape: cone or triangle) |
| Machining mark removal | Medium-cut |
| Laser cut part cleaning (slag, grease) | Fast-cut |
| 3D printed parts post-processing | Medium-cut (depending on material) |
| Plastic parts deflashing | Light-cut |
| Brass parts pre-plate preparation | Light-cut or non-cut (followed by plastic or steel burnish) |
Why Inovatec — a finishing partner, not just a media supplier
| 4 Cutting grades available Fast-cut to non-cut — one media type covers the full finishing range. | Free Sample available Request a ceramic media sample to trial on your parts before ordering. | 12+ Shapes in range Angle-cut triangle, cylinder, cone, ellipse, star, wedge, pyramid, ball, tristar and more. |
| 60+ Countries served Factory-direct supply with export documentation as standard. | 24h Reply on inquiries Grade selection, shape advice, compound pairing — fast technical answers. | Machine & media from one supplier Vibratory, centrifugal disc and barrel machines plus matched ceramic media — one source. |
| Need help selecting the right ceramic media for your application? Tell us your part material, current surface condition, target Ra and machine type. We reply within 24 hours with a grade and shape recommendation, plus a free sample offer. |