I have found that the “Sanding Wheel Brushes” from McMaster-Carr are a good alternative to the “3M Radial Bristle Discs” that I talk about in my “Power Carving Textures” blog entry.

The sanding wheel brushes are cheaper and last longer because they are tougher. They work good on raw wood. They are not as aggressive as wire wheel. They are more aggressive then 3M discs (not as soft). The bristles don’t break off like they do on the 3M discs.

I have all 3 grits available. I like the 180 grit best. The 120 grit is ok. The 320 grit is kind of to soft to be really useful.

You need to order an arbor for each brush. Www.mcmaster.com # 4875A14.

Updated 10/30/2020: I am now using “3M ROLOC Bristle Discs” to clean up my carvings on almost FLAT things. The ROLOC discs are a lot tougher than “3M Radial Bristle Discs” or “Sanding Wheel Brushes” from McMaster-Carr. You can really go at it and scrub a piece with a Roloc disc.
See my “3M Roloc Bristle Disc” blog entry.