Power Wire Wheel Brushes are a powerful tool for cleaning large, encrusted surfaces

Power Wire Wheel Brushes are a powerful tool for cleaning large, encrusted surfaces such as rust on cars and machines. They can be made of twisted, knotted, or straight wire and may be filled with steel, stainless steel, brass, bronze, nickel silver or abrasive nylon bristles.
Crimped Wire
The simplest and most reliable way to connect a wire is with a crimped connector. You simply squeeze the handle of a crimper tool designed for the gauge of wire you're working with and give the connection a tug. If done correctly, it should feel tight and secure.
These connections are gas tight to prevent corrosion and provide a much stronger bond than soldered or wrapped connections. They're also able to withstand vibrations, unlike solid or soldered wire splices.
Be sure to choose a crimper tool that's rated for the proper wire gauge, and always inspect each crimp. If you can see the copper strands protruding beyond the terminal connector, it's not a good crimp. Also, make sure the crimped connection extends at least one wire diameter beyond the crimp connector, and that the conductor crimp edge is bottomed out in the crimp barrel. For a visual verification, cut a length of heat-shrink the same color as the cable insulation and slip it over the connector before installation.
Knotted Wire
The wires extending from the center of a knotted power brush are tightly wound together into bundles that are more rigid than crimped brushes. This design supports aggressive cutting and reduces bending that may cause wire fatigue.
Unlike abrasive blasting, which can leave large particles of metal on surfaces, these knotted wire wheel brushes remove rust, paint and grime, leaving the surface clean and ready for treatment. This method of cleaning is used to prepare surfaces for refinishing, paint or powder coating.
The twist knots of a standard or twisted tuft wheel brush are twisted for two-thirds of their length before getting slightly flared. This makes them more rugged than crimped or straight designs and best for heavy-duty brushing applications. Also called cable twists, knotted wire wheels are often used for surface finishing small channels and grooves or preparing pipes prior to welding. They have longer trimming than crimped brushes to finish uneven corner and crevice surfaces.
Encapsulated Wire
Wheel brushes brush in a straight line and are mounted on and operated by power tools, such as grinders or robotic finishing equipment. They're used to deburr or polish items during surface finishing and prep them for welding or painting. They're also effective for removing paint and rust from large areas.
Encapsulated wire brush bristles are bonded in a synthetic elastomer material that progressively wears away during use, exposing only short lengths of the wires. The wires in these brushes are usually made from heat treated carbon steel or stainless steel. They're more suitable for wet environments or in applications where sparks may be a concern.
Stringer bead wheel brushes feature a narrow brush face and minimal flex that help them reach into tight spaces, like channel and grooves in pipe welds. These brushes are also used for cleaning root and hot pass welds as well as for general surface preparation and metal flaking. Encapsulated wire is available in medium and hard durometers for wheel-brush, cup-brush, and end-brush formats.
Other Wire Brushes
Unlike hand wire brushes that have limited cutting power and take too much effort to work on large or encrusted surfaces, powered cup and wheel wire brush tools can quickly cut through and scrub away flaky rust or other contaminants. Available in a variety of sizes and diameters, these brushes can be used with any power tool and are great for use on irregular surface textures or for light to medium-duty contaminant removal.
Shaped like a wheel with an open center or a solid one, these brushes feature metal wire filaments — brass, steel, or stainless — that are crimped or knotted. They're often used with handheld grinders, desk grinders, robotic finishing equipment, or mounted on a power tool’s arbor. Typical wire filament lengths for wheel brushes are six to eight inches.
Manufacturers also offer a wide range of other types of wire brushes for specific applications including tube, bottle, pipe, or spiral brushes that are shaped to reach internal surfaces or remove resin, weld splatter, or debris. Most have a maximum safe free speed rating (MSFS) and recommended surface feet per minute for different application requirements.