How to Automate Deburring and Surface Finishing with Flexible Hones

Cutting, turning, and drilling metal parts creates raised areas called burrs that can affect dimensional tolerances, cause part misalignments, and limit the overall efficiency of machined components. With cross-drilled holes, burrs can also impede the flow of cooling fluids, lubricants, and gases. Deburring is important, of course, but manufacturers also want to impart an optimal surface finish. In the case of engine cylinders, for example, a plateau finish and cross-hatch pattern of oil-retaining grooves is ideal.

Parts Deburring, Surface Finishing, and Edge Blending

Recently, Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM) released a new video that shows manufacturers how to improve surface finish inside cylinders and bores, blend-in radius ports, and deburr cross-drilled holes. Just 3 minutes and 32 seconds long, this informative video explains how BRM’s Flex-Hone® tool solves a wide variety of deburring, surface finishing, and edge blending challenges in any type or size of cylinder. Examples include cross-drilled holes in 7075 aluminum bores and radial slots or ports in 6061 aluminum cylinders.

The new BRM video also shows how the Flex-Hone® reduces surface roughness and improves surface finish down to the single RA level. Self-centering, self-aligning, and self-compensating for wear, the BRM brush tool follows bore geometry and will not affect size, ovality, or concentricity. BRM’s cylinder hone is primarily a surface finishing and deburring tool, and is not designed for heavy-duty or high-precision metal removal. Always use flexible hones with a honing oil or coolant for lubrication.

Machine Cycle Times and Plateau Finishing

As the new BRM video explains, the Flex-Hone® tool is made with a stiff metal stem and flexible nylon abrasive filaments. Manufacturers who use the ball hone with CNC equipment can use a Jacobs style chuck directly on the brush tool’s stem wire. BRM cylinder hones also mount easily in lathes, mills, drill presses, and electric hand drills. By using the Flex-Hone® after machining to impart a superior surface finish, manufacturers allow equipment to run at optimum cycle times.

The surface finish that the Flex-Hone® imparts promotes lubrication and reduces friction, blow-by, and wear. By reducing surface roughness and increasing bearing area, BRM engine hones also promote the proper seating and sealing of piston rings. The surface profile that a flexible hone imparts removes harsh metal peaks, leaving a substantially flat or plateau finish with a cross-hatch pattern of grooves or valleys for oil retention.

Flexible Honing Tools for Manufacturers

BRM flexible honing tools are available in 10 different abrasive types from 20 to 800 grit, and come in diameters ranging from 4-mm to 36”. As this new video from Brush Research explains, manufacturers that use the Flex-Hone® in a machining center can remove burrs uniformly, efficiently, and cost-effectively while improving surface finish at the same time. To learn more, click here to watch.