Carlson Tool & Mfg Corp

Honing

You might have already heard about Carlson’s expertise in deep hole drilling and gundrilling, but we’re also an expert in honing processes.

• We can achieve tolerances as tight as +/- 0.0005″
• Finishes as fine as 4Ra
• Depths of up to 20 feet
• Diameters as large as 20″.

What is Honing?

The honing process is used to achieve a precision hole size and an improved surface finish. A honing machine is composed of fine grain abrasive stones which are attached to an expandable mandrel. The mandrel is then slowly rotated and oscillated inside the bore with an oil lubrication until the desired geometry is obtained. Honing is typically an operation that directly follows an ID drilling/boring process. It is intended to provide a smoother finish and it can improve the geometric form of the bore. The smaller the grain that is used, the smoother the finish will be. The improved shape of the bore after honing often results in a higher precision component.