tricks with reamers

[jabezkin]

Don't know if this is common knowledge or not.

Need a .503 reamed hole and have a .500 reamer? Take a peice of .003 shimstock about .500 wide and bend it along the side and over the end of the reamer.

Lots of oil and you have a .503 hole.

 

[kendo]

Hi jabezkin
Sound like a good tip i will bear that in mind for the future nice one fella
Good machining
Ken

 

[Metal Butcher]

Thats a good one to know!

I have "stropped" the cutting edges on reamers to slightly increase or decrease the openings they ream. Stropping the cutting face length wise will increase the hole size, and stropping the out side of the cutting edge length wise will decrease the diameter of the hole it reams. Of course, this is a permanent change to the size the reamer will cut, and trying to reverse the change will result in a reamer that will produce less the than satisfactory results. I have used this to increase or decrease by a few tenths. Its sort of a dubious emergency type method but it does work. My "strop is a 1/2" cobalt tool blank.
Think of the reamer as being a barber's leather strap, and the razor being the tool blank. Strait line stropping, unlike the barbers "strop".
Don't try this with your only reamer! ;D

-MB

 

[jabezkin]

Metal butcher;
Your way does work! We do what we gotta do.