Some Facts That You Need To Know About Honing Engine Blocks

Often people misinterpret and miscalculate the procedure of honing engine blocks and this is the biggest reason why we have come up with this post describing the entire process of honing and some facts related to it. Let us start by understanding what the process of honing is all about. 

WHAT IS THE HONING PROCESS LIKE?

• According to the experts, it is basically a process through abrasion and is conducted after reaming, turning (polishing), milling internal rectification, etc.
• The reason why this process is conducted is that it helps in providing an accurate geometry of the machine as well as good super fiscal finishing.
• The top feature of this process of honing engine blocks is its speed and that it can give you more precise finishing as compared to other processes.

The Next Question That We are Going to Discuss is When to Hone.

• This entirely depends upon the requirements of specific gears and blocks and based on that, the experts engage in the process at various stages of the manufacturing process.
• For this, they can bring into use three different kinds of systems provided by the honing equipments suppliers.
• You will see that mostly parts are honed after hobbing.
• However, the blanks for extremely tight-tolerance gears and blocks can be honed both before and after hobbing.
• One more thing is that if parts are heat treated, they will be honed afterwards to make sure that even the slightest of shrinkage is covered.
• For all these processes, they use aluminium oxide tools on these machines in several different configurations.
• The configurations to be used in the process of honing engine blocks basically depend upon whether the bore is blind, keyed, etc.

ADVANTAGES OF HONING

• Improvements in the surface
• Bigger productivity
• Constant and accurate operations in the geometry and diameter of the hole
• Precise tolerances
• Better concentricity
• Oil consumption decreases
• Roundness correction
• Tool setup gain
• Better cost X benefit
• Bigger removal power, eliminating possible overload in the machine

Step By Step Procedure to Make Reconditioned Cylinder Heads

The process that engineers and experts used to generate reconditioned cylinder heads is not very intricate. Several steps are to be taken in a very strict order and once this is done, you can be assured about high quality results. In this post, we take a brief look of the steps to take to bring out perfectly reconditioned cylinder heads.

In most cases, it happens inside the engine that valves contact with pistons with such a force that the heads of some valves get damaged minutely or severely. To make sure that they become just like what they were earlier, the following steps are taken.

• In the first step, all the components of the cylinder and removed and once done, the cleaning process is initiated.
• These heads and all its components are left in the alkaline based hot take for overnight and the temperature of this tank is maintained at somewhere around 80 degrees.
• The benefit is that all the bulk of the sludge and carbon deposits that had built up over the years get removed completely.

Amidst this, it is important to understand that the corrosion throughout the cylinder is a major cause behind the failure of cylinder head gaskets. Engineers say that this can be done easily with the help of quality coolant and by maintaining a good earth.

• In the next step, experts use a die grinder and with it, the component gets prepared for welding.
• This welding will repair the corroded area and also the damages that valve failure caused to the component.
• Once all the damages are welded, the next step involves machining and with its help, technicians can reconstruct all the water jackets.
• They then, re-shape the combustion chambers and bring them back to original factory specifications.
• In case, the broken valves have damaged some of the valve seats, experts will remove them to install completely new seats.

Other steps of the process of generating reconditioned cylinder heads are –

• The cylinder head is media blasted and pressure tested and is ready for machining.
• The gasket face is machined to within .0001″ to provide an exceptional mating surface for the head gasket to seal.
• It is finally washed and laid out ready for assembly.
• Once assembled and tested, reconditioned cylinder heads are now ready for delivery back to the customer.

A List of Common Tools Used For Line Boring

Line boring is a very broad subject and something performed by numerous companies across the globe. This is why; you’ll find several companies engaged in manufacturing tool kits used in this process. Generally, there could be a huge difference between the tools used by two companies and those used by them depend upon the or level of expertise and the size of their business. As far as a general tool kit is concerned, you’ll find the following tool being included in it.

A line Boring bar

• It is chrome plated in most cases that is hardened and precision ground 100,000 high tensile strength alloy steel.
• The benefit of chrome is that it resists burrs and scoring to still fit the bearing even after recurring use.
• The cutting bit mounting holes are spaced 5 inches apart and there is a shank with 3-flats for solid gripping by your drill chuck.

Drill base adapter with built-in

• This will be one in number and is an important device that holds the magnetic drill press in case of power failure.
• The built-in bearing takes the load of the bearing shaft to prevent overloading of internal drill press bearings.
• It also includes mounting hole for bore welder.

Self-aligning bearings

• This tool would be two in number and the I.D. of these bearings have a perfect fit between bars and bearings.
• This gives an assurance that the holes can be bored to near zero TIR run out.

Some other very important line boring tools you’ll find are –

• 2 Bearing Plates - 3/4 inch thick to reduce vibration
• 10 Standoffs of 3 different heights
• 2 Centering Cones
• 2 Positioning Sleeves
• 7 Bore Cutting Tools of 3 types of boring and 1 chamfering
• 1 Dial Caliper - Measures 0" to 8" with dial readout to .001"
• 1 Calliper Jaw Extensions
• 1 Telescoping Bore Gage Set
• 1 Wood case

Line Boring Machines And Their Attributes

Line boring has always been the process where no half measures are taken as there are no second chances at all. Companies engaged in this process are well-aware of this fact and this is why you’ll find them doing no compromise whatsoever upon the tools used for this process. They always use the most updated and technically advanced machines to make sure that whatever they are doing is completed with sheer precision and on time.

Some features of the machines used by them for line boring process are being discussed below.

• The machines are often seen capable of creating a bore even in very heavy duty equipments such as excavators, loaders, cranes, etc.

• One more very remarkable feature of these equipments are that often they put no pressure as such on the overall budget or revenue that they expect to earn from their business.

• They are often very portable, but despite this, they offer sheer power, flexibility, ease of use and lastly, ease of maintenance.

• In most cases, you’ll find them being sold in two form, if they are a portable one. They are – the pneumatic driven and the hydraulic driven.

Other than general line boring, these machines can be helpful engineers in a number of other ways too. Let us try and know how they can help them simplify their tasks.

• It can be brought into use to measure the bores and for this, they bring into use calibrated internal and external micrometers.

• The size may range from 50-2000 millimeters in diameters.

• They can even help these professionals in re-boring of holes in earthmoving equipments and attachments like excavators, backhoe loaders and end loaders.

• They even help in repair works of machines such as backhoe and track hoe buckets, articulating joints, wheel loader arm pin-holes and hinge points in tilt bed trailers. 

Features To Look For In a Line Boring Machine

Line boring is a very convoluted thing and therefore, the staff takes no chance at all and simply relies upon the best machines. The best machines are determined on the basis of various factors and the most crucial of them all is the boring diameter.

According to the experts, a machine can be called an ideal, if it is capable of supporting boring diameters from 1.375 to 80 inches (35 to 2030 mm approx). Other factors that are determined at the time of selection of the machine are –

• The speed of the machine

• How precisely it is generating the results

Apart from these, some features are also looked for like specially designed mounting brackets, spherical bearings, self-centering set-up cones, and movable rotational drive and feed units. They are expected to be there in the machine, as they all simplify the set-up and allow the machine to work in conditions too tight for different machines used in this task. Moreover, the basic as well as highly advanced models should equally feature –

• Rugged Rotational Drive

• Axial Feed Systems

• Precision Bars

• Heavy Duty Bearings

• Electric, Pneumatic And Hydraulic Options

All of them should have the ability to work on the same mounting system with Auto Bore Welding Systems for single-setup machining and welding. Based on the features discussed above, we have got three different line boring machines that are unarguably the best. Let us know some more facts and figures about them.

BB3000 LINE BORING MACHINE

• Bar Diameters – 1.25 inches (31.8mm)

• Boring Diameters – 1.5-5 inches (38.1-127mm)

• Max. Stroke – 10 inches (254 mm)

• Torque at Bar – 40 ft-lb (54.2 N m)

• Power Options – Electric

BB4500 LINE BORING MACHINE

• Bar Diameters – 1.75 inches (44.5 mm), 1.25 inches (31.8 mm) optional

• Boring Diameters – 1.5 – 10 inches (38.1 – 254 mm)

• Max. Stroke – 24 inches (609.6 mm)

• Torque at Bar – 417 ft-lb (hydraulic) (565.4 N m)

• Power Options – Electric, Pneumatic, Hydraulic

BB5000 LINE BORING MACHINE

• Bar Diameters – 2.25 inches (57.2 mm), 1.25 inches (31.8 mm) optional

• Boring Diameters – 1.5 – 24 inches (38.1 – 609.6 mm)

• Max. Stroke – 36 inches (914.4 mm)

• Torque at Bar – 40 ft-lb (54.2 N m)

Uses and Benefits of Advanced Line Boring Machines

The task of line boring could not be possible without advanced machines designed to complete the task faster and with utmost precision. Their modus operandi allows them to cut the inside of any bore to enlarge its diameter to the preset size.

Another attribute is that they are developed to work in the shortest time possible and with utmost precision.

Some other features of a line boring machine used by the experts are discussed below.

• This machine is capable of creating the bore even the heavy-duty equipments such as cranes, end loaders, etc.
• It is very economical equipment used by the experts to meet the varying demands of their clients.
• This machine in its portable version is even more economical, flexible, powerful, and easy to use.
• The portable version is available in two forms, i.e. the pneumatic drive and hydraulic version.
• Apart from boring, it can be used for various other operations as well. For example –
• Measuring the bores using calibrated internal or external micrometers. Its size ranges from 50 mm to 2000 mm in diameter.
• For re-boring of holes on dozers, backhoes, and end loaders.
• In repair works to areas such as backhoe and track hoe buckets, articulating joints, wheel loader arm pin-holes and hinge points in tilt bed trailers, and steering axle sleeves in heavy duty fork trucks.
• One more attribute is that field machining repairs can be made on site and in-place.
• With modern-day machines, users would require a minimum amount of dismantling.
• Similarly, users would experience that unbolting leaks and down time are minimized, and productivity is increased with line boring machine.

The Benefits of Reconditioned Cylinder Heads

As soon as a vehicle starts causing troubles, the first thought to rush our minds is replacing it. However, experts say that this is not the only alternative and there are several better alternatives available that are economical as well. One such option is getting the engine’s cylinder head reconditioned as this has its own share of benefits.

• One of the top benefits is that it is a much affordable alternative as compared to buying a new vehicle all over again.
• Another very remarkable benefit is that with reconditioned cylinder heads, your vehicle’s engine would get a new leash of life and it would start behaving like absolutely new all over again.
• According to the experts, as you get reconditioned cylinder heads installed, you would experience that the life of the engine would double.
• This is certainly a better option even than buying a second-hand car. 

How is engine or cylinder head reconditioned?

In the process of getting reconditioned cylinder heads, the experts first open up the engine very carefully. The entire process basically involves –

• Opening every part of the engine
• Washing it
• Analyzing it carefully for defects like cracks, etc.
• Cranks are machined, polished or replaced as necessary
• Checking that engine block and cylinder head in order to ensure they have flat mating surfaces
• New bearing sets are  installed if required in both the connecting rods and main journals
• Pistons are fitted with new piston rings
• Cylinder heads are pressure tested to make sure they do not have any internal cracks
• New oil seals would be fitted to make the unit oil tight