High-Tech Honing — Major Advance in Barrel Making
Some custom barrel makers are now honing barrels (after drilling) to improve bore diameter uniformity, smooth the interior finish, and reduce barrel lapping times. For years, large-scale manufacturers of hammer-forged barrels have employed honing. Now the process is being used by smaller, “boutique” barrel-makers. This article explains how and why barrel honing is done. Take the time to watch the video. For anyone with an interest in barrel-making, this video is an eye-opener…
Barrel Honing Process Demonstrated (Worth Watching!):
For custom barrel makers, honing is a time-saver and cost cutter. A few minutes on a honing machine can cut lapping times in half, leaving a cross-hatched surface finish in single or low double-digit Ra. Honing is the same process used to make diesel fuel injectors with bore roundness and straightness controlled to fractions of a micron (<0.000040"), with surface finish Ra ≤0.15 µm (6 µin).
A key manufacturing process used for hammer-forged barrels is now getting attention from the makers of custom button-rifled barrels. This process is precision bore-honing. Honing produces a high-quality bore surface fast, which is critical to hammer forging. (Why is honing so important with hammer forging? Surface finish is the one feature of the barrel that cannot be controlled in hammer forging. Surface imperfections in a barrel blank tend to be amplified as the blank is formed on the rifling mandrel. And if the bore is chromed afterwards, imperfections in the surface finish become even more obvious.)
Honing dramatically improves bore diameter size uniformity and accuracy, surface finish and roundness throughout the length of the barrel. It can certainly be used in place of a pre-rifling lap. The chief difference between a lapped and honed bore is the direction of the finish lines in the bore. Honing leaves fine spiraling crosshatch lines, while a lap leaves lines going longitudinally in the bore. After rifling the manufacturer can remove the crosshatch finish with a quick lap if desired. Honing is fast, accurate, and can be automated. Its surface quality and geometry can duplicate lapping, except for the longitudinal lines of the lapped finish.
Frank Green of Bartlein Barrels told us: “We worked with Sunnen and we did all the initial testing on the prototype machine for them. The machine works great! We ordered and received last year a new manufactured machine with the changes we wanted on it and we just ordered a second one a month or so ago. Should be here next month.”
Computer-Controlled Bore-Honing
Honing can be done with great precision through the use of advanced, computer-controlled honing machines. Sunnen Products Company recently introduced a new machine for .17 to .50-caliber barrels (see control panel below). The spindles on this machine can correct bore size imperfections so small only an air gauge can measure them. The consistency this allows improves bore uniformity, which, in turn, produces more accurate barrels for the precision market.
Sunnen Products Company is the world’s largest vertically-integrated manufacturer of honing systems, tooling, abrasives, coolants and gauging for precision bore-sizing and finishing. Sunnen’s customers include manufacturers of diesel and gas engines, aerospace components, hydraulic components, oil field equipment, and gun/cannon barrels. Sunnen, which just celebrated its 90th anniversary, employs more than 600 people worldwide.
Similar Posts:
- Tech Trends: Precision Barrel Bore-Honing
- Modern Barrel Honing Technology — High-Tech at Work
- Barrel Tech — Precision Barrel Bore-Honing Technology
- Mysteries of Cut Rifling Revealed in Krieger Barrel-Making Video
- Sunnen Barrel Honing System Used by Pac-Nor Barreling
Tags: Barrel-making, Bartlein, Honing, Pac-Nor, Sunnen
Benchmark and PAC-NOR also use the Sunnen HTE. At about $125K, not too many “boutique” barrel makers are using them. IMO, its worth asking your preferred non-Sunnen-HTE barrel shop to subcontract out this work. That’s what I have done. [Sunnen will find shops for those barrel makers that are interested.]
So aside from Benchmark and PAC-NOR, are there any other manufacturers honing? Krieger, Bartlein, Rock Creek? Anyone know?
This sounds exciting and hopefully proves beneficial with both accuracy and ease of cleaning. It’s gonna take a lot to get me to run anything besides hawk hill barrels the way my 6.5 creedmoor shoots.
Kris – Bartlein is mentioned as using the Sunnen – right above the 4th photo.
What they really need is a way to test the steel for stresses. Thats what makes a good barrel. The machine work is important, but I have seen some major defects in barrels that were world class.
sunnen machines are imported?
Do you guys not understand that this does nothing for accuracy?
All this does is speed up the hand lapping process. It’s done between the drilling and the rifling….. after rifling would come the lapping…
Russ:
I recently found out that some of my barrels were test honed at Benchmark as part of a sales pitch to another barrel maker. The results were perfect bore dimension from one end of the barrel to the other – substantially better than could be done by reaming alone. I suspect that affects accuracy.