Honing Precisely Varied for Pin Diameter

The process capability of honing is tighter than the process capability of grinding. Why is that significant? Answer: Fuel injectors. Ground fuel injector pins vary in diameter from pin to pin, but CNC honing’s ability to control diameter to increments as small as a micron means individual bores can be tailored to these pin diameters. Sunnen is showing this in its IMTS booth. The process is called “match honing.” In the demo, an air gage measures pins and the honing machine adjusts its target diameter accordingly. The honed part number stays the same, but hole diameters vary from piece to piece. In this way, the honing cycle automatically ensures that a run of various individual workpieces precisely matches a run of various actual pins.