| Centre lathe turning operations - Reaming |
| A reamer is a
type of rotary cutting tool used in metalworking. Precision
reamers are designed to enlarge the size of a previously
formed hole by a small amount but with a high degree of
accuracy to leave smooth sides. There are also non-precision
reamers which are used for more basic enlargement of holes
or for removing burrs. The process of enlarging the hole is
called reaming. There are many different types of reamer and
they may be designed for use as a hand tool or in a machine
tool, such as a centre lathe, milling machine or drill
press. The diagram
below shows a machine reamer being used, to accurately
finish a drilled hole to size. The material (in this case
steel) has been drilled on the centre lathe, to within
0.05mm of the final diameter. It should not be taken out of
the chuck, until reaming has taken place. The reamer should
be slowly introduced to the material, with coolant being
applied liberally. One continuous ‘pass’ of the reamer
through the drilled hole, should produce the accurate
finished dimension. The lathe is left on, whilst the reamer
is withdrawn from the metal. Notice that the reamer’s morse
taper shank, fits into the tailstock spindle. |
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