The Right Tools for the Job


Machining is the general field of altering metal, wood, or plastic items during the manufacturing process to make those materials useful for the final product. The concept of using tools to alter items is positively ancient, and strictly speaking, it dates back to prehistoric days of cavemen sharpening flint spears and knives with rocks. Of course, no one is hitting rocks together today. Modern machining tools have unprecedented accuracy, engineering design, and production rates to make today’s factories and workshops productive sites to work. Burnishing tools, for example, are excellent at burnishing the surface of metals, and PCD solutions involve using hardened diamond drill bits for maximum effect. Diamond burnishing may also be an option, and PCD tools can be found wholesale to keep a shop well supplied. Lathes are another similar concept, typically used to grind off imperfections on metal and wood surfaces.

On PCD Solutions

PCD solutions make use of polycrystalline diamond drill bits to make holes in wood and metal, to put it simply. PCD solutions can be quite price effective, too, and these drill bits resist abrasion and they have been used for over 35 years now. How are these ultra-tough drill bits made? These are no ordinary metal drill bits. Rather, they are synthesized diamond bits, created when metal binders sinter a number of diamond particles with extremes of pressure and temperature to create the final product. Anything made from these PCD solutions will do a fine job and last quite a long time, making such tools a fine investment for nearly any workshop or employee. These PCD solutions can be used for drill bits, saw teeth, and even profiling for a hard day’s work. Most often, PCD solutions are drill bits or saws made with standard grades, but polished PCD parts in particular can prevent material from building up on its surface during work, boosting performance. Any workshop may have a working relationship with a local supplier to provide new diamond drill bits, and should any bits somehow become lost or defective, the shop may quickly order new ones.

Burnishing

Drills and saws will machine (a verb) different materials with cutting and removing material. But the surface is important too, and this is where burnishing is helpful. Burnishing is done when a hard metal ball is rubbed on the surface of a product or piece of metal. Doing this will smooth out and toughen the surface so that it can stand up to the vigors of its future use. Burnishing also results in a more polished and shiny surface that may be quite attractive, and even jewelry can be burnished, not just large pieces of metal. What are the end results? Burnishing can bolster the metal surface’s toughness as much as 50-100%, and for some applications, that enhanced toughness is essential so the metal doesn’t break or warp during work. It is also possible for a used item or piece of metal to be re-burnished and restore its luster and toughness if need be. Burnishing can be not only a part of the manufacturing process, but also maintenance and upkeep.

Lathes

The concept behind lathes is a fairly simple one: use a rotating grinder surface to remove imperfections from another item. In fact, hand-operated lathes have been found among the ruins of ancient Egypt, though today’s lathes are machines, most often configured as a table with machine parts on top. One part of the lathe will hold the item to be machined, and there will also be a grinder surface rotating at great speed. The lathe’s operation is fairly straightforward: the item will be steadily moved toward the grinder, so that surface can touch it and grind off imperfections. This is known as feeding the lathe, and the grinder may have its RPM adjusted as needed.

Why is this done? Metal burrs in particular are troublesome unless they’re ground off with lathes. Metal burrs are imperfections formed during cutting, welding, or drilling work, and these rough, upraised bits of metal are not only unsightly but they can scratch and scrape against other surfaces and items, possibly damaging them. Upraised metal burrs may also attract static electricity. Thus, a machined piece of metal, plastic of even wood will be put through a lathe to smooth out its surface.


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