What materials can Flex-Hone be used on?

Steel, stainless steel, aluminum, bronze, brass, cast iron, titanium, inconel and many more. The appropriate abrasive type is available for each material: Silicon Carbide (steel/cast iron), Aluminum Oxide (soft metals), Boron Carbide (hardened steels), Diamond (ceramic/carbide).

Can Flex-Hone be used on a CNC machine?

Yes. Flex-Hone tools can be used directly in CNC machine cycles. Thanks to its flexible structure, it requires no rigid setup and is self-centering. It can also be used on manual drills or machines.

Which grit size should I choose?

Selection is based on the desired surface roughness. For fine finish: 600-800 grit (Ra 3-12 microinch), general purpose: 180-320 grit (Ra 18-40 microinch), aggressive deburring: 40-80 grit (Ra 45-125 microinch).

How much dimensional change does Flex-Hone cause?

Flex-Hone is a low-pressure, low-temperature process. Dimensional change is minimal — typically a few microns. It is a surface improvement process, not a sizing operation.

FLEX-HONE®

Flex-Hone Flexible Honing Brushes

The world standard for surface finishing, deburring and plateau finish. Perfect your cylinder bore surfaces with BRM Brush Research Manufacturing's flexible honing brushes.

Self-centering flexible design — no rigid setup required
Low temperature, low pressure abrading — no damage to metallurgical structure
Creates crosshatch pattern for optimal lubrication
CNC machine or manual use
Grit options from 20 to 800

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Overview

Why Flex-Hone?

Flex-Hone tools are ideal for many polishing, deburring, cleaning and edge blending operations. Available in different diameters and abrasive types, the honing tools use a flexible honing system to achieve superior surface results on a wide variety of materials. They achieve surface quality unmatched by other honing methods.

Flex-Hone working principle — flexible abrasive globules — Flex-Hone working principle

Flex-Hone cylinder honing tool — Cylinder honing application

Super finishing for any type and size cylinder — controlled roughness, geometry and metallurgical structure
Low temperature abrasive process — creates high-strength surface in metal structure
Flexible bendable design — each abrasive globule flexes independently and self-centers
Creates multiple lubrication reservoirs (valleys) forming a crosshatch pattern

Surface Finishing

Surface Finishing and Plateau Finish

Flex-Hone reduces Ra, Rk and Rpk values while maintaining oil retention values Rvk and Vo volume. It cuts the peaks formed during preliminary processing to create a plateau structure. This allows seals to be installed without damage, while the crosshatch structure provides optimal lubrication. Ideal for hydraulic and pneumatic applications.

Flex-Hone plateau finish — peak removal — Plateau finish formation

Flex-Hone crosshatch pattern — Crosshatch pattern

Deburring

Cross-Hole Deburring

Deburring intersecting holes is an expensive and time-consuming process. Flex-Hone is used to remove these burrs and create a clean radiused intersection. With its flexible structure, it works self-centered and on-axis, requiring no rigid setup. For best results: a few passes clockwise in-out, then a few more passes in reverse direction.

Before and after deburring — Before and after comparison

Technical Data

Surface Roughness by Grit Size

The table below is for reference purposes. Actual values may vary depending on material, speed and feed rate.

Grit	Roughness (Ra)
800	Ra 3–10 microinch (0.05–0.2 micron)
600	Ra 8–12 microinch (0.2–0.3 micron)
400	Ra 10–20 microinch (0.3–0.6 micron)
320	Ra 18–30 microinch (0.5–0.7 micron)
240	Ra 24–32 microinch (0.6–0.8 micron)
180	Ra 30–40 microinch (0.7–1.0 micron)
120	Ra 35–50 microinch (0.9–1.4 micron)
80	Ra 45–64 microinch (1.2–1.6 micron)
60	Ra 60–80 microinch (1.5–2.0 micron)
40	Ra 70–125 microinch (1.7–3.2 micron)
20	Ra 125–250 microinch (3.2–6.3 micron)

Abrasive Selection

Abrasive Types

Selecting the appropriate abrasive type based on the workpiece material is critical for optimal results.

Material	Recommended Abrasive
Steel, stainless steel, cast iron	Silicon Carbide (SC)
Aluminum, bronze, brass, soft metals	Aluminum Oxide (AO)
Low carbon steels, stainless, cast iron	Zirconium Aluminum (ZA) — longer tool life than SC
Medium-high carbon steels, 50+ HRC heat treated, titanium, inconel	Boron Carbide (BC)
High carbon steels, exotic alloys	Tungsten Carbide (WC)
Final polishing for many materials	Levigated Aluminum (LA)
Carbide, ceramic, hard tool steel	Diamond (D)