BRM Official Blog

Piston rings are engine components that seal the combustion chamber, transfer heat from the pistons to the cylinder walls, and help regulate oil consumption. To promote engine power and performance, the piston rings and the cylinder wall must form a proper seal.  Otherwise, excessive “blow-by” can enter the crankcase. The results can range from power loss to engine damage. 

As Performance and Hotrod Business magazine explains, Flex-Hone® tools from Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM) help promote piston ring performance. In an article called “Rings True”, automotive writer Ed Sullivan describes how BRM’s flexible hones “allow for the fine-tuning of cylinder bores”, even in engine blocks made of harder metals that can make piston ring break-in challenging.

Flex-Hone® tools are available individually, but wouldn't it be nice if you could just buy a kit with all of the different-sized ball hones that you need? Even better, wouldn’t it be great if this kit included Flex-Hone® oil, BRM’s own special honing oil, for your next automotive project? 

If you’re in the market for a complete surface finishing solution, check out BRM’s new 10-piece Flex-Hone® automotive kit. Each flexible hone is proudly Made in the USA and comes in 180-grit silicon carbide. The tools range in size from 10mm to 2”. This special kit also contains 1/4 quart of Flex-Hone® oil along with how-to videos, instructions for use, and a premium BRM baseball cap. 

Most brake rotors get resurfaced when old, worn brake pads are replaced. By the time a vehicle needs a brake job, the rotors may have grooves or areas of wear from the rubbing of the old pads. If a brake rotor has an uneven surface, the new pads won’t make contact with the rotor at the proper angle – and squeaking or squealing may result. Even with new OEM or aftermarket rotors, a factory finish that’s less than ideal may cause brake noise. 

To improve the surface finish of brake rotors, auto mechanics trust the Flex-Hone® for Rotors tool from Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM). Named an Undercar Digest Magazine Top Ten Tool for 8 years in a row, BRM’s rotor hone imparts a non-directional surface finish where “scratches” on the rotor’s surface extend in various directions. This “basket weave” finish doesn’t just help the new pads to seat properly. It lowers harmonic vibrations and reduces noise. 

Wire cup brushes are industrial brushing tools for surface preparation, deburring, blending, and surface finishing. They feature a cup-like body, metal wire filaments, and an arbor hole or shaft that supports their use with grinding tools or other powered equipment.

Alfa Romeo sports cars are known for their power and performance. Since 1911, when two Alfas entered the Targa Florio Competition, these Italian automobiles have been a part of international motorsport. Today, Alfa aficionados gather on-line to discuss engine maintenance and repairs. For do-it-yourself (DIY) engine rebuilds, experienced “Alfistas” choose Flex-Hone® tools from Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM).

In the movie “Gone in 60 Seconds”, a master car thief returns to Southern California to steal 50 vehicles in 96 hours. In a YouTube video from Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM), employees at the Los Angeles company rebuild a Chevy 350 engine in just 30 seconds.

BRM's time-elapsed video isn't a Hollywood blockbuster, but the manufacturer's engine tools are automotive superstars. The BRM employees you'll see don't rebuild engines for a living, but they mastered multiple engine maintenance and cleaning tasks thanks to Flex-Hone® tools and automotive brushes.

Cutting tools remove material from a workpiece by shear deformation. They include single-point tools for turning, shaping, and planning; and multi-point tools for milling, drilling, and grinding. Often, cutting tools feature inserts or replaceable tips. These tipped tools, such as endmills and reamers, need to be made of heat-resistant materials that are harder than the material to be cut. 

All cutting tools require a specific geometry, with clearance angles that allow the cutting edge to contact the workpiece cleanly. The angle of the cutting face is also important. For cutting tool manufacturers, product optimization requires surface finishing. For removing burrs and optimizing surface quality, NamPower diamond wheels provide consistent, high-quality results. 

NamPower discs from Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM) are nylon abrasive brushing tools that remove burrs and improve part finish at the same time. Designed for outer diameter (OD) applications, these high-performance metalworking tools integrate easily with CNC machining centers, transfer lines, robotic cells, and other production equipment. With their unique combination of ceramic and silicon carbide abrasive, NamPower disc brushes set a new standard for high-quality, cost-effective performance.   

NamPower disc brushes come in two styles (dot and turbine), two trim lengths (18 and 38 mm), four grit sizes (80, 120, 180, 320), and six diameters (50, 60, 80, 100, 125, 150 mm). Choosing the right tool for the job is important, of course, but your work doesn’t end with product selection. That’s why manufacturers, metalworkers, and machinists need to understand the importance of disc brush speed, which is measured in revolutions (RPM) per minute, for optimum NamPower performance.

Leading manufacturers are using automated deburring and surface finishing technologies to reduce labor costs, speed operations, and ensure part quality and consistency. Instead of removing burrs off-line during time-consuming secondary operations, these companies are using high-quality metalworking tools with their existing production equipment.

For both inner diameter (ID) and outer diameter (OD) applications, Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM) supplies finishing and deburring tools that support automation. BRM Flex-Hone® tools and NamPower technology are used by large companies in global industries such as automotive and aerospace, but are also a favorite among smaller manufacturers, metalworkers, and machinists who want to automate their deburring and surface finishing operations in a high-performance, cost-effective way.