I wasn't discussing a Sunnen cylinder king, as that's not what's being applied in the posted picture. What is posted is the typical three stone spring loaded cylinder hone, which is incapable of controlling the end result, unlike the Sunnen. That was my point. Spring loaded stones don't have the ability to correct bore errors. If a bore is elliptical, it will remain elliptical, and taper can be corrected only by chance, even when one attempts correction. As I said, hones such as the one being displayed are intended for breaking glaze, or maybe even improving surface finish (remove feed lines), not for sizing. But they do so with risks, as I mentioned.Marty_Knox wrote:Harold, I'm going to disagree with you about honing - it IS used to precisely size bores. But you can't do it with a hand held hone. Go to a good automotive machine shop and see if they have a Sunnen Cylinder King. It's an amazing machine that can hone a cylinder to the exact size and finish you want.
In regards to surface finish, the conditions in a steam cylinder are very different from conditions in an internal combustion engine. Depending on the nature of the rings being used, a fine finish may be desirable (O ring or string packing). Cross hatch is expected for metallic rings, so seating is accelerated, but seating of rings for steam isn't a requirement unless they fit poorly at the outset, as the pressure in steam cylinders is extremely low as compared to internal combustion, so there's typically very little bypass, if any.
Harold