The 3/8 deburring tool post-assembly.
This is a set of two click-spring style D-Bit de-burring tools for brass. I am overall quite pleased with these two, and certainly plan to make more sizes when my projects justify it. The handle was also pretty painless so I am sure I will be using that pattern for more tool projects in the future.
The heads are made of hardened W1 quenched in water and then tempered at 350F for 2 hours. The support shaft is 17-4, and both handles are made of mahogany with brass ferrules. I 3D printed some head covers so the tools can be stuck in a backpack without poking holes. This page is being written before I’ve really put the heads through their paces, but I’ll post an update below if there are any issues.
The head angle is 88 degrees, and I used the following sharpening progression: Shapton #320, King 1000, King 6000, True Hard Arkansas. The end result is definitely sharp enough for brass, although I do have a suspicion the Arkansas stone may have taken the polish down relative to the King 6000. To polish the cone OD I used a clickspring-style brass emery stick (2000grit), which I found to be a great tool for that task.
Notes:
The W1 into water quench caused major distortion on the 1/4in bit. Also definitely use soft iron wire to cage next time.
The drill jig produced off-center holes, suggesting a new design (maybe two-point clamping?) would be worth it. Off-center holes were also present on the two commercial handles I tried so this may be an issue with using wood.
This might go without saying, but keep an eye on actual ID diameters for pipe. They tend to drift a bit from nominal, and may vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.
Fabrication Photos:
Finished Tools:
