EFCO Finishing Service Spotlight: Ball Burnishing

Ball burnishing is another metal finishing service offered by EFCO Finishing Corporation with several machines available, ranging from small to large, with a wide variety of different shaped and sized medias.  EFCO can achieve your surface requirements and attain the luster, sheen and brightness your project calls for in a timely fashion at competitive prices.

This process works as follows:

1. Parts are loaded into a circular style machine, similar in nature to our vibratory machines, filled with burnishing media.  
2. When machine is in operation, the bowl sits on springs on a motor, causing the parts to rotate around the machine in a circular fashion, with the burnishing compound pumped into the machine on a continual basis, and the parts rubbing against the media.  
3. Upon completion, a dam raises in the machine, allowing the parts to travel over a screen to get taken out, and the media to fall through the screen and back into the machine.  
4. Parts are usually unloaded into wire baskets, inhibited, and centrifugally spun dry.

The burnishing media is made from case-hardened steel media, and as mentioned above, comes in many different shapes and sizes, to prevent lodging in the parts being finished.  The media texture is smooth in nature, as opposed to many vibratory medias that have abrasives built into them.  Because of this smoothness, no significant deburring will occur.  If anything, the burr tends to be rolled, or pounded, over.  This is an ideal process where surface requirements are the only critical factor, and not specific to any one industry.  Examples of industries served include metal stamping, die casting, tool and die, foundries, aluminum casting companies and several others.  Another possible effect is that the weight of the media can actually work harden the surface, or strengthen, the part.  This can again be ideal for a number of different industries, many of which were named above.  The compound is acidic based, and pumped into the machine on a continual flow, as this is key to achieving the sheen or luster desired.

At EFCO, we have burnishing machines readily available, with many different medias to achieve the desired results without lodging.  We have processed many different parts over the years, from small parts to large, and we can meet your needs in a timely manner, at a competitive price.  We will gladly process no charge samples, so you can see firsthand the range of finishes that are actually available. Contact an EFCO representative today for a quote.