Adjustable Hand Reamers

Adjustable Hand Reamers

Adjustable hand reamers use replaceable, adjustable blades to cover a range of diameters with a single body. Unlike fixed-diameter chucking reamers, the adjustable design can be set to any diameter within its range by advancing or retracting the blades using the adjusting nut. This makes them practical for workshop use where multiple bore sizes need finishing without the cost of a full set of fixed reamers.

Sutton Tools, Bordo and Maxigear

AIMS stocks adjustable hand reamers from Sutton Tools, Bordo and Maxigear. Sutton's R109 series is made from tungsten chrome alloy steel — a high-alloy tool steel with good hardness and wear resistance well suited to hand reaming work. Replacement blades (R110) and replacement adjusting nuts (R112) are stocked separately, extending the service life of the reamer body considerably. Maxigear adjustable reamers cover metric and imperial range combinations from small sizes up to 2-7/32".

Tungsten Chrome Alloy Steel

Tungsten chrome alloy (WC tool steel) provides a good balance of hardness, toughness and grindability for hand reaming applications. It holds a sharp cutting edge well during the slow, controlled passes required in hand reaming, and can be resharpened when blades become dull.

Metric and Imperial

AIMS stocks adjustable hand reamers across both metric and imperial (fractional) diameter ranges. The blade range of each size covers a span of approximately 1/16" or 1.5mm — confirm the nominal bore diameter and any adjustment required fall within the range of the reamer size before ordering.

Applications

Adjustable hand reamers are used in fitting, jig and tool making, maintenance work and anywhere a precision bore size needs to be achieved or restored by hand. Common applications include fitting shaft shoulders, bushing bores, pin holes and clearance fits. For taper pin holes specifically, see our taper pin reamers. Always use cutting oil and a slow, steady rotational speed when hand reaming — reaming is a finishing operation and removing material aggressively will compromise the bore finish and size accuracy.