Rolled cylinder tubes are manufactured through a chipless cold-working process known as roller burnishing. This method uses high-pressure hardened rollers or balls to plastically deform the inner surface of the tube, resulting in significant improvements in performance and durability. The characteristics of rolled cylinder tubes can be categorized into advantages and limitations:
1. Key advantages
Exceptional surface quality
Ultra-low surface roughness: Achieves a mirror-like finish with surface roughness typically ranging from Ra 0.1 to 0.4 μm, and can reach as low as Ra 0.05 μm under optimal conditions.
Smooth and uniform surface: Eliminates tool marks and micro-irregularities from pre-machining through plastic deformation, resulting in a consistent and smooth surface.
Enhanced mechanical properties
Surface hardening: Cold working induces strain hardening, increasing surface hardness by 15%–30%.
Compressive residual stress: Introduces a layer of uniform compressive residual stress on the surface, significantly improving fatigue strength and resistance to stress corrosion cracking, thereby extending service life.
Improved wear resistance: The combination of increased hardness and smooth surface reduces friction and enhances wear resistance.
High dimensional and geometrical accuracy
Corrects micro-level geometric deviations such as roundness and cylindricity, achieving precision levels up to IT7–IT8.
High Efficiency and Cost-Effectiveness
Rapid Processing: Typically completed in a single pass with very short cycle times (seconds per tube), making it ideal for mass production.
No Consumable Costs: Tools made of hardened materials (e.g., carbide, ceramic) have extremely long service lives, eliminating recurring consumable expenses.
Environmentally Friendly: Requires minimal lubricant and generates no grinding waste, reducing environmental impact.
Improved surface integrity
The surface layer becomes denser, with micro-cracks and pores closed, enhancing sealing performance and corrosion resistance.

2. Limitations
High requirements for pre-machining
Pre-machined surfaces (e.g., after boring or reaming) must have a roughness no greater than Ra 3.2 μm and uniform material allowance.
Excessive material allowance or geometric errors cannot be fully corrected in a single rolling pass.
Material compatibility constraints
Best suited for ductile materials such as low-carbon steels, stainless steels, aluminum alloys, and copper alloys.
Less effective or potentially damaging for brittle materials (e.g., high-hardness quenched steels, cast iron), which may experience surface peeling.
Surface-layer enhancement only
Improvements are confined to a shallow surface layer (typically 0.1–0.3 mm deep). Not suitable for applications requiring deep modification.
High Initial Investment
Precision rolling tools and equipment require significant upfront investment.