A hard coating, which is to disposed to cover a surface of a tool substrate, has a total thickness of 0.5-20 m and includes an A layer and nanolayer-alternated layer that are alternately laminated by physical vapor deposition. The nanolayer-alternated layer includes a B layer and C layer that are alternately laminated. The A layer has a thickness of 50-1000 nm and is AlCr(SiC) nitride that is represented by a composition formula of [Al.sub.1-W-XCr.sub.W(SiC).sub.X]N wherein an atomic ratio W is 0.20-0.80 and an atomic ratio X is 0.01-0.20. The B layer has a thickness of 1-100 nm and is TiAl nitride that is represented by a composition formula of [Ti.sub.1-YAl.sub.Y]N wherein an atomic ratio Y is 0.30-0.85. The C layer has a thickness of 1-100 nm and is Ti(SiC) nitride represented by a composition formula of [Ti.sub.1-Z(SiC).sub.Z]N wherein an atomic ratio Z is 0.05-0.45. The nanolayer-alternated layer has a thickness of 50-1000 nm.

A sintered material includes a first phase and a second phase, wherein the first phase is composed of cubic boron nitride particles, and the following relational expressions are satisfied when more than or equal to two cubic boron nitride particles adjacent to and in direct contact with each other among the cubic boron nitride particles are defined as a contact body, Di represents a length of an entire perimeter of the contact body, n represents the number of contact locations at which the cubic boron nitride particles are in direct contact with each other, d.sub.k represents a length of each of the contact locations, and d.sub.k (where k=1 to n) represents a total length of the contact locations: Dii=Di+(2d.sub.k (where k=1 to n)); and [(DiiDi)/Dii]10050.

A cutting tool, comprising a substrate having a cutting surface and a coating adhered to the cutting surface in a solid state, wherein the coating includes a soft metal and is capable of melting and functioning as an in-situ liquid lubricant when the cutting tool is applied in a machining operation. Also, a method of applying a coating to a cutting tool, comprising receiving a premachining workpiece, the premachining workpiece formed of a coating material including a soft metal; and machining the premachining workpiece with the cutting tool such that a layer of the coating material adheres to a cutting surface of the cutting tool in a solid state.

A cylinder for a reciprocating piston system, with a cylinder running surface, which is finished by machining by means of a tool with a geometrically defined cutting edge, wherein the finished cylinder running surface has a multiplicity of pores and/or cavities and is formed from a grey cast iron material with a proportion of the surface area that is taken up by pores of 2 to 10% or is formed from a thermally sprayed layer of iron or a thermally sprayed layer of ceramic with a proportion of the surface area that is taken up by pores of 5 to 25%. A method is also provided for finishing a cylinder in which a cylinder running surface of the cylinder is finished by machining by a tool with a geometrically defined cutting edge such that after the finishing the cylinder surface has a multiplicity of pores and/or cavities.

A hard coating, which is to disposed to cover a surface of a tool substrate, has a total thickness of 0.5-20 m and includes an A layer and nanolayer-alternated layer that are alternately laminated by physical vapor deposition. The nanolayer-alternated layer includes a B layer and C layer that are alternately laminated. The A layer has a thickness of 50-1000 nm and is AlCr(SiC) nitride that is represented by a composition formula of [Al.sub.1-W-XCr.sub.W(SiC).sub.X]N wherein an atomic ratio W is 0.20-0.80 and an atomic ratio X is 0.01-0.20. The B layer has a thickness of 1-100 nm and is TiAl nitride that is represented by a composition formula of [Ti.sub.1-YAl.sub.Y]N wherein an atomic ratio Y is 0.30-0.85. The C layer has a thickness of 1-100 nm and is Ti(SiC) nitride represented by a composition formula of [Ti.sub.1-Z(SiC).sub.Z]N wherein an atomic ratio Z is 0.05-0.45. The nanolayer-alternated layer has a thickness of 50-1000 nm.

A rotary boring tool with detachable inserts, including a rotating insert carrier body including cartridges holding detachable cutting inserts configured to machine a cylinder barrel by axial movement of the tool in the barrel, and including a first cutting insert configured to rough-cut grooves in the material to be machined, a second insert configured to finish the grooves roughly cut by the first insert, and a third levelling insert configured to level rough material generated by the first two inserts.

A sintered body of the present invention is a sintered body including a first material and cubic boron nitride. The first material is partially-stabilized ZrO.sub.2 including 5 to 90 volume % of Al.sub.2O.sub.3 dispersed in crystal grain boundaries or crystal grains of partially-stabilized ZrO.sub.2.

A cutting element for a tool to create a helically extending, trapezoidally undercut groove in a cylindrical surface of a bore. The cutting tool, preferably configured as a cutting insert, has groove-cutting teeth to create a symmetrically cross-sectioned groove which are arranged in series in a division harmonized with the pitch of the groove to be created. These groove-cutting teeth comprise at least one pre-machining tooth to create and machine a base groove and several trapezoidal teeth following the at least one pre-machining tooth, which have a tooth head profile which expands trapezoidally in cross-section in the vertical direction of the tooth with two flanks delimiting a flank angle for further machining the base groove to a trapezoidally undercut final cross-section. The flank angle delimited by the two flanks increases from at least one trapezoidal tooth to a following trapezoidal tooth to a defined final dimension.

A rotary boring tool with detachable inserts, including a rotating insert carrier body including cartridges holding detachable cutting inserts configured to machine a cylinder barrel by axial movement of the tool in the barrel, and including a first cutting insert configured to rough-cut grooves in the material to be machined, a second insert configured to finish the grooves roughly cut by the first insert, and a third levelling insert configured to level rough material generated by the first two inserts.

A cutting tool, comprising a substrate having a cutting surface and a coating adhered to the cutting surface in a solid state, wherein the coating includes a soft metal and is capable of melting and functioning as an in-situ liquid lubricant when the cutting tool is applied in a machining operation. Also, a method of applying a coating to a cutting tool, comprising receiving a premachining workpiece, the premachining workpiece formed of a coating material including a soft metal; and machining the premachining workpiece with the cutting tool such that a layer of the coating material adheres to a cutting surface of the cutting tool in a solid state.