[Dick Linn]

Taking a couple thou off an end of the unhardened drill rod shouldn't be hard if you can hold and spin it properly. We once had to open up two drive sprockets from 5/8" to 16 mm, or make the hole about .005" larger. It took a very long while with a 5/8" stub in the mill-drill and lots of valve grinding compound. Reducing a shaft diameter is a LOT easier. You can glue the emery paper on a stick and use it like a file.

I have had ground shafting come in oversized and even crooked.