Select material and material thickness:
Standard – stainless steel V2A (X5CrNi18-10 / 1.4301)
Wide range of uses: architecture, design, jewelry and art, household items, including those in contact with food, scientific instruments, including ultra-high vacuum and low-temperature applications. Can be used up to 600 °C. Resistant to almost all environmental influences and weak acids. Unresistant to chloride ions, therefore not suitable for use in salt water, swimming pools or similar environments. Easily electrically weldable, very easy to polish, very easy to form (deep drawing, folding). Less easy to machine, due to the tendency to work hardening and the toughness
V2A (X5CrNi18-10 / 1.4301) ground 240 grain
Ground on one side in the x direction, 240 grain, foil-coated; otherwise as previous entry.
V4A (X6CrNiMoTi17-12-2 / 1.4571)
The material is more resistant to corrosion than 1.4301. Use like V2A, but can also be used in salt water and swimming pools due to its better resistance to corrosion. Instrument making, vacuum technology. Easy to weld, polishable, less easy to machine using all processes.
X10CrNi18-8 (1.4310)
Slightly less corrosion-resistant than 1.4301 due to a lower nickel content, generally resistant to food and drinks. Suitable for spring production for operating temperatures up to over 200 °C. Very easy to cold form (deep drawing, bending), with work hardening and magnetizability through forming. Less easy to machine.
Designation of stainless steels:
High-alloy steels are marked with an X as the leading letter. This is followed by the carbon content x 100, followed by the symbols of the alloying elements, arranged in descending mass fraction. Examples:
X5CrNi18-10 (V2A or 1.4301) has 0.05% carbon, 18% chromium (Cr) and 10% nickel (Ni)
X6CrNiMoTi17- 12-2(V4A or 1.4571) has 0.06% carbon, 17% chromium (Cr) and 12% nickel (Ni) and 2% molybdenum.
Frequently occurring names for stainless steel are V2A and V4A. The names are historical and are no longer clear today. The V stands for test (“Versuch”) and the A for austenite, a structural component of iron with a specific structure. The CrNi steel 1.4301 (X5CrNi18-10) offered by teknow is a V2A steel, the CrNiMo steel 1.4571 (X6CrNiMoTi17-12-2) falls under the V4A steels.
Stainless steel is a particularly pure, alloyed or unalloyed steel. In the case of the high-alloy stainless steels offered by teknow, alloying elements such as chromium, nickel, molybdenum and titanium are added. These are the steels known as “rustproof” in everyday use. The corrosion resistance is particularly determined by the chromium content, which must exceed 13%. Chromium reacts with oxygen and forms a passive layer of chromium oxide. In the event of mechanical damage, this layer forms again, the steel usually does not rust. Depending on the alloy, the passivation layer can be damaged by rust film, salt or chlorine and acids.