SUS420 Stainless Steel: High Hardness for Tooling Applications

Key Properties & Benefits for Tooling

High Hardness: Achieves hardness up to 50 HRC or more, crucial for wear resistance and edge retention.

Excellent Wear Resistance: Its hardened structure withstands abrasion and deformation in demanding tooling applications.

Good Ductility (Annealed): Soft when annealed, allowing for shaping, but hardens significantly with heat treatment.

Moderate Corrosion Resistance: Offers sufficient protection for many environments, especially when polished or ground, and is used in corrosive molding applications.

Common Tooling Applications

Cutlery & Knives: Excellent for blades needing to hold a sharp edge.

Surgical & Dental Instruments: "Surgical steel" known for strength and hygiene.

Injection Mold Tooling: Ideal for mold inserts, especially with conformal cooling, due to hardness and rust resistance.

Hand Tools & Shear Blades: Used for scissors, shears, and other cutting tools.

Machine Parts: Suitable for wear parts, bushings, shafts, and pump/valve components.

Heat Treatment & Machining

Hardening: Involves heating and oil or air quenching, followed by tempering.

Tempering: Avoid the 425-600°C range; tempering within 150-370°C yields varied properties.

Machining: Easier in the annealed state; hardened material is more difficult, with Grade 416 being a more free-machining alternative.