If you need fasteners like partially or fully threaded studs, you have several choices to make. For example, not all carbon steel bolts are the same, and some come from cold drawn carbon steel while others are from hot drawn carbon steel. Also, you may need stainless steel for some components. Here is a look at these three options to help you decide.
Hot Drawn Steel
A hot roll mill uses extremely hot steel billets (hotter than 900 Celsius). This ensures that the steel is hotter than its recrystallization point. It makes the steel easy to form and shape. Heated steel passes through rollers and turns into bars or sheets at various thicknesses. As the hot drawn steel cools, it shrinks some, and the shrinking process is not completely uniform. Although shrinking is minimal, it makes hot drawn products unsuitable for high tolerance parts.
Hot rolling produces cost-effective steel, and it’s often used in welding, bolts, and components which don’t need exact tolerances. It’s perfect for steel beams and railroad tracks.
Cold Drawn Steel
Cold drawn steel begins as hot rolled steel, except it goes through more steps. Once hot rolled steel cools off, it’s sent through rollers to receive a better finish and more uniform dimensions. Cold drawn products are more expensive because they need more processing. However, they have a smooth and oily finish, are uniform, and this makes them good for exact dimensions, like fully threaded studs with high thread tolerances.
Stainless Steel
304 stainless steel is commonly used for partial and fully threaded studs. Cold rolled stainless steel is strong and highly resistant to corrosion. If you plan to use your steel fasteners in a corrosive environment, stainless steel is usually the best choice. In fact, in the food industry, stainless steel is the standard material used.
