A2 Tool Steel Heat Treat Shrinkage

A 5 chromium steel which provides high hardness after heat treatment with good dimensional stability.

A2 tool steel heat treat shrinkage.

An uddeholm data sheet shows that when d 2 tool steel 3 15 x 3 15 x 3 15 is austenitized at 1 870 degrees f for 30 minutes and quenched in a vacuum furnace with 2 bar nitrogen overpressure it grows in one dimension while shrinking in the other two. A2 tool steel is a versatile air hardening tool steel that is characterized by good toughness and excellent dimensional stability in heat treatment a2 is intermediate in wear resistance between o1 oil hardening tool steel and d2 high carbon high chromium tool steel. A2 tool steel is a 5 chromium medium alloy cold work tool steel possessing sufficient hardenability to be air hardened to 60 rc surface hardness level with good depth of hardening. The more highly alloyed grades such as h13 s7 a2 d2 and the high speed steels require multiple tempering cycles.

This widely used tool steel has low distortion in heat treatment good machinability good toughness for severe service high abrasion resistance and deep. Aisi a2 tool steel is high carbon high alloy tool steel designed to have excellent wear resistance and toughness. Plan for size change during heat treatment. Then heat to 1300 1400 f 704 760 c and equalize.

The prefix a in the name designates it as an air hardening steel. A2 steel is an air hardening cold work tool steel. For example an 80 mm 3 15 cube of d 2 tool steel fig. D 2 is a transformation hard ening tool steel that requires both a hardening and tempering step during the heat treating process.

Soaking time should always be after the steel has caught up with the furnace tempera. For complex and large tools heat to 1150 1250 f 621 677 c and equalize. Figure 2 shows the dimensional change of d 2 tool steel during tempering. For simple geometries use only the second preheating temperature range.

The dimensional changes on hardening figure 1 and tempering figure 2 p. Shrinkage and loss of magnetic properties. Heat treating steel chart. The steel is composted of 1 percent carbon 3 percent silicon 6 percent manganese 5 3 percent chromium 1 1 percent molybdenum and 2 percent vanadium.

A rule of thumb is that liquid quenched. 2 reveals growth 0 08 in one dimension and shrinkage in the other two dimensions as a result of vacuum hardening. Heat at a rate not exceeding 400 f per hour 222 c per hour. A simplified guide to heat treating tool steels.

It is heat treatable and will offer a hardness in the range 57 62 hrc.