Alloys Hardware Products manufactures custom compression springs, extension springs, flat springs, torsion springs, wireforms, retaining rings and more using the following alloys: Beryllium Copper A Copper based alloy able of withstanding the high stresses necessary in springs. It is typically used where electrical conductivity is coupled with mechanical spring usage. Typically in applications such as switches, measuring instruments and the like. Brass (Spring) Used where electrical conductivity is important but repeated spring cycling is not required. Lowest cost of the copper based alloys. Bronze A copper base alloy that has good electrical conductivity but with only limited cycle life. Carbon 1010 Also a low carbon steel where there is very little need for deflection or multiple cycling Carbon 1050 A medium carbon steel again typically used for stamping type applications where the need for deflection is minimal – but the number of cycles is up from the low carbon steels Carbon 1075 Available either in the soft or annealed condition where the spring (usually with sharp bends) is formed first and then hardened and tempered afterwards. Or it is available in a hardened and tempered condition and is used in spring formation where there are no sharp bends. Carbon 1095 This is the highest carbon content available steel on a regularly attainable basis. As with 1075 carbon, it is available either in the annealed or spring tempered condition depending on the type of spring to be manufactured. Carbon Valve Carbon Valve wire is a carbon steel spring wire of a similar composition to Oil Tempered MB but is inspected every foot for seams and deformations because the applications are so critical that wire imperfections are not allowable. Chromel A (R) This is a wire that is used in heating elements. Spring companies do not normally work with this material when a spring is required. But some heating elements need wire formed in such a configuration that the spring manufacturing equipment is the best way to form it. In such cases the Chromel A is used. Copper This is virtually 100% copper and is usually softer than most spring manufacturing materials. It is used when the application is not so much that of a spring as it is is that spring manufacturing equipment is required to form the material in the appropriate configuration. Elgiloy (R) This is a cobalt-chromium-nickel-iron alloy developed by and trademarked by the Elgiloy Corporation. It is a nonmagnetic alloy suitable for below freezing and or elevated temperature environments. It is also suitable for caustic environments due to its corrosive resistance. Hard Drawn Hard Drawn wire is really called Hard Drawn Medium Basic. It is the least expensive of the Medium Basic Wires and is used in the manufacture of springs where a higher tolerance and/or a lower stress are required. Hastelloy (R) Hastelloy is a nickel-molybdenum-iron alloy developed to be a highly corrosive resistant alloy and can be used where spring properties are needed in a highly caustic environment. Hastelloy C (R) Hastelloy C is also a nickel-based alloy developed to be highly corrosive resistant. It can resist corrosion from caustic gasses, strong oxidizing compounds and sulfuric acid. It has just slightly lower tensile strength than hastelloy. Inconel 600 (R) Inconel 600 is a nonmagnetic nickel-chromium alloy which is cold drawn to high tensile strength condition for its spring properties. It can be used in moderate heat, but cannot be heat-treated for additional strength Inconel 625 (R) Inconel 625 is a highly specialized alloy used for very specific purposes and is quite similar to Inconel 600 Inconel 718 (R) Inconel 718 is a non-magnetic nickel-chromium alloy which is a precipitation hardenable alloy that can be cold drawn to high tensile strengths and then heat-treated for even greater strength Inconel X-750(R) Inconel X-750 is a non-magnetic nickel chromium alloy which has small amounts of other elements added to make it precipitation hardenable. It can operate in a high temperature environment with out relaxation MP35N MP35N is a high nickel alloy that is used for specific purposes where corrosive resistance is required. It is less common than other high nickel alloys and is therefore more expensive and used sparingly. Monel 400 (R) A nearly nonmagnetic nickel base alloy made of nickel and copper. It has a fairly high tensile strength for good spring properties and is reasonably corrosive resistant. Monel K-500 (R) Like Monel 400 it is a nickel and copper base alloy but it can be formed in a softer condition for applications with more bending required and then hardened after forming. It too has a good corrosive resistance. Music Wire Music Wire is high carbon steel that is cold worked for its tensile strength. It is the most common of all spring steels in smaller sizes where superior quality is required. Because it is cold formed, its surface is better conditioned to receive electro-plating for corrosive situations than other high carbon steels. Ni-Span C This is a nickel-iron-chromium-titanium alloy that is a popular constant modulus alloy. It can be formed first and then precipitation hardened for uniformity. Oil Tempered MB Oil Tempered MB (for Medium Basic) is one of the most widely used carbon steels for the manufacture of larger wire size springs. It is available in a wide variety of sizes but because it is more porous than music wire it is not recommended to be electro-plated. Oil Tempered Chrome Silicon Chrome Silicon is considered alloy steel. It has small amounts of chromium and silicon added to it which makes it the most readily available carbon steel capable of achieving very high stresses. It must be heat treated within two hours of any forming and is therefore only used where the high stress requirement is a necessity. Oil Tempered Chrome Vanadium Chrome Vanadium is considered alloy steel. It has small amounts of both chromium and vanadium added to it which allows it to withstand higher operating stresses than Oil Tempered Medium Basic although not quite as high as chrome silicon. It is easier to use than chrome silicon and is therefore more popular where stress limits are within stated parameters. Phosphor Bronze Most extensively used of the copper base spring alloys. It is good for electrical conductivity and has the ability to withstand repeated cycling. Stainless Steel Type 17-7 Type 17-7 Stainless is a precipitation hardenable stainless steel capable of handling higher stress applications than other grades of stainless steel. It is subject to cracking if it is deflected down to solid height and so care must be taken to make sure that the spring does not go down to solid. Stainless Steel Type 301 Stainless Steel Type 301 is the most common of the 300 series stainlesses in strip. It is able to withstand the high stresses necessary in spring applications in a flat spring environment. Stainless Steel Type 302 Type 302 is the most common of the round spring wire stainlesses. It is capable of moderate corrosion resistance such as from regular water but can corrode over time and is not recommended for salt-water applications. Stainless Steel Type 308 Type 308 is commonly used in welding applications and therefore welding rings are frequently formed of 308 and then put into the application where a weld is needed. Stainless Steel Type 316 Type 316 is more resistant to corrosion than type 302 stainless especially in the presence of different types of salts. It has design parameters with approximately 15 percent lower design stresses than type 302 stainless. Stainless Steel Type 410 This type of stainless is used where a 400 series stainless is desired and where stress limits do not have to be as high. It typically has stress design parameters 15% lower than 302 stainless. Stainless Steel Type 420 This is the type of stainless generally used in large diameters. It is frequently formed in the annealed condition and then hardened after forming. View Catalog Request A Quote!