We Distribute the Following Grades of Aluminum
Steel 1 Company offers the following grades of Aluminum in addition to the other alloys we carry in stock: 2011 Aluminum, 6061 Aluminum, 7075 Aluminum, Fortal® Aluminum, QC-10® Aluminum, MIC 6® Aluminum and Laminated Shim Stock. Steel 1 company wants to be your favorite Aluminum supplier. We offer 1 – 2 day turnaround on your Aluminum order and secondary operations in most cases on the Aluminum alloys we distribute. Aluminum meets manufacturing requirements for reduced weight, higher thermal conductivity, speed and ease of machinability.
Aluminum Grades We Distribute
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2011 Aluminum – This is an age-hardenable alloy noted for its free-machining characteristics and good mechanical properties. This is a free-machining alloy and both carbide or high-speed tool steel tooling may be used. Carbide tooling is preferred. Rake angles should be 50 degrees for top rake, 32 degree cutting edge, 15 degree side rake and 10 degree clearance. Oils should be used for heavy cutting, Light cutting may be done dry.
6061 Aluminum – Commonly used in the manufacture of heavy-duty structures requiring good corrosion resistance, truck and marine components, railroad cars, furniture, tank fittings, general structural and high pressure applications, wire products, and in pipelines. Machinability in the harder T4 and T6 tempers is good. It is notably less easy to machine in the annealed temper.
7075 Aluminum – 7075 Alumninum is one of the highest strength aluminum alloys available. 7075 Aluminum is definitely a work horse due to it’s strength and versatility. The 7075 Aluminum alloy is capable of high strength due to heat treating in the development process. Because of heat treating, 7075 Aluminum is one of the highest strength Aluminum alloys available. It also has excellent properties at low temperatures. It is best to machine this alloy in the annealed condition. Machining capability is good and oil lubricants should be used. The strength-to-weight ratio of 7075 Aluminum is excellent, and is more than capable of supporting metal designs that require high tensile strength. 7075 is also a perfect Aluminum choice for highly stressed structural parts.
Fortal® Aluminum – With thicknesses starting at .500 Fortal® is a great material solution for any project that requires high resistance to corrosion, superior energy absorption and a consistent product that rarely deforms during machining and usage.
Fortal® is an ideal choice for all types of products and tooling due to its versatility. Fortal® is a higher strength Aluminum and will machine and EDM faster than Steel. It also has a high polishability resulting in a uniform surface finish. Fortal® is lighter in weight by about 40% – 50% than other more conventional tool materials which is a faster setup, easier handling and less wear and tear on your presses.
QC-10® Aluminum – QC-10® Aluminum Strength characteristics remain very consistent from 8 through 24 in., improving machining performance as it retains high strength through the plate thickness. QC-10® Aluminum was developed by Alcoa specifically for production injection molds.
In addition to QC-10® Aluminum’s increased strength, the alloy offers performance improvement characteristics that make it a suitable mold material. With better corrosion resistance than traditionally used Aluminum mold alloys, QC-10® Aluminum reduces maintenance time and is compatible with more than 75 percent of resins used in the marketplace.
Compared to other mold materials like P20 steel and copper beryllium, Aluminum offers the collective properties desired by designers, including excellent thermal conductivity and machinability. Benefits mold makers and molders will receive using Alcoa’s QC-10® Aluminum alloy include:
-Reduce cycle time by 25-30 percent in comparison to P20 steel. With five times the thermal conductivity of steel, Aluminum reduces required cooling times and improves dimensional control of the molded part.
-Reduced mold production time. As a mold material, QC-10® Aluminum can be machined and polished more rapidly than P20 steel and beryllium copper alloys.
-Maximized machining performance. QC-10® Aluminum is supplied tempered to full hardness without the need for additional heat treatment after machining. QC-10® Aluminum is stress relieved to remove a majority of the residual stresses. QC-10® Aluminum’s strength characteristics remain very consistent from 8 through 24 in., improving machining performance as it retains high strength through the plate thickness.
-In addition to its increased strength, the alloy offers performance improvement characteristics that make it a suitable mold material. With better corrosion resistance than traditionally used Aluminum mold alloys, QC-10® Aluminum reduces maintenance time and is compatible with more than 75 percent of resins used in the marketplace.
QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy represents Alcoa’s latest proprietary alloy. Developed for its outstanding thick section strength characteristics, QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy’s high purity composition and quench insensitive microstructure allows minimal drop-off in strength from 2”-24” section thicknesses.
Advanced Alloy Design – High purity Aluminum is alloyed with tightly controlled measures of alloying elements resulting in a quench insensitive microstructure. This provides excellent machinability with consistent through thickness hardness critical for holding a sharp edge along the parting line.
Master Processing Techniques – Equipped with the largest forging presses in the world, Alcoa is capable of forging QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy in sizes never before available as a wrought product. Block thicknesses up to 24” offer the strength and hardness consistent with rolled plate.
Rolled QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy is available in gauge ranges of 2” to 6” and mechanically stretched to assure low residual stress in the final product.
Core-Tuff™ Technology – The combination of Alcoa’s advanced alloy design and forging techniques is what differentiates QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy Forged Mold Block from other Aluminum alloys. Core-Tuff™ gives QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy the strength where it matters, in the middle of the block. How it is differentiate from P20 steel is it offers the thermal conductivity of Aluminum with the strength required for production tooling.
QC-10® Aluminum – Superior Machining Performance – Saves Time and Money
QC-10® Aluminum is a high strength, machinable alloy. For rough milling, QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy outperformed P20 steel allowing cutting speeds up to 10x’s faster. Cutting tests also demonstrate that a better surface finish was achieved when milling QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy than P20 steel for the same cutting conditions in both rough and finish milling. Even at higher material removal rates, QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy had better tool life performance than P20 steel.
QC-10® Aluminum – Outstanding Thermal Management
QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy has 5x’s better heat transfer than P20 steel. Aluminum’s ability to take on as well as give up heat allows plastic molders to run their machinery much more efficiently. Aluminum’s ability to manage temperature evenly across the surface of a mold completely eliminates hot spots resulting in better formed plastic parts with less residual stress.
MIC 6® – Aluminum – MIC 6® Aluminum Cast Plate is a blend of the most desirable features of many individual metals. The result is a cast Aluminum plate that meets the challenge of product accuracy demanded by today’s industry.
Because of its cast granular structure and stress relieving properties, MIC 6® Aluminum Cast Plate allows high-speed metal removal with little, if any, of the distortion commonly inherent in long grained wrought, flat-rolled metals.
Using proper Aluminum machining methods, tolerances in the thousandths can be consistently maintained. MIC 6® Aluminum Cast Plate is finished to 20 micro-inches typical on both sides. Thickness tolerances is within +/-.005″ from nominal on 1/4″- 4″.
Flatness tolerance is maintained within .015″ on 1/4″-5/8″ thickness and .005″ on 3/4″- 4″ thickness. Thermal Cycling can be performed up to 800° F under controlled conditions.
MIC6® Aluminum Cast Plate is produced by continuous casting with each thickness individually cast. By utilizing the most recent developments in casting techniques, the molten metal is continuously fed, eliminating defects from lapses and seams. Thermal gradients are stabilized since heat is removed from both plate surfaces at a balanced rate. The employment of a SNIF filtering and degassing system ensures an end product free of voids and impurities.
LAMINATED SHIM STOCK – Made by using pressure and resin / adhesive to bond metal shim together which creates a rigid, “one piece” structure / formation that appears to function as a single solid metal sheet or plate.
Steel 1 Company LLC also offers in addition to our metal alloy distribution 1 -2 day distribution services the following 1 -2 day secondary opperations on all of our metal alloys:
High Speed CNC machining, EDM, Wire EDM, Metal Fabrication, Flame – Laser – Plasma Cutting, Blanchard Grinding, Centerless Grinding, Mattison Grinding and Saw Cutting.