What is A6 tool steel?

A6 is a medium-alloy tool steel that is noted for being able to be through hardened during low austenitizing temperatures that are typically used with oil-hardening tool steel grades . Other Characteristics of A6 Tool Steel Include: Excellent Dimensional Stability. Good Toughness.

What group of steels are air hardened medium alloy tool steels?

Air-hardening, medium alloy, cold work steels or Group A steels include types A2, A3, A4, A6, A7, A8, A9, and A10. Sufficient amounts of molybdenum, chromium and manganese are present in group A steels in order to obtain full hardness in sections having a thickness of at least 100 mm (4 in.)

Annealed hardness range is normally 235 to 245 Brinell . The hardening temperature range for A6 is from 1500'-1600°F. Tools with simple shapes may be heated directly to the hardening temperature from room temperature. A preheat of 1200-1250°F should be used for tools or intricate shapes.

Which grades of tool steel are cold worked steels?

There are three categories: Tough cold work steels (ie. 2767, 2550, 2358) Hard cold work steels (ie. 2510, 2363) High Carbide cold work steels (ie. 2379, 2080, 2436)

What is the difference between A6 and A36?

A6 is a broad standard for Rolled Structural Steel Bars, Plates, Shapes, and Sheet Piling. A36 is a specific standard for Carbon Structural Steel . Additional product speciﬁcation (including A36) prevail over those of A6 speciﬁcation.

What are the 6 grades of tool steel?

There are six groups of tool steels: water-hardening, cold-work, shock-resistant, high-speed, hot-work, and special purpose . The choice of group to select depends on cost, working temperature, required surface hardness, strength, shock resistance, and toughness requirements.

What is the toughest tool steel?

The hardest tool steels are those with a high vanadium content . The tool steel category with the highest percentage of vanadium is the cold working tool steel, which has excellent wear resistance.

Is 4140 considered tool steel?

4140 tool steel is available in the following thickness sizes and standard width sizes depicted in the tables below. Any non-standard thickness and width is available upon request.

What is the difference between alloy steel and tool steel?

Alloy steels have between 0.2 and 1.0% of carbon, while tool steels usually have 1%-2% . You can learn more about the influence of carbon in our article about carbon steel.

What is A6 stainless steel?

A6 is an AOD air hardened tool steel that has the ability of a low temperature heat treatment . It has improved wear resistance than the O series (oil hardened) tool steels. The combination of these properties lends itself well to a variety of applications that include dies and injection molding tooling.

What is equivalent to O6 tool steel?

Other designations that are equivalent to O6 tool steels include: ASTM A681 . FED QQ-T-570. SAE J437.

What is ASTM A6 material?

A6 Tool Steel A6 is intermediate in wear resistance between O1 oil-hardening tool steel and D2 high-carbon, high-chromium tool steel . APPLICATIONS: Blanking and forming dies, trim dies, bending and forming tools, mandrels, chuck jaws, tooling for plastic injection molding, dowel pins, shear knives, and gauges.

What is the difference between O1 and O6 tool steel?

O1 steel is weldable, but the alloy requires careful heating to avoid cracks. The type O6 alloy includes silicon and a higher chromium content . This highly machinable alloy exhibits exceptional metal-to-metal wear performance.

A6 Tool Steel - Air-Hardening, Medium-Alloy, Cold-Work Steels (2024)

Download PDF Copy
Request Quote

Sep 13 2012

Topics Covered

Introduction
Chemical Composition
Physical Properties
Mechanical Properties
Thermal Properties
Other Designations

Introduction

Steels of the type A2, A3, A4, A6, A7, A8, A9, and A10 are called air-hardening, medium alloy, cold work steels or group A steels. Sufficient amounts of manganese, molybdenum and chromium present in group A steels provide full hardness in sections comprising thickness of at least 100 mm (4 in.) in diameter when air cooled.

The carbon content group A steels range from 0.5 to 2%. These steels are provided with air hardening characteristics that allow minimum cracking and distortion on quenching.

The data below will provide an overview of A6 air-hardening, medium-alloy, cold-work tool steels.

Chemical Composition

The chemical composition of A6 tool steels is outlined in the following table.

Element	Content (%)
C	0.65-0.75
Mn	1.80-2.50
Si	0.5
Cr	0.90-1.20
Ni	0.3
Mo	0.90-1.40
Cu	0.25
P	0.03
S	0.03

Physical Properties

The following table shows the physical properties of A6 tool steels.

Properties	Metric	Imperial
Density	8.03 g/cm³	0.290 lb/in³

Mechanical Properties

The mechanical properties of A6 tool steels are displayed in the following table.

Properties	Metric	Imperial
Hardness, Rockwell C (as air quenched from 845°C, tempered for 2 hours. 61-62 HRC at 95°C temper, 60-61 HRC at 150°C temper, 58-59 HRC at 205°C temper, 56-57 HRC at 260°C temper, 55-56 HRC at 315°C temper, 52-53 HRC at 425°C temper, 50-51 HRC at 480°C temper, 48-49 HRC at 540°C temper)	61.0-62.0	61.0-62.0
Bulk modulus (typical for steels)	140 GPa	20300 ksi
Machinability (based on carbon tool steel)	65%	65%
Shear modulus (estimated from elastic modulus)	77.0 GPa	11200 ksi
Poisson's ratio	0.27-0.30	0.27-0.30
Elastic modulus	190-210 GPa	27557-30457 ksi

Thermal Properties

The thermal properties of A6 tool steels are given in the following table.

Properties		Conditions
Properties		T (°C)	Treatment
Thermal expansion	11.5 x 10^-6/ºC	20-100	-

Other Designations

Equivalent materials to A2 tool steels are:

ASTM A68i
FED QQ-T-570
UNS T30i06
ASTM A681 (A-6)
UNS T30106

Download PDF Copy
Request Quote

Tell Us What You Think

Do you have a review, update or anything you would like to add to this article?

Leave your feedback

(Logout)

Puncture Fixture Equipment - Features and Applications

This product profile describes the features and applications of the Admet's puncture fixture equipment

From Admet, Inc. - Materials Testing Equipment

HMK-CD4 Nano Particle Size Analyzer

This product profile describes the features and application of the HMK-CD4 Nano Particle Size Analyzer with a Size range of 1 nm~10,000 nm

From AIMSIZER SCIENTIFIC PTE.LTD.

Defender™ Omega Handheld Raman Analyzer

Ensure safe and rapid identification of explosives, chemical warfare agents, narcotics, and various chemicals using the Thermo Scientific Defender™ Omega Handheld Raman Analyzer. This highly versatile handheld analyzer allows for user-configurable scan profiles and expandable libraries, empowering users with flexible and customizable detection capabilities. Stay ahead with reliable and efficient chemical analysis in the palm of the hand.

From

1Flame-Retardant Transparent Bamboo Outperforms Silica Glass

2Eco-Friendly Zinc Battery Targets Global Electricity Access

3Smart Contact Lenses Offer Real-Time Pressure Data

4Global Textile Designer Unveils First Printed Wool Collection Using Digital Print Technology

5New Smart Adhesive with Unmatched Strength and Versatility

6New Photocatalyst to Improve Decarbonization and Other Chemical Reactions

Using Vibration Control to Improve Your Microscope's Performance

From Kinetic Systems, Inc. 20 May 2024

Sustainable Battery Manufacturing: Industry 4.0 Solutions

17 May 2024

Battery Cell Characterization: Electrochemical and Prismatic Cells

17 May 2024

Creating Superhydrophobic Surfaces with Plasma Treatment

From Harrick Plasma 17 May 2024

Editorial Highlights

The Current State of the Global Semiconductor Market

The global semiconductor market has entered an exciting period. Demand for chip technology is both driving the industry as well as hindering it, with current chip shortages predicted to last for some time. Current trends will likely shape the future of the industry, which is set to continue to show

How are Graphene Batteries Made?

The primary distinction between graphene-based batteries and solid-state batteries lies in the composition of either electrode. Although the cathode is commonly changed, carbon allotropes can also be employed in fabricating anodes.

What Role Will The IoT Play In The Electric Vehicle Industry?

In recent years, the IoT is rapidly being introduced into almost all sectors, but it has particular importance in the EV industry.

Newsletters you may be interested in

3D Printing
(Subscribe or Preview)
Advanced Alloys
(Subscribe or Preview)
Heat Treatment
(Subscribe or Preview)

See all Newsletters »

Terms

While we only use edited and approved content for Azthena answers, it may on occasions provide incorrect responses. Please confirm any data provided with the related suppliers or authors. We do not provide medical advice, if you search for medical information you must always consult a medical professional before acting on any information provided.

Your questions, but not your email details will be shared with OpenAI and retained for 30 days in accordance with their privacy principles.

Please do not ask questions that use sensitive or confidential information.

Read the full .