Treatment FAQ

what heat treatment is used for leaf spring?

by Nathanial King Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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A leaf spring material is heated to 900° ± 25°C. After the temperature of the material reaches 875°C, it is kept for 5 - 10 minutes. After taking out the heated material from the furnace, oxide scale adhered to the surface is removed. Then it is conveyed to the next step.

Full Answer

What is heat treating spring steel?

Heat treating spring steel produces the most effective elastic limit along with best fatigue properties. The surface conditions should be sound and smooth. Corrosion and decarburisation are very detrimental to fatigue strength of steel springs. Removal of the decarburised layer increases the fatigue limits.

What is the maximum temperature at which leaf springs are tempered?

Whereas, Leaf springs of thicknesses 1-3 mm are tempered at 300 to 400°C. The 300°C tempering range for springs (not subjected to impact blows) show a maximum value of yield point at 300°C. Apart from high hardenability, alloy steels generally have a higher elastic limit and better fatigue life than carbon steels.

What is the best temperature to heat treat grain?

Because the hardness was flat above 1500°F, grain growth is more likely. 1525°F is the recommended temperature of heat treatment in the ASM Heat Treater’s Guide. With tempering there was a peak in toughness with a temperature of 400°F, with slightly less using a 375°F temper.

Are my leaf springs 5160 or 5160?

The springs are most likely 5160 if the truck is less than 30 years old, but even then they may be something else. The key here is that whatever it is it has to respond to the same heat treatment recipe as 5160 in such a way as to make a functional leaf spring.

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Are leaf springs heat treated?

Leaf springs are already heat-treated, ideal for absorbing shocks, but I dont't think they will have good edge retention.

Is 5160 heat treat easy?

5160 has very good toughness with a heat treatment using an austenitizing temperature of 1500-1525°F and tempered at 375-400°F. That results in 58.5-59.5 Rc and very high toughness when heat treated with a cryo step. Skipping cryo may improve toughness slightly with a drop in hardness but this was not tested.

How are springs heat treated?

As soon as it's been coiled, it's taken off of the shaft and dipped into oil to cool it and quickly harden it. The coiling process causes stress in the wire, which is alleviated by stress relieving – heating the spring in an oven for a specific amount of time at a set temperature and then allowing it to cool slowly.

How do you heat treat steel for a spring?

Forging is done from 1050°C to finish at 850°C. The hot forming to springs is done at 920-830°C. Annealing is done 640-680°C. The main heat treatment requires slow heating to 830-860°C in a neutral atmosphere to be oil-quenched to 42-48 HRC and then tempered at 430-500°C.

What is the tempering temperature range for spring coil and leaf?

The material temperature is 730°C to 800°C. Thereafter, the tempering is performed at 400°C ± 10°C while the material is subjected to stress peening at 140 Kg/mm of initial stress.

Do you have to heat treat 1095 steel?

0:218:20How to Easily Heat Treat 1095 High Carbon Steel for Knife MakingYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThat's very hard you're going to want to soften that or anneal it first before working it to do thatMoreThat's very hard you're going to want to soften that or anneal it first before working it to do that you basically heat it up to non-magnetic. And then let it cool at room temperature.

Do springs need to be heat treated?

0:000:51Should you heat treat a spring? Mid-west Spring - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipWe don't heat treat Springs typically. It's not something that's necessary what people get confusedMoreWe don't heat treat Springs typically. It's not something that's necessary what people get confused with is stress relieved Springs or wire has a memory. Once you change that memory you add stresses.

Will heating a spring weaken it?

Registered. Heating the spring will only soften the metal not give you a softer spring,the only way to achieve a softer spring within the same overall dimensions is to use a smaller gauge wire.

What is the tempered temperature of a spring?

300-500°CTempering of spring steels (300-500°C): used for spring steels or similar applications. Typically, hardness requirement is around 45 HRC. High temperature (500°C or higher): used for quenched and tempered steels, hot working tool steels and high speed steel.

What grade is leaf spring steel?

GradesSAE grade (ASTM grade)CompositionHardness (HRC)Typical1080 (A228)0.7–1.0% C, 0.2–0.6% Mn, 0.1–0.3% Si1095 (A684)0.90–1.03% C, 0.30–0.50% Mn, max. 0.030% P, max. 0.035% S48–515160 (A689)0.55–0.65% C, 0.75–1.00% Mn, 0.70–0.90% Cr5 more rows

What is 5160 high carbon steel?

Alloy Steel 5160H, also known as AISI 5160H or SAE 5160, it is a high carbon chromium spring steel. 5160 is very common alloy and has been used in spring manufacturing for more than 100 years. 5160H is typically utilized in spring applications where larger material diameters are required.

Does tempering reduce hardness?

Tempering Applications Tempering is commonly performed after hardening to reduce excess hardness, since untampered steel is very hard yet too brittle for most industrial applications. Tempering can change ductility, hardness, strength, structural stability and toughness.

What are the different types of heat treatment?

There are three major types of heat treatment often used in spring manufacturing: Annealing. Stress Relieving.

Why do springs anneal?

Annealing is usually done by spring manufacturers if a metal that has a low tensile strength needs to be significantly worked.

Shaping the Spring

Start with a flat piece of annealed spring steel and lay out all of the lines and any screw holes the spring may need. If you are lucky enough to have the broken spring or a copy of the one you need, take measurements and transcribe them to your working piece using layout fluid.

Hardening Gun Springs

To heat-treat flat gun springs, evenly heat the steel up to a bright or cherry red using a carburizing flame and quench in oil. That is the simplest way to describe the process, but there is a lot to consider when doing it.

Tempering Gun Springs

Tempering a gun spring is not that difficult once you have a little practice. The tempering process creates toughness and flexibility and reduces hardness and brittleness. Prior to tempering, use a wire brush or wheel to clean any scaling off of the spring.

Testing the Gun Spring

Testing a spring is always a little nerve-wracking. Although it isn’t that hard to make one, you’ve probably been told over and over again how difficult it can be. Some people, including myself, will make two or three of the same springs every time. That way I have two spares in case something happens to the first one.

What are leaf springs made of?

Leaf springs here in the US can be made from a lot of different alloys but, the 5160 steel is most common. One of the other steels that leaf springs could be made of is capable of being hardened in water, especially in thicker sections such as hot cuts. That is one of the drawbacks of working with recycled steels - you never know exactly what it is unless you send it to a laboratory and have it tested. Keeping that in mind, the advice you have been given here is the safest way to get what you are after. Whatever you do, it is your knife and up to you but, having it crack in the quench is always a bummer. The rest of us here have had enough hard earned experience to want to save you from that heartbreak if we can.

What temperature do you temper a straw yellow?

A straw yellow, but that color comes at 350F for me. And colors usually very. Its a time and temp. thing. But if I was going to draw the spine with a torch, I would quench into warm oil, then temper in a oven at 350F for an hour, 3 times, then I would draw the spine with a touch to blue, with the edge in water.

Why does toughness drop when tempering?

The drop in toughness when tempering at 450°F is because of “tempered martensite embrittlement” which is described in this article.

What temperature is the lowest hardness?

The lowest hardness was measured with the lowest austenitizing temperature (1475°F), as expected. However, hardness was relatively flat from 1500-1575°F, indicating that more carbide was dissolved by increasing from 1475 to 1500°F austenitizing temperature, but that there was not a significant change above that temperature.

What temperature is 5160?

5160 has very good toughness with a heat treatment using an austenitizing temperature of 1500-1525°F and tempered at 375-400°F. That results in 58.5-59.5 Rc and very high toughness when heat treated with a cryo step. Skipping cryo may improve toughness slightly with a drop in hardness but this was not tested. The prior processing used in this study (forging temperature, normalizing, and annealing) is recommended to ensure the same results, but the heat treatment may still work with annealed barstock used for stock removal.

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