You have most likely encountered the 18/8, 18/10, and 18/0 grades of stainless steel more than you realize. These steels are used in everything from the pipes that may have brought you the water for your morning coffee to the teaspoon you use to stir it with. Needless to say, these are very valuable materials in the world of manufacturing and are some of the most popular among Xometry customers.
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For a quick overview of the differences between these three grades, we&#;ve outlined what each stainless steel grade consists of chemically, what it&#;s great (and not-so-good) at, and the ways in which Xometry&#;s services can be beneficial to processing stainless steel for your own business.
This kind of stainless steel is a member of the 300 grouping, and its most common and popular grade is 304. Its name basically gives away its composition&#;it&#;s got around 18% chromium and 8% nickel. Also included is roughly 67% iron, and a tiny trace of carbon (about 0.07%). It&#;s also part of the austenitic steel family, meaning they have better corrosion resistance than other families of stainless steel and can&#;t be hardened through heat treatments. That being said, it falters slightly in corrosion resistance when it comes to sitting in or being constantly exposed to saltwater.
This grade has an extra perk in that it&#;s food safe, meaning it can be made into cookware, like pots and pans, utensils and cutlery, and even those sleek stainless steel cooking worktops you find in restaurants. To make this grade, all the ingredients, including the alloying elements, have to be mixed together and then melted in an electric furnace. This part of the process takes around 8&#;12 hours. After that, it has to go through decarburization, which is basically getting rid of any carbon that has been left over, and this is done with argon or oxygen. It&#;s then poured into molds so that it can harden in the needed shape and size.
Types of Stainless Steel:
Choosing the right standard of cutlery is important. Generally, there are two types of steel used in cutlery manufacture: 18/10 (304) and 18/0 (430), with knives always made from 13/0 (420).
In its most basic form, steel is just iron and carbon. Chromium is added to the iron to make it resistant to rust. When the chromium content is higher than 11%, the steel is referred to as &#;stainless steel&#;, i.e. the steel will not naturally rust. A higher chromium content will make the steel more resistant to rust.
For more Ergonomic Stainless Steel Cutleryinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.
18/10 Steel (304) &#; Steel containing ~18% Chromium and ~10% Nickel. The steel most highly resistant to corrosion and to wear and tear. The nickel however adds a price premium to the steel.
18/0 Steel (430) &#; Steel containing ~18% Chromium, which is very resistant to corrosion. Typically 18/0 is cheaper than 18/10 due to the lack of Nickel in the steel, however this comes at a cost of stain resistance.
13/0 (420) &#; Steel containing ~13% Chromium, which makes the steel less resistant to corrosion, although the low alloy allows the steel to be hardened, which makes it suitable for use as a knife. All patterns referred to as 18/10 actually use 13/0 for the table and dessert knives.
Thickness and Gauge
Our patterns of cutlery are separated by the thickness of the steel (gauge). The thicker or heavier the pattern of cutlery is, the more steel is used and the prices are higher.
Forged and stamped cutlery are made in fundamentally different ways which further affects the pricing.
Forged cutlery is made from metal blocks that are heated then pressed into shape. Bigger pieces of steel are used, which, added to the need to heat the steel to maleable temperatures during production, significantly adds to the costs of manufacturing. The advantage of forged cutlery is that the knives, spoons and forks all have lovely, rounded handles and very heavy weights.
Stamped cutlery, is cut and pressed out of rolls of sheet steel. It is the most common and easiest way to make cutlery. We delineate our cutlery by the thickness of the steel. 2.5mm for the thinnest and 3.5mm for more deluxe patterns.
For more information, please visit Wedding Stainless Steel Flatware.