Cold Work Tool Steel – The Comprehensive FAQ Guide

Hot work tool steel is something that’s quite commonly heard in the steel industry, but cold work tool steel? – That might be something you’re not familiar with.

We know that steel isn’t formed in ice, so cold work tool steel might be a different term. That’s what we’ll be learning today! We will be discovering the real meaning behind what cold work tool steel is!

 Understanding What Cold Work Tool Steel Is

Contrary to popular belief, cold work tool steels aren’t steels that you form in ice or in temperatures that are below zero.

Example of what a cold work tool steel looks like

The reason why it’s labeled as “cold work” is because you use it to form, cut, and work on materials at low temperatures.

The term is also based off of hot work tool steels that are typically worked on temperatures that are upwards of 250 degrees Celsius.

You can already stop thinking about tool steels made within an environment below zero degrees!

Cold Work Tool Steel Uses  

Image of a punching and a blanking die

You can use cold work tool steel in a lot of different applications, some of which include:

• Piercing Dies
• Shears
• Rolls (Forming and Banding)
• Broaches
• Taps
• Blanking
• Gages
• And Many More

Since its hardness level peaks at 63 to 64 HRC at a tempered temperature of 150 degrees Celsius, you can find many uses for cold work tool steels!

What is the Difference Between Cold Work Tool Steel and Hot Work Tool Steel

Hot work tool steels are the tool steels you use to form, cut, and work on materials in highly elevated temperatures.

Hot work tool steel

On the other hand, cold work tool steels are the steels you use to work on substances and materials in regular room temperature.

Are There Custom Cold Work Tool Steels?

Yes, there are some manufacturers that offer customization on the product.

With this, you’d have to choose a manufacturer that has a team capable of helping you with your request.

Different Series of Cold Work Tools Steels

Unlike hot work, cold work tool steels are flexible. You can find many different series in it, such as the D series or the high-carbon and high-chromium steel, A series or the air-hardened steel, and the O series or oil-hardened steel.

Thanks to their high wear resistance and hardenability characteristics, you have the freedom to choose which one you need for the project or the workpiece you’ll be working on.

What is the Typical Composition of Cold Work Tool Steel?

Now that we know cold work tool steels are separated into different grades, it is quite obvious that the composition of alloying elements are different for each grade, too.

Image of an air-hardening steel machine

A-Series Cold Work Tool Steels

In the A-series or those made via air-hardening, the carbon content ranges from 0.45% to about 2.85%, Molybdenum at 0.90% up to 1.80%, and the Chromium at 0.90 to 5.75%.

D-Series Cold Work Tool Steels

The D-series or the high-carbon and high-chromium cold work tool steels boast of Cobalt levels between 2.50% to 3.50%, Molybdenum levels sitting at 1.40% to 2.50%, and Chromium at 11.00% to 13.50%.

O-Series Cold Work Tool Steels

Last, but most definitely not the least is the oil-hardening series, O-series cold work steels, for short. The carbon content is at 0.85% to 1.55%, Chromium at 0.40 to 0.8% (some grades maxed out at 0.50%), and the Molybdenum levels at just 0.20% to 0.30%.

Are Cold Work Tool Steels Expensive?

If we are to compare cold work tool steels with water-hardening and hot work tool steels, they’ll typically be more expensive. This is typically because of the alloying elements present in them.

However, the costs carry a lot in the advantage of having mechanical properties.

High Speed Steel (HSS) vs. Cold Work Tool Steel

In this comparison, we can also consider hot work tool steels since cold and hot work tool steels are under the same composition.

Example of what a high-speed steel (HSS) is

High speed steel is a type of steel that contains a high level of carbon with tungsten. More so, it’s also rich in vanadium and molybdenum.

The most common applications and uses for HSS include lathes, milling tools and equipment, and drill bits.

Tool steels, on the other hand, are usually aimed at making cold working tools. Should you use cold work tool steel in high temperature applications, it’ll eventually lose its hardness.

Cold work tool steels have this special feature of minimizing distortion during hardening. Also, since they’re not that hard, they’re less prone to cracks compared to HSS.

Those are just some of the few differences between tool steels (in the cold-work group) and high speed steel or HSS.

Get World-Class Quality Cold Work Tool Steel With Waldun

Are you looking for cold work tool steel that can change the course of your business for the better? Do you yearn to work with a manufacturer that can really give you what you need?

If yes, then don’t hesitate to work with China’s top cold work tool steel manufacturer – Waldun Steel!

We are the country’s most trusted and most sought after tool steel manufacturer; we never failed to help and assist any of our clients!

Get a Free Quote With Waldun Steel

Whether you’re in the Americas, Europe, Australia, Africa – or anywhere else in the world, we’ll be just an email or a call away.

Don’t worry about how much you need to pay for and settle – we’ll give you a free estimate!

Minimum Order Quantity (MoQ) of Waldun Steel

Here at Waldun Steel, we believe in the needs of our clients. That’s the reason why we don’t have an MoQ! We wouldn’t force you to purchase out of what your business needs.

So, if you’re interested in purchasing cold work tool steels wholesale or in retail, we got you! You can also trust us to provide custom cold work tool steels too!

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