What is Forging

Mechanical deformation of metal when heated to a plastic state. Manufacturing process in which a piece of metal is formed into the desired shape by hammering, pressing, rolling, squeezing, and other such operations in one or more forging equipment.

Why Forging
Forging is a superior to casting or machining bar stock since the metals natural grain flow is made to conform to the shape of the product, but forgings are superior in tensile and shear loads due to the utilization of the grain flow.

Methods of forging Cold Cold forging involves either impression die forging or true closed die forging with lubricant and circular dies at or near room temperature. Carbon and standard alloy steels are most commonly cold-forged. Parts are generally symmetrical and rarely exceed 25 lb. The primary advantage is the material savings achieved through precision shapes that require little finishing. Completely contained impressions and extrusion-type metal flow yield draftless, close-tolerance components. Production rates are very high with exceptional die life. While cold forging usually improves mechanical properties, the improvement is not useful in many common applications and economic advantages remain the primary interest. Tool design and manufacture are critical. Advantages
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Net and near-net parts - reduce or eliminate machining Reduces raw material waste - No Flash! Low scrap rates -0- PPM rejections Tight tolerances with forged centers if required Excellent surface finish with no scale! Utilize turned and polished bar - no decarb! Improved physical properties by refining grain structure Eliminates subsequent heat treating Average press uptime = 94% Forged in centers can eliminate end mill and center operations

Warm Warm forging has a number of cost-saving advantages which underscore its increasing use as a manufacturing method. The temperature range for the warm forging of steel runs from above room temperature to below the recrystallization temperature, or from about 800 to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. However, the narrower range of from 1,000 to 1,330 degrees Fahrenheit is emerging as the range of perhaps the greatest commercial potential for warm forging. Compared with cold forging, warm forging has the potential advantages of: reduced tooling loads, reduced press loads, increased steel ductility, elimination of need to anneal prior to forging, and favorable asforged properties that can eliminate heat treatment. Hot Hot forging is the plastic deformation of metal at a temperature and strain rate such that recrystallization occurs simultaneously with deformation, thus avoiding strain hardening. For this to occur, high work piece temperature (matching the metal's re crystallization temperature) must be attained throughout the process. A form of hot forging is isothermal forging, where materials and dies are heated to the same temperature. In nearly all cases, isothermal forging is conducted on super alloys in a vacuum or highly controlled atmosphere to prevent oxidation.

Types of Forging

Closed Die Forging

In closed die forging, a negative image of the part to be made is sunk into a die steel block or pair of blocks. The die set is keyed or otherwise clamped into a press or hammer which supplies the energy for the deformation. This method is used to make everything from cutlery and automotive parts to parts for aircraft engines. Figure 1 shows a cut away cross section of a pair of press dies used to make a gear blank (This is over-simplified for discussion purposes since in reality there would be a series of dies of increasing refinement leading up to the finished forging). After forging in the impression dies the flash or excess metal is trimmed off in a press. Flash is metal that has been expelled from the die cavity during forging- Its not necessarily waste but becomes trapped in the flashline between the dies and aids in filling the die cavity by creating a restriction that tends to keep the bulk of the metal in the cavity.

Figure 1 Gear blank dies

Closed die forging is often done in the cold state ("Cold Forging") or at somewhat elevated temperatures but still below the "red hot" temperatures required to put the material into a plastic state ("Warm Forging")

Open Die Forging

Open Die Forging is more akin to the ancient art of blacksmithing and is used to manufacture products like gear and bearing blanks in smaller "non-production" quantities; shafting for purposes like ship propulsion or power generating machinery. Other applications are Oil tools, parts for agricultural and construction equipment and special tools and dies for the automotive suppliers. Some of the common shapes produced with this technique are rings, discs, blocks, bars, and step-down shafts or spindles. Figure 2

Discs, Blocks, Bars & Shafts or Spindles

Rings

Ring Rolling
Ring rolling is related to both open die and closed die forging, depending on the nature of the parts being produced. For example, a ring with a simple rectangular crossection can be produced using open die forging techniques or by rolling. The process used in either case is basically the same for preparing the blank for subsequent diametral expansion. This is done by upsetting or "pancaking" the starting billet (reducing its height or length by working it perpendicular to its axis), and piercing it partway through then punching out the "slug".

Cut Round Billet Figure 3

Upset Blank

Pierced from one side

Punched Blank

Where the two processes part company is in the subsequent diametral growth to attain the final diameters and height, thickness or width. In the case of open die forging this step is done by a

process called saddling by hanging the blank or "donut" on a mandrel and reducing the wall section with a hammer or press with a series of hammer blows or press strokes while rotating the workpiece either with tongs , or, in the case of very large and heavy pieces, with specially designed machinery .

Hammer or Press Saddling Set-up Figure 4 In the case of ring rolling, the blank is placed over a mandrel on a ring rolling mill and the diametral growth is achieved by reducing the wall and width or height with powered rolls as shown below. The example used here is a horizontal mill but this process can also be done in the vertical plane and with or without the Axial Rolls.

Starting The Rolling Process Figure 5

Finished Rolling

Press forging
Press forging is variation of drop-hammer forging. Unlike drop-hammer forging, press forges work slowly by applying continuous pressure or force. The amount of time the dies are in contact with the workpiece is measured in seconds (as compared to the milliseconds of drophammer forges). The press forging operation can be done either cold or hot.[6] The main advantage of press forging, as compared to drop-hammer forging, is its ability to deform the complete workpiece. Drop-hammer forging usually only deforms the surfaces of the

workpiece in contact with the hammer and anvil; the interior of the workpiece will stay relatively undeformed. Another advantage to the process includes the knowledge of the new parts strain rate. We specifically know what kind of strain can be put on the part, because the compression rate of the press forging operation is controlled. There are a few disadvantages to this process, most stemming from the workpiece being in contact with the dies for such an extended period of time. The operation is a time consuming process due to the amount of steps and how long each of them take. The workpiece will cool faster because the dies are in contact with workpiece; the dies facilitate drastically more heat transfer than the surrounding atmosphere. As the workpiece cools it becomes stronger and less ductile, which may induce cracking if deformation continues. Therefore heated dies are usually used to reduce heat loss, promote surface flow, and enable the production of finer details and closer tolerances. The workpiece may also need to be reheated. When done in high productivity, press forging is more economical than hammer forging. The operation also creates closer tolerances. In hammer forging a lot of the work is absorbed by the machinery, when in press forging, the greater percentage of work is used in the work piece. Another advantage is that the operation can be used to create any size part because there is no limit to the size of the press forging machine. New press forging techniques have been able to create a higher degree of mechanical and orientation integrity. By the constraint of oxidation to the outer most layers of the part material, reduced levels of microcracking take place in the finished part.[6] Press forging can be used to perform all types of forging, including open-die and impressiondie forging. Impression-die press forging usually requires less draft than drop forging and has better dimensional accuracy. Also, press forgings can often be done in one closing of the dies, allowing for easy automation.[9]

Upset forging
Upset forging increases the diameter of the workpiece by compressing its length.[9] Based on number of pieces produced this is the most widely used forging process.[9] A few examples of common parts produced using the upset forging process are engine valves, couplings, bolts, screws, and other fasteners. Upset forging is usually done in special high speed machines called crank presses, but upsetting can also be done in a vertical crank press or a hydraulic press. The machines are usually set up to work in the horizontal plane, to facilitate the quick exchange of workpieces from one station to the next. The initial workpiece is usually wire or rod, but some machines can accept bars up to 25 cm (10 in.) in diameter and a capacity of over 1000 tons. The standard upsetting machine employs split dies that contain multiple cavities. The dies open enough to allow the workpiece to move from one cavity to the next; the dies then close and the heading tool, or ram, then moves longitudinally against the bar, upsetting it into the cavity. If all of the cavities are utilized on every cycle then a finished part will be produced with every cycle, which is why this process is ideal for mass production.[9] The following three rules must be followed when designing parts to be upset forged:[10]

1. The length of unsupported metal that can be upset in one blow without injurious buckling should be limited to three times the diameter of the bar. 2. Lengths of stock greater than three times the diameter may be upset successfully provided that the diameter of the upset is not more than 1.5 times the diameter of the stock. 3. In an upset requiring stock length greater than three times the diameter of the stock, and where the diameter of the cavity is not more than 1.5 times the diameter of the stock, the length of unsupported metal beyond the face of the die must not exceed the diameter of the bar.

Advantages and Disadvantages of different kinds of forging