Production Tool Design:

Material Selection for Toolings

TAUFIK
Faculty of Manufacturing Engineering
UTeM
Week 2

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 Learning Objectives
The objectives of this chapter are to :
 Understand the behavior of metals in terms

of their mechanical properties.

 Describe the properties and applications of

carbon steels, alloy steels and tool steels.

 Describe the properties and uses of

nonmetallic tool materials.

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 Properties of Tool Materials
 Hardness
 Toughness
 Wear Resistance
 Machinability
 Brittleness
 Tensile Strength
 Shear Strength
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 Tensile & Shear Strength

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 Ferrous Tool Materials
 Carbon Steels
 Carbon steel is the primary material of jig and
fixture tooling.
 Alloy Steels
 Used for tool construction of their added cost.
 Tools Steels
 Are steels that are mad to exact standards for
specific types of services
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 Alloy Steels
 Carbon : main hardening element
 Sulfur : easier machining
 Phosphorus : easier machining
 Manganese : controls sulfur effects; increases hardness
 Nickel : toughness
 Chromium : corrosion resistance (over 15%
chromium); depth hardness (less than 15% chromium)

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 Numbering System
 is a four-digit code that indicates specific
information about the metal. The first
digit indicates the type of metal.
For example,
 1 indicates carbon steel;

 2, nickel steel;

 3, nickel-chromium steel; and so forth,

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  The second digit indicates either the
percentage of major alloy in the metal
or a code to denote a specific alloy. The
last two digits when read together
express the carbon content in
hundredths of a percent.

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 Example of Numbering System

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 Tools Steels
 Tool steel is specified for numerous die components
and it may be well to discuss briefly the most
commonly used types. They are:
 Water-hardening tool steel
 Oil-hardening tool steel
 Air-hardening tool steel
 High carbon, high chromium tool steel
 High speed steel
 Shock-resisting tool steel
 Hot work die steel

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 Classes of Standard Tool Steels

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 Tool Steels Classifications

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 Exercise 1:
 List and briefly explain the tool steels characteristics
with an excellent wear resistance. 
Solution
 Type M, classification as high-speed with Molybdenum
base.
 Type D, classification as cold work with high carbon and
high chromium.
 Type F, classification as special purpose with carbon-
tungsten base

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 Exercise 2:
 List and briefly explain the tool steels classification
with a good to excellent machinability.

Solution:
 Type O, classification as shock resisting with oil

hardening.
 Type P, classification as mold work.

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 Cast Iron and Invar
 Cast iron is used for tool bodies and some
commercial jig and fixture components.
 The term cast irons refer to a family of ferrous alloys
composed of iron, carbon (ranging from 2.11% to
about 4.5%), and silicon (up to about 3.5%). Cast
irons are also classified by their structure: ferrite,
quenched and tempered.
 Invar comprises iron (64%), nickel (35%) and
carbon + manganese (1%) and has a very low
expansively when heated.

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 Nonferrous Tools Material
 Aluminum
 Magnesium
 Bismuth Alloys
 Carbides
 Cermets

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 Numbering System for aluminum

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 Four Digit Code Aluminum

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 Tool Material Comparison

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 Magnesium Identification System

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 Plastic Mould & Stamping Die
Materials
Steel AISI Application
Suitable for all types and sizes of machine-cut moulds. Usually used in the
P20 prehardened condition Rockwell "C" 32 to 35.
Used for large and small moulds when toughness and strength is required.
H13 Good dimensional stability during hardening. Hardens up to Rockwell “C” 52
but is tougher at "C" 48.
For small and medium size moulds when higher hardness is required as for
A2 moulding abrasive materials.
For small moulds when abrasion becomes a problem. Also for moulds
D2 operating at temperatures up to 750°F.
For small and large moulds for moulding corrosive resins, such as PVC and
Type 420 Stainless Delrin. Also used when routing is problem because of "sweating" of mould
surface.
Usually used for holders and shoes. Can be used for moulds where a high
SAE 4140 finish is not necessary. Usually used in the prehardened condition Rockwell "C"
28 to 32.
Use if operating temperatures are above l000°F, but not higher than 1I50°F,
M2 High Speed Steel and the mould hardness must be higher than 60 Rc
For large moulds or moulds containing deep cuts and heavy sections; to avoid
Precipitation stresses and brittleness associated with quenching and tempering; also for
hardening and mould components which require exceptional hardness and/or fracture
maraging steels toughness.

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 Heat Treatment of Tools
 Tool designers normally do not concern
themselves with the actual mechanics of heat
treating. However, a general understanding of
how this process affects design is important.
Occasionally failures that seem to be due to
improper heat treatment are in fact caused by
poor design.

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 Treatment for Ferrous Materials
 Normalizing
 To refine grain structure after forging to improve machinabilty Heat up to 100 o to 200 o F above
critical range.
 Spheroidizing
 Heating and cooling steel to make rounded or globular carbides increases toughness and
machinabilty, heat hold for one to four hours and cool in furnace Heating up to 1380 – 1400 F
holding for one to four hours and cooling slowly.
 Stress Relieving
 Relieve stress – heating up to 1200 o to 1350 o F air-cooling.
  Annealing
 Slow heating – holding for 4 to 5 hours and cooling it in furnace – refines grain structure.
 Hardening
 Hardening is a rapid cooling process after heating in order to increase hardness.
  Tempering
 Heating below critical temperature to relieve stresses. (550 – 600 o F)

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 Treatment for nonFerrous
Materials
 Treatment for nonferrous material
approximates that of steel but the
temperature ranges are lower.

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