Is 304 Stainless Steel Food Grade?
Yes 304 stainless steel is widely considered food grade and is one of the most common materials used in food contact equipment from cookware and sinks to commercial food processing equipment The FDA has historically issued favorable opinions on AISI 304 for food contact applications That said food grade isn’t a label…
Can You Powder Coat Plastic? Yes, but Not All of It
Some plastics can be powder coated but it’s conditional not universal success depends on whether the specific plastic can survive the cure heat and whether the part can be made to accept an electrostatic charge in the first place Standard powder coating wasn’t designed for plastic so getting a durable result usually…
What Is 4140 Steel? Composition, Strength, and Applications
4140 AISI SAE 4140 is a low alloy chromium molybdenum steel with roughly 0 40 carbon the 41 identifies the chromium molybdenum family the 40 points to the approximate carbon content It’s commonly sold under the trade name chromoly or chrome moly steel and it’s one of the most widely used medium…
How Do You Weld Stainless Steel?
Stainless steel is most commonly welded with TIG GTAW for precision and clean results or MIG GMAW for speed on thicker sections The core challenge isn’t fundamentally different from welding anything else it’s heat control and contamination prevention but stainless is less forgiving of mistakes on both fronts than mild steel is
What Is Zinc Plating? Process, Mechanism, and Where It’s Used
Zinc plating is an electrochemical process that deposits a thin layer of zinc onto a metal surface almost always steel or iron to protect it from rust and corrosion It’s also called electro galvanizing and it’s one of the most common cost effective surface treatments used on fasteners industrial hardware and automotive…
How to Dimension a Chamfer
A 45 chamfer is dimensioned with a length and angle shorthand for example 2 45 meaning 2 units removed along the edge at a 45 angle Any chamfer that isn’t 45 can’t use that shorthand it needs two independent dimensions instead because a single length and angle value only uniquely defines the…
How to Use a Tap and Die Set
A tap cuts internal threads inside a pre drilled hole for making a nut or a threaded hole A die cuts external threads onto a rod or bolt blank They’re opposite operations on the same basic idea and both follow the same core technique steady pressure constant lubrication and a deliberate rhythm…
How to Calculate Shear Strength
The basic formula is F A shear stress equals the applied force divided by the area resisting that force This gives average shear stress for the simplest case a fastener or pin loaded straight across More complex geometries beams shafts in torsion soil use different variations of the same underlying idea covered…
What Is Heat Treatment?
Heat treatment is the controlled heating and cooling of a material usually metal to change its physical or mechanical properties without significantly changing its shape It’s how the same base alloy can end up hard and wear resistant in one part and soft and ductile in another depending entirely on how it’s…
What Is Lift TIG Welding?
Lift TIG also called lift arc is a way of starting the arc in TIG GTAW welding the tungsten electrode touches the workpiece and the instant it’s lifted away the machine senses the separation and ramps current up from a low sensing current to full welding current A lift TIG welder is…
How to Apply Black Oxide Coating
Applying black oxide follows the same basic sequence whether it’s done in a production shop or on a small home setup clean the part rinse immerse it in a black oxide chemical bath to convert the surface rinse again then seal with oil or wax The version that scales to industrial production…
Tap Drill Size Chart: 1/4-20, M8, 3/8-16, and Other Common Sizes
The tap drill size is the hole diameter you drill before cutting internal threads get it wrong and you either strip the tap trying to cut too much material or end up with threads too shallow to hold load For the three sizes covered most often on a shop floor a 1…