Sound technical content, curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Pine Beach, NJ
The authoritative public forum
for Metal Finishing since 1989
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Testing to insure that stainless steel is Grade 304 and not below
Q. How do you test that the stainless steel grade is 305 and not below. Please provide the most simple test.
Bob Yeowbuyer - Malaysia
March 20, 2011
A. Hi, Bob. Your inquiry sort of implies that numbers like 304 and 305 are a rating scale, with lower numbers being either "better" or "worse". I don't think that is the case, although some might argue that 347 is better than 316 which is better than 304. Actually each number is arbitrary but represents a specific formulation, and these formulations can be quite complex. So I doubt that there is any simple spot test that says an alloy is 304 and not 303 or 302 or 316.
If you have enough money though ($30 thousand and up), you can get a hand-held scrap sorter ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] X-ray fluorescence machine that will almost instantly identify the alloy.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
March 21, 2011
Q. How can I identify between 304 grade pipes to 301, 200 pipe.
Can mere inscription of 304 on pipes indicate it genuine?
- LAGOS Nigeria
March 23, 2013
A. Hi Ismaila. Almost everyone simply trusts the labels, so yes, that is a reasonable approach for most of us most of the time. But if the label does not indicate the manufacturer's name on it, then I would be less trusting.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
March 25, 2013
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