Spring steel explained

Spring steel is a name given to a wide range of steels^[1] used in the manufacture of different products, including swords, saw blades, springs and many more. These steels are generally low-alloy manganese, medium-carbon steel or high-carbon steel with a very high yield strength. This allows objects made of spring steel to return to their original shape despite significant deflection or twisting.

Grades

See also: Steel grades. Many grades of steel can be hardened and tempered to increase elasticity and resist deformation; however, some steels are inherently more elastic than others:

Common spring steel grades

SAE grade (ASTM grade)	Composition	Yield strength	Hardness (HRC)		Comments
			Typical	Maximum
1070	0.65-0.75% C, 0.60-0.90% Mn, max .050% S, max .040% P	Normally supplied annealed	165vpn	180vpn	CS70, CK67, C70E
1074/1075	0.70–0.80% C, 0.50–0.80% Mn, max. 0.030% P, max. 0.035% S^[2]	^[3]	44–50	50	Scaleless blue, or Polished Bright
1080 (A228)	0.7–1.0% C, 0.2–0.6% Mn, 0.1–0.3% Si^[4]				Piano wire, music wire, springs, clutch discs
1095 (A684)	0.90–1.03% C, 0.30–0.50% Mn, max. 0.030% P, max. 0.035% S^[5]	, annealed	48–51^[6]	59	Blue, or polished bright spring steel
5160 (A689)	0.55–0.65% C, 0.75–1.00% Mn, 0.70–0.90% Cr^[7]			63	Chrome-silicon spring steel; fatigue-resistant
50CrV4 (EN 10277)	0.47–0.55% C, max. 1.10% Mn, 0.90–1.20% Cr, 0.10–0.20% V, max. 0.40% Si				Old British 735 H1steel, SAE 6150, 735A51
9255	0.50–0.60% C, 0.70–0.95% Mn, 1.80–2.20% Si
301 spring-tempered	0.08–0.15% C, max. 2.00% Mn, 16.00–18.00% Cr, 6.00–8.00% Ni			42	Equivalents EN 10088-2 1.4310, X10CrNi18-8

Applications

• Applications include piano wire (also known as^[8] music wire) such as ASTM A228 (0.80–0.95% carbon), spring clamps, antennas, springs (e. g. vehicle coil springs or leaf springs), and s-tines.
• Spring steel is commonly used in the manufacture of swords with rounded edges for training^[9] or stage combat,^[10] as well as sharpened swords for collectors and live combat.
• Spring steel is one of the most popular materials used in the fabrication of lockpicks due to its pliability and resilience.
• Tubular spring steel is used in the landing gear of some small aircraft due to its ability to absorb the impact of landing.
• It is frequently used in the making of knives, machetes, and other edged tools.
• It is a key component in electrician's fish tape.
• It is used in binder clips.
• Used extensively in shims due to its resistance to deformation in low thicknesses.

See also

• Martensite

References

Bibliography

• Book: Oberg , Erik . Franklin D. . Jones . Holbrook L. . Horton . Henry H. . Ryffel . 2000 . . Christopher J. McCauley . Riccardo Heald . Muhammed Iqbal Hussain . 26th . Industrial Press Inc . Ratnagiri . 0-8311-2635-3.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Engineering.com . Springs . 23 October 2006.
2. Web site: 74-75 Carbon Spring Steel. Precision Steel Warehouse. 5 December 2013.
3. Web site: SAE-AISI 1074 (G10740) Carbon Steel. MakeItFrom.com. 21 August 2015.
4. Web site: ASTM A228 (SWP-A, K08500) Music Wire. MakeItFrom.com. 21 August 2015.
5. Web site: 95 Carbon Spring Steel. Precision Steel Warehouse. 5 December 2013. 6 July 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130706095125/http://www.precisionsteel.com/spring-steel/95-carbon. dead.
6. http://www.admiralsteel.com/pdf/catalog.pdf
7. Oberg, Erik, and F D. Jones. Machinery's Handbook. 15th ed. New York: The Industrial Press, 1956. 1546–1551. Print.
8. .
9. Web site: Store . SBG Sword . Kingston Arms . 2022-05-17 . SBG Sword Store . en-US.
10. Web site: Arnold Stage Combat Sword . 2022-05-17 . Buying a Sword.