Stainless Steel
Precision Marshall's 304L is a T-300 series austenitic stainless steel, which has a minimum of 18% chromium
and 8% nickel. It is the standardly known as "18/8 stainless". 304 L has a wide variety of general-purpose
applications that benefit from the versatility of excellent corrosion resistance and ease of fabrication, weldability
and formability. 304L has superior strength and toughness at cryogenic temperatures. ASTM A276
Typical Analysis
- Carbon .03 Max
- Manganese 2 Max
- Phosphorus .045 Max
- Sulfur .03 Max
- Chromium 18/20
- Nickel 8/12
- Silicon .75
Applications
304L has various uses in commercial and residential applications, such as chemical processing and containers, nuts, bolts, screws, construction material. 304L can be used in food and beverage processing,
mining, and medical industries.
Hot Forming
Heat evenly to 2100/2300°F for the majority of hot working processes. Do not forge below 1700°F. Material should be annealed at 1900°F minimum and quenched in water for maximum corrosion resistance or rapidly cooled by air.
Cold Forming
Cold working operations will increase the strength & hardness and allows material to be drawn without
immediate annealing.
Welding
304L has excellent welding properties and post weld annealing is not required.
Machinability
304L is subject to work hardening and chip breaking (the use of chip breakers is advised). The best machining
results are achieved with slower speeds, heavier feeds, sharp tooling, excellent lubrication and rigid setup and
machine.
