what is the most important and decisive factor in choosing die steel?
1. Forming method: it can be selected from two basic material types.
A) hot-working tool steel, which can withstand relatively high temperatures during die casting, forging and extrusion.
B) cold working tool steel, which is used for blanking and shearing, cold forming, cold extrusion, cold forging and powder compression forming.
2. Plastics: some plastics will produce corrosive by-products, such as PVC plastic.Factors such as condensation, corrosive gases, acids, cooling/heating, water or storage conditions caused by long downtime can also cause corrosion.In these cases, stainless steel die steel is recommended.
3. Mold size: prehardened steel is often used in large-size molds, and integral hardened steel is often used in small-size molds.
4. Times of mold use: the molds used for a long time (> 1,000,000 times) should use high hardness steel with a hardness of 48-65 HRC.Molds used for a medium length of time (100,000 to 1,000,000 times) should use prehardened steel with a hardness of 30-45 HRC.Molds used for short periods (<100,000 times) should be made of mild steel with a hardness of 160-250 HB.
5. Surface roughness: many plastic mold manufacturers are interested in good surface roughness.When sulfur is added to improve the cutting performance of metal, the surface quality will decrease and the steel with high sulfur content will become more brittle.