Stainless Steel finishing and surface treatments
Service Detail from Eagle Stainless Tube & Fabrication, Inc.
SURFACE FINISH GUIDE
Stainless steel is often chosen for its aesthetic appearance, so make sure to specify the surface finish you need. Finishes can be added to improve functionality and for aesthetic appearance. The most common is the shiny, silvery finish manufacturers refer to as “bright”; alternatively, you can request a “pickled” or dull finish. Polishing and centerless grinding operations can be performed as secondary processes to produce desired RMS (root mean square) finishes as needed.
Surface Finishing Services:
Surface Finish Sand Blast
Production sandblasting center for achieving various degrees of matte surface finishes.
Sand Blasting – Produces a dull matte finish with various grit sizes. 60 / 100 / 180 / 220 / Glass Bead
Electropolishing – Produces a high, bright finish. Electropolishing is a process where the tubes are submerged in a tank and an electric current is used between a cathode and anode with the tubes in between. This electric current will then remove a small layer from the surface of the metal.
Belt Polishing – Produces a high luster finish using grits from 180 to 640. The material can have the smoothness/ brightness improved by conditioning the tubing using a belt polisher. The higher the number the finer the grit and the smoother the surface finish.
Black Oxide Finish – Minimizes light reflection
Centerless Ground Finish
Commercially Clean & Capped
Thermocouple Clean & Capped
Passivation (Chemical Cleaning) – Treatment of stainless steels after fabrication with oxidizing chemicals known as chemical cleaning or passivation. If iron particles or other substances have become embedded in the surface during fabrication or polishing operations, they must be removed. Otherwise, these minute particles may promote discoloration, rusting, or even pitting. Besides dissolving such particles, the oxidizing action of the bath also tends to enhance the corrosion resistance of stainless steel by fortifying the natural passive surface film.
This processing should be the final operation on a stainless steel part. It is generally done by immersing in a nitric or citric acid solution and then rinsing in clear deionized water and drying. If immersion of the stainless steel piece is impractical due to size, the acid solution may be applied with a suitable swab and removed by rinsing with water.
Nitric acid is recommended because it will dissolve any iron particles and leave the stainless steel unaffected. It is necessary that the surface of the steel be free of scale, heavy grease and oil if the chemical cleaning treatment is to be effective.
How is Surface Finish Measured?
RA (roughness average) and RMS (root mean square) both measure surface finish. They are analogous. They use a slightly different path but both arrive at the same conclusion.
Watch Our Surface Finish Guide Webchat: Surface Finish
Some of the topics covered in this web chat include Why specify surface finish? How to measure surface finish, Mill finishes (Annealed & Pickled and Bright Annealed) Belt Polishing and Centerless Grinding, Electropolishing, Sandblasting,
Eagle has the knowledge, the expertise, and the right equipment to give your finished parts the “look” you want. To inquire about a specific project or for any questions, please request a quote from us today.
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Custom Tubing Designed for Your Needs
Making a difference in your design… from simple tubing to complex designs.
At Eagle, there’s nothing more important than producing a customized solution which exceeds our clients’ expectations and satisfies the unique specifications of their application. Our expertise with stainless steel custom tubing gives us the ability to help you design the product that will fit your project.
Complex designs need more than just stainless steel custom tubing. Secondary operations such as cutting to precision lengths, CNC and EDM machining, laser welding, bending, and precision grinding can transform a simple tube into just the part you need for your design.
We welcome the opportunity to share our expertise in developing product concepts and helping you solve your engineering problems. With decades of experience in the metals industry, you can count on Eagle as a resource for designing and fabricating your metal products.
Eagle Stainless Tube & Fabrication Inc.
Eagle Stainless Tube & Fabrication Inc.supplies stainless steel tubing to the medical, aerospace and high tech industries. Stainless steel, nickel alloys, aluminum, and titanium.
- Cut to length
- Precision machining
- Laser cutting & welding bending
- Electro-polishing and passivation.
- Re-draw to specialty & millimeter sizes in both round, square and rectangular.
- Grinding to precision tolerances
- Assemblies