Selecting The Right 1.2085 Steel For Your Specific Tooling Needs

By Author: Kiran
Total Articles: 28
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For most mold makers, finding a material that offers a balance between corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and machinability can mean a great difference in reducing downtime, ensuring efficiency, and production of high-quality products. A tool steel commonly known as 1.2085 is a steel grade that has a very distinct set of qualities which make it perfect for dies, molds, and components that require high wear resistance, corrosion resistance, while offering good machinability. However, with having numerous aspects to consider, choosing the right type of 1.2085 steel for a specific project is very important.

About 1.2085 Steel

Should you consult a 1.2085 steel supplier regarding what type of steel 1.2085 is, they would probably say that it is a Martensitic tool steel because It combines the properties of tool steel with martensitic steel.
The most often used categorization for 1.2085 is Martensitic stainless steel. Martensitic steels offer a balance between strength and hardness with a moderate corrosion resistance ...
... as compared to traditional stainless steels and are able to achieve a high level of hardness through heat treatment. However, due to its focus on wear resistance and ability to be hardened and shaped, 1.2085 can also be broadly considered as a tool steel.

The vast majority of 1.2085 steel supplier are aware that it has a high carbon content which contributes greatly to the steel’s wear resistance and hardness and allows it to survive even in abrasive environments. The steel’s hardenability is enhanced due to a molybdenum addition which enables it to achieve high levels of hardness throughout thicker sections during heat treatment. There is also some presence sulfur which makes it easy to machine the steel into complex shapes.
Although it is not classified as a stainless steel, 1.2085 contains a moderate amount of chromium giving it a superior level of corrosion resistance when compared to a number of other tools steels.

Choosing The Right 1.2085 Steel

Before choosing the right variation of 1.2085 steel from your 1.2085 steel supplier, it is important to know the particular needs of your project. For instance, if the steel is going to be used in molds that will be handling corrosive or aggressive plastics, the normal 1.2085 grade will perform well. But, if the top priority is that of wear resistance, then other variants of 1.2085 containing higher carbon content or having additional alloying elements may be a better choice for increased durability.

Heat treatment has a significant impact on 1.2085 steel's ultimate characteristics. Although higher levels of hardness available at your 1.2085 steel supplier may offer improved wear resistance, they may come with reduced toughness. For applications that require a balance between impact resistance and wear resistance may be better served with a slightly lower level of hardness that is achieved through adjusting tempering.

One important thing to make note of is that 1.2085 generally has limited formability because of its high hardness. Therefore, welding is not recommended unless a proper preheating, as well as post-weld heat treatment has been done to lessen the risk of cracks.
It's important to remember that 1.2085 steel generally possesses limited formability due to its high hardness. Additionally, welding is not recommended without proper preheating and post-weld heat treatment to minimize the risk of cracking.

The steel offered by 1.2085 steel supplier offers a very good combination of properties that can suit various tooling needs. Careful consideration of project or application requirements, the needed toughness and hardness, and needs like machinability, can help is selecting the best type of 1.2085 steel for a particular project.