1 July, 2026

How to Select Steel for Plastic Injection Molds The steel used in a plastic injection mold determines how the mold performs, how much it costs to maintain, the quality of every part it produces, and how long it stays in service. A well-matched grade maintains tolerance under pressure, resists wear and corrosion during the molding

Surface Treatment for Tool Steel Molds Including Nitriding, PVD, and Hard Chrome Most mold and die failures begin at the surface. Wear opens up dimensions; galling and adhesion damage the finish; corrosive resins attack the cavity; and parts start to stick during ejection. The through-hardened tool steel you select sets the core strength and the

Tool Steel Delivery Conditions: Annealed, Pre-Hardened, QT, and ESR When you place a tool steel order, the grade is only half the specification. You also specify the delivery condition, which determines the state the bar or block arrives in, the amount of machining and heat treatment required, and the cost between the raw material and

EDM White Layer and Heat-Affected Zone in Hardened Tool Steel Electrical discharge machining (EDM) removes electrically conductive material through repeated spark discharges between an electrode and the workpiece, both submerged in a dielectric fluid. The electrode never touches the steel, so the process generates no mechanical cutting force. That makes EDM the practical choice for