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The A2 tool steel rectangular bar has been precision ground and annealed, meets American Society for Testing and Materials International ASTM A681 specifications, and has a precision tolerance. The A2 tool steel grade has better wear resistance than O1 and W1 tool steels, and maintains good dimensional stability when hardened in air following heat treatment. The bar has been ground to achieve the precise shape and size, and has been annealed, a method of heating and cooling metal to modify its properties, such as increasing its formability and toughness or decreasing its strength, after it has been shaped.
Steel is an iron alloy with carbon and other elements that modify the steel to achieve specific properties. In general, steels with higher carbon content have greater strength, hardness, and wear resistance, while those with lower carbon content have more formability, weldability, and toughness. Carbon steels, which include most AISI-SAE grades in the 1000 range, are classified by their level of carbon content as low (below 0.3%), medium (0.3% to 0.6%) and high (0.6% and above). Alloy steels, which include AISI-SAE grades in the 1300 and 4000 ranges and above, incorporate elements such as chromium, molybdenum, and nickel to modify properties like machinability and corrosion resistance. Tool steels, which include most grades with a letter and number grade designation, have high carbide content for wear resistance, high hardness, and the ability to hold a cutting edge. Some tool steels are designed to resist deformation when used in elevated temperatures.
Tensile strength, used to indicate a material’s overall strength, is the peak stress it can withstand before it breaks. Wear resistance indicates the ability to prevent surface damage caused by contact with other surfaces. Toughness describes the material's ability to absorb energy before breaking, while hardness (commonly measured as indentation hardness) describes its resistance to permanent surface deformation. Formability indicates how easily the material can be permanently shaped. Machinability describes how easily it can be cut, shaped, finished, or otherwise machined, while weldability characterizes the ability to be welded.
Isaac82
Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2021
What received was definitely Starrett precision ground a2 tool steel. The package was beaten up, and there are a couple of nicks, but I'm not trying to use a a straight edge.
Austin
Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2016
I know that there are a lot of bad comments about the scale but those are from three years ago and I will tell you that it is now it is legit a2 steal that hardens in air
TexasLady
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2016
This is exactly what I had been looking for, and the size and quality are just perfect. And the price can't be beat, at least not anywhere else I looked. Definitely a steal for a steel.
Sunny
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2016
It very convenient and fortunate this size and exact dimensions are available in this particular steel. Thanks.
mils
Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2016
Exactly as described. Hardens well.
Marvin Suggs
Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2014
I bought this bar to make a mortar tool i.e. to chip mortar out between bricks. I tried several times to harden the end but no luck. Heated the end to 1000 degC with a propylene flame, quenched in WATER. This brutal quench should cause A2 steel to become glass-hard and brittle due to formation of martensite. However this metal seemed to be essentially unchanged by the quench. I was able to file it near the end: however the file should "skip" over the surface of a truly hardened steel. My guess is that this steel is a medium or even a low carbon alloy steel being sold as a 1%C steel.Amazon - suggest you have a reputable metallurgical lab test some of this product before you sell any more of it. All steels look the same from the outside. Suggest that this kind of testing become a part of normal quality control for hardenable steels since clearly the suppliers cannot be trusted.
Darrel Campbell
Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2013
This material is not A2 tool steel because:1. Starrett brand precision ground steel is clearly identified "Starrett" "Air Hardening" and with a distinctive parallelogram logo in blue ink stenciling and packaged in color coded and labeled plastic wrap. Granted it was not presented by Amazon to be Starrett or any other brand.2. The material was wrapped in brown paper with a faded xerox label stating "Starrett A2 steel". No other identification found. Should have heeded my gut instinct at this point.3. The most damming evidence that this material is not A2 because when it is quenched in OIL from 1750 F could be CUT with a file which means it is LESS THAN Rc58-Rc60.4. A2 quenched in still air, a less rigorous method than oil quench, yields a Rc63.5-Rc65hardness. A file will 'skate' across this degree of hardness.Too late to return it because the 'steel' has been fabricated to the point of hardening. Material for the metal recyclers.Please demand an explanation for this discrepancy from the vendor.
Daniel Bodine
Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2013
My choice in steel for knifemaking. No problems at all with anything. Packed well, fast shipping. I will buy this again.
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