ENGINEERING STEELS + ALLOYS

1020 Bright Carbon Steel Bar

1020 is a general purpose low tensile low hardenability carbon steel generally supplied in the cold drawn or turned and polished condition, with a typical tensile strength range 410 - 790 Mpa, and Brinell hardness range 119 - 235.

Characterised by excellent weldability, very good machinability with reasonable strength and very good ductility.
1020 due to its very low hardenability will through harden only in very small sections to relatively moderate strength levels, and is therefore generally used in the cold drawn or turned and polished condition. It can however be carburised achieving case hardnesses over Rc 65 with smaller sections, reducing as section size increases. Core strength will remain as supplied for all sections. Alternatively it can be carbonnitrided offering some advantages over standard carburising.
It will not respond satisfactorily to flame or induction hardening due to its low carbon content, nor to nitriding due to a lack of suitable alloying elements.
1020 is used extensively by all industry sectors for applications requiring good machinability or excellent weldability when high strength is not required plus lightly stressed carburised parts. It is also often used un-machined as supplied, its bright cold drawn or turned and polished finish being acceptable for many applications.
Typical applications are: Axles, General Engineering Parts and Components, Machinery Parts, Shafts etc. or Carburised: Camshafts, Light Duty Gears, Gudgon Pins, Ratchets, Spindles, Worm Gears etc.
Colour Code Stocked Sizes
Custard (Bar End)

Rounds Metric 6 mm - 200 mm Dia

Imperial 3/16" - 10" Dia
Squares Metric 20 mm - 50 mm
Imperial 1/2" - 5"
Bar Finish
Cold Drawn
Turned and Polished
Related Specifications
Australia AS 1443 - 1994 M1020
Germany W.Nr 1.0402 C22
W.Nr 1.1151 CK22
Great Britain BS970 - Part 3 - 1991 070M20
BS970 - 1955 EN3B
Japan JIS G 4051 S20C
USA AISI C1020
ASTM A29/A29M - 91 1020
SAE 1020
UNS G 10200
Chemical Composition
Min. % Max. %
Carbon 0.15 0.25
Silicon 0 0.35
Manganese 0.30 0.90
Phosphorous 0 0.05
Sulphur 0 0.05
Typical Mechanical Properties - Cold Drawn and Turned and Polished Condition
Cold Drawn Size mm up to 16mm 17 - 38mm 39 - 63mm Turned & Polished (All Sizes)
Tensile Strength Mpa Min 480 460 430 410
Max 790 710 660 560
Yield Strength Mpa Min 380 370 340 230
Max 610 570 480 330
Elongation in 50mm % Min 10 12 13 22
Hardness HB Min 142 135 120 119
Max 235 210 195 170
Forging
Heat to 1100 oC - 1200 oC maximum, hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section and commence forging.

Do not forge below 900 oC
Finished forgings may be air cooled.
Heat Treatment
Annealing
Heat to 870 oC - 910 oC hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section, and cool in furnace.
Carburizing
Pack, salt or gas carburise at 880 oC - 920 oC, holding for sufficient time to develop the required case depth and carbon content, followed by a suitable refining/hardening and tempering cycle to optimise case and core properties.
Core Refine
Slow cool from Carburising temperature and re-heat to 870 oC - 900 oC, hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section and quench as required in oil, water or brine.
Case Hardening
Following core refining, re-heat to 760 oC - 780 oC, hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section and quench in water.

Temper immediately while still hand warm.
Tempering - After Carburising, Core Refining and Case Hardening
Re-heat to 150 oC - 200 oC, hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section, soak for 1 hour per 25 mm of section and cool in still air.

NB. Tempering will improve the toughness of the case with only slight reduction in case hardness. It will also reduce the susceptibility to grinding cracks.
Normalizing
Heat to 890 oC - 940 oC hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section, soak for 10 - 15 minutes and cool in still air.
Stress Relieving
Heat to 650 oC - 700 oC hold until temperature is uniform throughout the section, soak for 1 hour per 25mm of section, and cool in still air.
Notes on Heat Treatment
Heating temperatures, rate of heating, cooling and soaking times will vary due to factors such as work piece size/shape, also furnace type employed, quenching medium and work piece transfer facilities etc.

Please consult your heat treater for best results.
Machining
1020 in the bright cold drawn or turned and polished as supplied condition has very good machinability and all operations such as turning, drilling, tapping, milling etc. can be carried out satisfactorily as per machine manufacturers recommendations for suitable tool type, feeds and speeds.
Welding
1020 has excellent weldability in the cold drawn or turned and polished as supplied condition, and can be readily welded by any of the standard welding processes.

NB. Welding in the carburised or heat treated condition is not recommended.
Welding Procedure
Low carbon electrodes are recommended.

Please consult your welding consumables supplier for suitable electrodes etc.
A pre-heat or post-heat is not generally required, however pre-heating larger sections can be beneficial as can a post-weld stress relieve if this is possible.
Interlloy believes the information provided is accurate and reliable. However no warranty of accuracy, completeness or reliability is given, nor will any responsibility be taken for errors or omissions.