non-magnetic steel?

[AGCB97]

I have a piece of 5/8" steel that does not stick to magnet or at least very little. It is not SS. I thought it was CR1018 but no longer sure of that. What are the choices?
Thanks
Aaron

 

[Ed ke6bnl]

if it is very heavy it could be carbide.

 

[Billh50]

What makes you sure it's not SS ?

 

[JimDawson]

What are the choices?

Just about any metal on the Periodic Table except iron and alloys thereof.

 

[Ulma Doctor]

a picture of the material may help identification.
does the steel have any oxidation or rust present?

 

[Billh50]

There are so many different alloys today that are not magnetic. The aircraft industry as well as the Automotive industry have come up with many alloys through the years that are not magnetic. It is truly hard to tell what is what anymore just from looks or even a spark test. You might come close with a spark test though.

 

[Tozguy]

I have a piece of 5/8" steel that does not stick to magnet or at least very little.
Aaron

Aaron, a good starting point is to determine if it is or is not magnetic. Use a strong magnet for this test.

 

[Wreck™Wreck]

All Steel is by definition an "Alloy" consisting of Iron and Carbon, Iron alloyed with Carbon where the carbon content is above 3% or so is considered Cast Iron.

Steel with the addition of Chromium above about 15% or more is called "Stainless Steel". Some are magnetic and some are not depending on the manufacturing process, cold working will often cause some steels to become magnetic.

I have found 440 SS to be magnetic in all conditions as an example.

 

[rgray]

Titanium....wouldn't that be nice!

 

[Billh50]

I once had an aircraft alloy that I worked on that was non magnetic and heck to machine. NiCuAl, the nickel in it made it hard to machine until an old timer told me to put more more than standard reliefs in the tools.