This covers grades of stainless steel in the 200 and 300 series. The most commonly used stainless steel grades are 304 and 316. Both are austenitic stainless steel.

• Good ductility, strength and ability to resist corrosion
• Contains between 17% to 25% chromium, 8% to 20% nickel,
  and may contain molybdenum
• Not magnetic unless annealed
• Can become slightly magnetic when cold worked.

• Contain low levels of carbon, little to no nickel and high amounts of chromium (11% to 27%)
• Magnetic up to 650 °C – 750 °C
• Higher thermal conductivity than austenitic stainless steel
• High corrosion resistance (not as high as austenitic)
• Better engineering properties than austenitic (ductility, formability)
• Cannot be hardened by heat treatment but can be cold worked and annealed

This covers grades of stainless steel in the 400 series

• Similar composition as ferritic stainless steel, but higher carbon content (up to 1.2%), and lower chromium (11% to 18%)
• This makes it able to be hardened through heat treatment

• Highly resistant to racking caused by stress corrosion
• Superior to austenitic and ferritic steels for tensile and yield strength
• Can be welded and has good formability

• The process of precipitation hardening can be simplified into three major stages: solution heat treatment, quenching, and ageing
• Increases strength over time

• Most commonly used grade of stainless steel
• Good corrosion resistance
• Made up of 18% chromium, 8% nickel
• Does not contain molybdenum
• Used in many applications
• More economical
• Easy to work with
• Strong
• Can be welded
• Used for pressure applications up to 800ºC

• Similar properties to 304 but lower percentage of carbon
• Use in temperatures up to 425ºC
• Resistant to nictric acid
• Better choice when you are going to weld the material (4mm or greater) but not post weld annealed

• Similar strength as 304
• Use in marine exposed environments
• Greater corrosion resistance than 304 and is better option when pitting or crevice corrosion is a risk factor
• Resistant to phosphoric acid (most concentrations) and sulfuric acid (concentration below 10%)
• 18% chromium, 10% nickel

• Similar properties to 316 but has a lower percentage of carbon
• Use in temperatures up to 425ºC
• Better choice when you are going to weld the material (4mm or greater) but not post weld annealed

• A cold rolled finish that is highly resistant to corrosion
• Low reflectivity and relatively smooth
• 2D is not commonly available in Australia
• Note – the finish is not uniform so may be an issue if trying to match with another surface

• A cold rolled finish
• Most commonly used and most economical finish
• A smooth finish that is highly resistant to corrosion
• Note – the finish is not uniform so may be an issue if trying to match with another surface

• A cold rolled finish that has a smooth appearance, with a reflective, mirror like surface
• Most commonly used in household appliances
• It is highly corrosion resistant because it is very smooth and non abrasive
• Note – the finish is not uniform so may be an issue if trying to match with another surface

• A brushed polished surface that is a duller finish than 2B and BA
• Lower corrosion resistance than 2B and BA (this can be overcome by using a different grade of
  stainless (eg – 316))
• Can be more easily matched, but there can still be variability, although less so than 2B and BA
• Roughness is consistent across a range of gauges

• Non directional, mirror finish with good image clarity
• Note – while the surface is polished to a gloss finish, there may be some variation of
  finishes produced by different suppliers