Billet this and billet that
 

What is the current fad for components using material labled "billet"


When I was a young apprentice billet was material straight out of the iron works, and was the huge lump of steel produced from the blast furnace, that would be supplied to the rolling mills.


so what are people trying to do by describing material as billet. particualy alloys. Is it some attempt to confuse people into thinking a special material is in use.

I have seen some extreamly good investment casting examples where the end user would assume the final shape was from a machining process. No it came like that, the only post casting process is polishing. I suppose some would call this "Billet material".

If anyone can advise, what manufactured from "billet" is supposed to mean and its advantages. The only area I can see would be that there would be no distortion of grain pattern resulting from forging or rolling. and thus would have no internal stress.

Aw Tim you crack me up. Does anyone really care :lol: Well obviously you do....

Billet implies machined from solid. It does look bling but often will not be as strong or tough as a forged item. Forging aligns grain structure, whereas when you machine from solid you cut through the grain. This can cause stress risers and failure. I have used a lot of billet components when I used to race mountain bikes. Broke most of it. It was good looking and light but didn't do the distance. Forged stuff was always better. You can make strong billet stuff, but you have to use superior materials.

So machined for solid. but where has the solid come from?. most industrial metals start as billet and are then rolled or extruded to the raw material shape. At that point I would never have described the material as billet.

What initiated my question was a post about dog bones machined from billet alloy. It could only be machined from some bar stock and as such has already gone through the rolling mills and full of all sorts of grain deformation and internal stress. As you say the machining process then leaves behind stress raisers etc. So inherently weaker. Yet there seems to be an advertising thing to imply that "billet" is a superior material or is it simply that it costs little when CNC machining a component to additionally mill in a silly logo etc and add yet more stress raisers for the bling factor.

Yep! The billet will be rolled / extruded / etc to form the "billet" shape. The grain structure will be lengthways along the billet. A forged item will have the grain flow following the profile or shape of the component.

big up respect to the most snoozeworthy thread in the history of threads

love you all

keith "forged from love" d

I thought this was rather interesting (seriously) :D

bloomin 'eck !!

i did too as it happens! but don't let on. i like to antagonise

And there was me thinking this was a thread about where soldiers were staying. :lol:

Me too :lol:

Keith, this one I inadvertantly put to death a few days ok should tickle your fancy

http://forums.sv650.org/viewtopic.php?t=46166