M2 Tool Steel Technical Data

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Uses:

Drills, taps, punches, reamers, broaches, planer knives, lathe tools, forge dies, form cutters, milling cutters, end mills, gear cutters.

Forging/Rolling:

Preheat to 1300° F – 1500° F and soak thoroughly.  Then raise to 2050° F – 2100° F.  Do not forge or roll below 1800° F, cool slowly from the forging or rolling temperature.  Do not normalize.

Annealing:

Heat slowly to 1600° F, and hold for uniformity, cool at a rate of 30° F per hour to 900° F, then air cool.  Expected Brinell hardness 241 max.

Hardening:

Preheat slowly to 1550° F, soak until uniformly heated, and heat rapidly to 2250° F – 2275° F.  Heating times may vary from a few minutes to a maximum of 15 minutes, depending on the size of the tool.  Oil quench to develop higher hardness, although air or hot salt quench may be used.

Tempering:

Temper immediately after quenching, before the part has cooled to below 150° F.  A tempering range of 1000° F – 1050° F is recommended.  Parts should be held a minimum of 2 hours per inch of thickness.   Double tempering is recommended.  The following tempering table may be used as a guide.  1″ dia. specimens were used for this test, it may be found that heavier sections are several points lower.  Table is based on a 2250° F hardening temperature.