Construction

AISI/SAE 1018 High-quality Carbon Steel Wire Rod

DETAILS AND PARAMETERS

TOLERANCES

TECHNICAL SHEET

1. Product Introduction

1018 high-quality carbon steel wire rod is a low-carbon steel produced according to American AISI/SAE standards. It is a high-quality cold-headed and cold-rolled material with extensive applications. Compared to ordinary low-carbon steel wire rod for construction, it requires higher standards for chemical composition control, surface quality, and microstructural uniformity to ensure defect-free subsequent cold working, resulting in the production of consistent, reliable, and high-precision parts.

2. Characteristics

Balanced chemical composition:

Low carbon content (~0.18%): Ensures excellent cold working properties (high plasticity, low deformation resistance), allowing for easy cold heading, cold drawing, and cold extrusion, and resists cracking. Moderate manganese content: Improves hardenability and strength without excessively compromising plasticity.

Excellent cold formability: Its core advantage. Able to withstand significant plastic deformation, it is well suited for high-speed, large-scale cold heading operations (such as bolt and nut production) at room temperature using dies.

Good weldability: The low carbon content makes it compatible with nearly all welding methods, with minimal difficulty and excellent weld quality.

Can be strengthened by heat treatment:

Carburizing/Carbonitriding: 1018 steel is one of the most commonly used case-hardening steels. By heating in a carbon-rich medium, carbon is absorbed onto the surface. Then, through quenching and low-temperature tempering, a hard, wear-resistant surface layer (high-carbon martensite) and a tough core (low-carbon microstructure) are achieved—a superior combination of "hard on the outside, tough on the inside" properties.

Through Quenching: A quenching and tempering treatment can also be performed to improve overall strength, but due to its lower carbon content, the effect is not as significant as with medium-carbon steel.

High Surface Quality and Dimensional Accuracy: High-quality wire rod strictly limits surface defects (such as cracks, folds, and scars) and the depth of the decarburized layer, while ensuring dimensional uniformity. This is key to ensuring a high yield of cold-headed parts.

3. Applications

1018 wire rod is the parent material for various mechanical parts. After cold working and heat treatment, it has a wide range of applications:

High-strength fasteners:

Used for manufacturing bolts, screws, studs, nuts, and other components with strengths exceeding 4.8, 6.8, and even 8.8 (requiring quenching and tempering). Widely used in automotive, machinery, and equipment manufacturing.

Automotive and machinery parts:

Carburized parts: Components such as gears, shafts, pins, chain links, cams, and clutch parts require wear- and impact-resistant surfaces.

Cold-extruded parts: Components such as sleeves and special-shaped parts with complex shapes.

Shaft and pin parts:

Manufacturing of mandrels, guide pins, piston pins (requiring carburization), and cotter pins that are not subject to high friction.

Other metal products:

Can be used to manufacture chains, rivets, washers, and various cold-formed structural parts.

1018 high-quality carbon steel wire rod is a guarantee of quality and performance. It's no longer a simple building material, but the cornerstone of high-end manufacturing. Its exceptional cold formability and carburizability make it an indispensable key raw material for industries such as automotive, machinery, and high-end fasteners, offering a perfect balance between processing difficulty, cost, and final product performance.

Diameter specification according to Grade (mm)

GRADE	1004	1006	1008	1010	1012	1015	1018
Wire Diameter (mm)	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.5
	-	-	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	-
	-	-	6.5	-	6.5	6.5	-
	-	-	8.0	-	8.0	8.0	-
	-	-	11.0	-	10.0	10.0	-
Diameter Tolerance Maximum Ovality	± 0.4 mm

Weight of wire rod coils

Weight	Weight (kg)
Unit weight per roll	1800 - 2200

Item	Specification	Diameter Tolerance	Roundness Tolerance	Length Tolerance	Straightness Tolerance
Hot-Rolled Carbon Steel Wire Rod	Diameter: 5.5 mm – 16 mmMaterial Grade: SAE 1006, SAE 1008, Q195, Q235	±0.30 mm (5.5-10 mm)±0.40 mm (10-16 mm)	≤ 0.60 mm (5.5-10 mm)≤ 0.80 mm (10-16 mm)	+50 mm / -0 mm (standard coil length: 500-1200 m)	≤ 3 mm/m (per meter of coil)
	Diameter: 16 mm – 25 mmMaterial Grade: SAE 1010, SAE 1015, Q345	±0.50 mm	≤ 1.00 mm	+80 mm / -0 mm (standard coil length: 300-800 m)	≤ 4 mm/m (per meter of coil)
Cold-Drawn Carbon Steel Wire Rod	Diameter: 3.0 mm – 8.0 mmMaterial Grade: SAE 1008, SAE 1010, Q235	±0.05 mm (3.0-5.0 mm)±0.08 mm (5.0-8.0 mm)	≤ 0.10 mm (3.0-5.0 mm)≤ 0.15 mm (5.0-8.0 mm)	+30 mm / -0 mm (standard coil length: 800-1500 m)	≤ 1.5 mm/m (per meter of coil)
	Diameter: 8.0 mm – 12.0 mmMaterial Grade: SAE 1015, SAE 1020, Q345	±0.10 mm	≤ 0.20 mm	+50 mm / -0 mm (standard coil length: 500-1000 m)	≤ 2 mm/m (per meter of coil)
Stainless Steel Wire Rod	Diameter: 4.0 mm – 12.0 mmMaterial Grade: 304, 316, 321	±0.07 mm (4.0-8.0 mm)±0.09 mm (8.0-12.0 mm)	≤ 0.12 mm (4.0-8.0 mm)≤ 0.18 mm (8.0-12.0 mm)	+40 mm / -0 mm (standard coil length: 600-1200 m)	≤ 2 mm/m (per meter of coil)

Chemical composition range (%) for wire rod used in Malla Electrosoldada Plant

Element	Grade 1008	Grade 1010	Grade 1012	Grade 1015
C	0.10 máx.	0.08 - 0.13	0.10 - 0.15	0.13 - 0.18
Mn	0.30 - 0.50	0.30 - 0.60
Si	0.200 máx.
P	0.040 máx.
S	0.050 máx.

Chemical composition range (%) for wire rod used in Trefilación Plant.

ELEMENT	Grade 1004	Grade 1006	Grade 1008	Grade 1018
C %	0.02 - 0.06	0.08 máx.	0.10 máx.	0.15 - 0.20
Mn %	0.30 - 0.45	0.30 - 0.45	0.30 - 0.50	0.60 - 0.90
SI %	0.20 máx.
P %	0.03 máx.
S %	0.03 máx.
Cr %	0.20 máx.
Cu %	0.18 máx.
Ni %	0.20 máx.
Mo %	0.040 máx.
N	menor 110 ppm

Recommended Tensile Strength for Imported Wire by Grade for Wire, Malla Electrosoldada Plant.

GRADE ASTM 1040	Tensile strength
1008	410 MPa mínimo
1010	450MPa mínimo
1012	460 MPa mínimo
1015	460 MPa mínimo

Recommended Tensile Strength for Imported Wire by Grade for Wire,Trefilación Plant.

GRADE	Tensile strength (MPA)	Yield strength (MPA)	Elongation (%)
1004	380 MPa Max	275 mínimo	25 mínimo
1006	380 MPa Max	275 mínimo	25 mínimo
1008	410 MPa Mín.	275 mínimo	25 mínimo
1018	490 MPa Mín.	275 mínimo	25 mínimo

Utilization by grade and diameter of wire rod

	1004	1006	1008	1010	1012	1015	1018
5.5	Tie Wire (gauge 16) * Galvanized Wire (soft gauge)	Tie Wire (gauge 16) * Galvanized Wire (soft gauge)	Smooth rod 7/32 (6 y 9 m.) Nails ** Galvanized Wire (hard gauges)	Cold rolled (gauge 7, 8, 9, 10, 4.54, 4.35 y 4.71)	Cold rolled (gauge 7, 8, 9, 10, 4.54, 4.35 y 4.71)	Cold rolled (gauge 7, 8, 9, 10, 4.54, 4.35 y 4.71)	** Galvanized Wire (hard gauges)
6	-	-	Smooth rod 1/4 (6 m.) Nails	Cold rolled (gauge 6)	Cold rolled (gauge 6)	Cold rolled (gauge 6)	-
6.5	-	-	Nails	-	Cold rolled (gauge 6, 4.5)	Cold rolled (Calibre 6, 4.5)	-
8	-	-	Nails	-	Cold rolled (gauge 3 y 2)	Cold rolled (Calibre 3 y 2	-
10	-	-	-	-	Cold rolled (gauge 1)	Cold rolled (Calibre 1)	-
11	-	-	Smooth rod 11 mm (9 m.))	-	-	-	-

Comments (2)

Katherine A. Fogg

November 25, 2024

Their products are of excellent quality and they offer generous discounts. This is their third cooperation