Thicknesses: 0.025mm to 2.0mm

Widths:3mm to 600mm

Coil I/D: 3" to 16"

Coil Centres: Cardboard, Plastic or Metallic

Brass Strip
(Brass and Gilding Metal)

The most popular brass for general and electrical engineering purposes is CZ108, the 63/37 "common" brass. This has excellent strength, hardness, ductility and corrosion resistance. It is easily joined by soft or hard (silver) soldering, but care should be taken when brazing due to the closeness of melting point of the filler alloy. If likely to be exposed to corrosive environments after extensive cold work, it should be stress-relief annealed at 250° C - 350° C in order to reduce the tendancy for stress corrosion.

CZ106, the 70/30 or "Cartridge" brass has a higher copper content and is therefore slightly more expensive than CZ108. It does have advantages of even better ductility, which makes it excellent for heavy stamping and deep drawing operations, and a reduced susceptibility to stress corrosion cracking.

The Gilding metals, as their name implies, have a very pleasing durable appearance and are much used for decorative purposes as well as for general engineering. Deep drawability is excellent.

Specifications
BS 2870 for Sheet, Strip and Foil
BS 2875 for Plate

As shown in BS 2870, the brasses and gilding metals are available in a wide variety of tempers from annealed through 1/4 hard, 1/2 hard to hard, extra hard and spring hard.

Engraving Quality Brass
We hold a stock of CZ120 to BS 2870 in the thickness range 20G to 1/4 (weights as per tables). This lead bearing brass ensures clean easy cutting to close tolerances. Apart from engraving it is also used for precision clock and instrument parts. Available in plain or polished finishes.

Nickel Silvers
These alloys of copper, nickel and zinc are closely related to the brasses. They contain no silver but take their name from their silvery appearance and capacity to take a high polish.

50% zinc has a blueish colour through to pale green, greenish, yellowish, to pinkish alloys at less than 5-10% zinc.Those in the middle range are essentially white.

Used for decorative ware, cutlery, catering equipment, particularyly for goods destined for silver plating. Also used for architectural metalwork

NS104 - has 12% nickel
NS106 & NS107 have 18% nickel - and is widely used for electrical contacts.
Alloy NS106 is used in spectacle frames.

NS111 - 10% nickel and 1.5% lead has good machining properties.

Copper-Nickel-Tin
A particular group of copper nickel tin alloys are available. UNS No. C72700 with 9%Ni and 6% Sn, and C72900 with 15% Ni and 8% Sn. Both are available as strip which is fabricated by the user and then heat-treated.

Copper-Nickel-Silicon
With nominal composition of 2.5% nickel, 0.5% silicon, this alloy is available as castings, forgings, rod and bar with good strength and reasonable conductivity.

Copper-Nickel-Phosphorus
Alloys with a nominal 1% of nickel and 0.2% phosphorus. Not as strong as Copper-Nickel-Silicon alloy, but have better conductivity.

Cast Copper Alloys
We have comprehensive stocks of continuously cast copper alloys. They are available in different compositions, with variations in tin, lead, zinc and phosphorus that give properties that have been proven in a range of arduous applications.

Cast rods, tubes, and special sections are available in a very large range of close tolerance sizes so that components can be produced with a minimum of machining. This continuous casting also ensures freedom from porosity and excellent mechanical properties.

The alloys are mainly those included in BS 1400 but we also stock SAE 660 because of a strong demand and can meet many other specifications as well.

These materials are produced in foundries with the additions closely controlled under quality control systems approved to BS 5750.

These alloys do not become brittle at cryogenic temperatures, and may be used safely at elevated temperatures of 200 deg C or higher.
Corrosion resistance is generally good, with none of these alloys being seriously susceptible to stress corrosion.

Compositions / Mechanical Properties

Bronze
The bronzes are copper-tin alloys. The two major commercial products are phosphor bronze and aluminium bronze. Maganese Bronze - more correctly known as high tensile brass is detailed below.

Phosphor Bronze
Very strong and hard from the addition of phosphorus to a tin bronze rather than the more expensive nickel.

PB102 is a very useful corrosion-resistant high strength high hardness wrought phosphor bronze with a very wide variety of applications. It is available in most forms. Common use is in the electrical industry, it has good resistance to wear, sparking, corrosion, and temperature that makes it ideal as a contact material, for fasteners, masonry fixings, and similar devices.

Compositions / Mechanical Properties

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