What is 201 stainless steel?

201 stainless steel is a 200 series austenitic stainless steel developed by replacing nickel with elements such as manganese and nitrogen. In the early years, we often distinguished 201 steel types by high copper (J4) and semi-copper (J1). However, as the copper content developed downwards, J3 replaced J1, and J2 and J5 replaced J3. Birth.

201 stainless steel has certain acid and alkali resistance, high density, no bubbles when polished, no pinholes, etc. It is a high-quality material for the production of various watch cases, watch strap bottom covers, etc. Mainly used to make decorative pipes, industrial pipes, and some shallow drawn products.

The J1, J2, J3, J4, and J5 of the J series have the following differences:

201 stainless steel J1: The carbon content is slightly higher than J4, and the copper content is lower than J4. Its processing performance is not as good as J4 material. It is suitable for ordinary shallow deep drawing and large-angle deep drawing products such as decorative panels, bathroom products, sinks, and product pipes.

201 stainless steel J2 and 201 stainless steel J5: mostly used for decorative pipes, simple processing, high hardness (both above 96°), beautiful polishing, but easy to burst when used in bent pipes (90°). In terms of flat panels, due to their high hardness, the panel surface is more beautiful and can be treated with frosting, polishing, color plating and other surface treatments. But the biggest problem is bending. It is easy to break when bending and burst when stretched, so the ductility is not good.

201 stainless steel J3: J3 material is the new favorite of 201 hot-rolled narrow strip. It contains a small amount of copper. It is easy and not difficult to process in decorative panels. It can perform some primary processing and meandering. It is suitable for shallow processing of product pipes and mechanical feet. Racks, display racks, vehicle frames, stainless steel furniture, etc. 201 stainless steel J3 material can not only reduce costs, but also meet the deformation requirements of stainless steel product factories.

201 stainless steel J4: The material of J4 is a relatively high-end variety in the 201 stainless steel J series, with added special elements, such as high copper J4. Most products that require deep drawing and salt spray testing will choose it. Such as sinks, kitchenware, bathroom products, kettles, thermos cups, door hinges, pots, etc.

Comprehensive description: J2 and J5 are copper-free materials in the 201 stainless steel series. They are easy to break when bending, and easy to burst when gouging. They have poor ductility and cannot be processed and meandered. J3 contains a small amount of copper, allows primary processing and bending, and is suitable for stainless steel decorative pipes. If there are higher customization requirements, such as layout fineness and more complex meandering processes, it is recommended to use J1 or J4 material.

J series element composition comparison base on TS and Chengde’s samples:

From the above figures, we can see that the nickel and chromium composition of J series is actually not very different, .But it is obvious different between Carbon and Copper.

Copper: J4 > J1 > J3> J2>J5

Carbon: J5 > J2 >J3> J1>J4

Hardness: J5, J2 > J3>J1>J4