Click here to find Stainless Steel Fasteners Manufacturers | Discuss Stainless Steel Fasteners & Other Topics

Fasteners are any component used for joining separate parts. Therefore, stainless steel fasteners include screws, pins, bolts and nuts, plus a wide range of similar products fashioned from stainless steel.

There are actually a wide number of stainless steel alloys available, and the qualities of any particular fastener are dependant on the particular alloy used. Alloys fall into three basic types: austenitic, ferritic and martensitic. Each of these materials has its own advantages and disadvantages, and none can be considered ideal, although each category is more suited to a particular type of conditions. For more basic applications, simply the category of stainless steel fasteners should provide the fasteners required, although a manufacturer or supplier can recommend the best alloy available.

Stainless steel fasteners are generally classified in either inch or metric measurements, and can be purchased or custom designed to either specification. Among the types of fasteners crafted in stainless steel are washers, rivets, clamps and rings, as well as those already listed. A large number of these fasteners are produced by the cold-heading process, which involves the upsetting of existing metal pieces into desired shapes. This process often creates advantageous grain flow and hardens grains. CNC machining processes are also used, especially in the fabrication of high-precision stainless steel fasteners and complex fastener shapes. Virtually any shape, size or specification can be met by modern fabrication processes.

Stainless steel fasteners are used in a near limitless set of applications. But like any material, stainless steel is not the solution to every requirement, and there are many applications where other materials will be required. However, a wide range of industries use stainless steel fasteners, including the aerospace, defense, automotive, petrochemical, waste processing, marine and pharmaceutical fields. This means that there are an exhaustive range of standard parts available, as well as machine shops that can provide any amount of custom fasteners.