Application
Aluminum for Industrial & Machining
Machining stock. Grain direction, residual stress relief (T651) and dimensional stability decide whether the part moves after it is cut.
Specification
What Industrial & Machining Specifies
| Grades normally used | 6061 · 6082 · 7075 · 2024 |
|---|---|
| Product forms | Plate · Bar · Forged ring |
| Standards & approvals | ASTM B221 · ASTM B211 · AMS 4127 · EN 754 |
Grade by grade
What Each Grade Does in Industrial & Machining
An application page that lists five grades without saying what each one is for is a catalogue, not a specification. These are the roles they actually play here.
| Grade | The job it does here | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 6061 | General machined parts, jigs, fixtures and structural brackets — the default where nothing more specific is drawn. | Specs → |
| 6082 | European structural and machine-building drawings; stronger than 6061 in T6. | Specs → |
| 7075 | High-stress tooling, moulds and aerospace fittings, where strength per kilo governs the design. | Specs → |
| 2024 | Fatigue-critical aircraft and transport structure, normally clad where it sees weather. | On request |
Before you send the enquiry
Specification Mistakes That Cost Money Here
None of these is exotic. All of them arrive on real enquiries, and each one adds a round trip before a price can be issued.
1. Buying T6 thick plate for a heavily machined part. Without the T651 stretch, residual stress releases during machining and the finished part moves.
2. Substituting 6082 for 6061 without written approval. It is stronger, but the certificate names a different grade and the drawing is what governs.
3. Treating 7075 as weldable. In structural service it is not; assemblies are bolted, bonded or riveted.
4. Leaving the certificate type until after the order. 3.1 versus 2.2 changes price and lead time, and for aerospace grades it decides whether the mill quotes at all.
Categories that serve it
What We Supply Into Industrial & Machining
Verification
What We Put in Writing for This Application
- Mill test certificate to the class your file requires — 2.2 or 3.1 — carrying the actual mechanical test values for the heat.
- Gauge and surface inspection recorded before packing; photos of the sealed container.
- Where the market requires it, the classification society or coating test report with the issuing body named.
Before you ask
Industrial & Machining — Questions That Come Up
6061 or 6082 for a machine frame?
6082 on European drawings, 6061 on North American ones. Both are heat-treatable and machinable, and the standard the drawing is written to usually decides.
Why specify T651 instead of T6?
Because T651 is stretched after quenching to relieve residual stress. Without that step, thick machined plate distorts after the cut and the finished part has to be reworked or scrapped.
Can 7075 be welded?
Not in structural service. Assemblies in 7075 are bolted, bonded or riveted; conventional fusion welding causes hot cracking and loses the properties the grade was chosen for.