What is SAE 52100 steel equivalent to?
52100 is equivalent to DIN 100Cr6, GB GCr15 steel. Most applications can replace each others.
52100 continues to be the most used bearing steel [3], so the steel design has certainly stood the test of time. The steel goes by many other names such as 100Cr6, 1.3505, GCr15, En31, and SUJ2.
SAE 52100 is an alloy steel with high carbon with chromium as an alloying element, which has been widely applied in rolling bearings [1]. The traditional heat treatment process for SAE 52100 steel consists of a quenching process followed by a tempering step at low temperature.
SAE 52100 bearing steel is a high-carbon steel alloy mostly used for mechanical applications. The benefits of 52100 are high abrasion resistance and hardness after heat treatment. Its tensile strength is 325,000 pounds per square inch and its yield strength is 295,000 pounds per square inch.
A chromium alloy steel traditionally used for bearings and other high-pressure applications, 52100 is excellent to use in forging, grinding, and cutlery production with a reputation for great toughness and durability on its own or forge-welded to other steels, such as 410 or 416.
Because of the low chromium levels in 52100 steel, it has very low corrosion resistance compared to other higher chromium tool steels. In applications where corrosion is less of an issue, 52100 tool steel is considered an ideal, affordable option, offering a very fine grain with superior edge retention.
The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) designates SAE steel grades. These are four digit numbers which represent chemical composition standards for steel specifications.
Carbon steel (or high carbon chrome steel) is the most commonly used material for bearings. It has slightly better low noise characteristics than stainless steel. In addition, its hardness means it has better load capacity than stainless steel bearings.
The SAE steel grades system is a standard alloy numbering system (SAE J1086 - Numbering Metals and Alloys) for steel grades maintained by SAE International. In the 1930s and 1940s, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and SAE were both involved in efforts to standardize such a numbering system for steels.
Carbon steel knives are often the sharpest steel for knives. They're sharper and harder than stainless steel knives.
What is the hardest steel grade for knives?
Vanadium carbides are among the hardest that form in steel, and chromium carbides are in between iron carbide and vanadium carbide. Steels with very high vanadium content like Vanadis 8, CPM-10V, K390, CPM-15V, etc. have extremely high edge retention.
D-Series Tool Steel
D-series steels are known for their extreme toughness, making them ideal for applications where high strength and resistance to wear is essential. They are typically used for items such as punches, drills, knives, blades, and dies.

I find 52100 a little harder to sharpen, than say, White or Blue, but once you get it there, the edge stays there for weeks with minimum stropping or touch ups. I got one of my 52100 back from a review and it came with one of sharpest edge I have ever experienced (I am still working on my sharpening).
Martensitic grades include 420 stainless steel, which is used in engineering applications like shafts and 440C stainless steel – the hardest and most abrasion resistant of all the stainless steel.
52100 Chrome Steel is a universal material for many applications. Chrome Steel is magnetic.
Tempering: to desired hardness, using available tempering curves, following water or oil quench. Machinability: in the spheroidized condition is 45 percent of that of B1112 steel. Weldability: This steel would not normally be welded.
Most ball bearings are made of a type of steel known as high carbon chromium steel, often called chrome steel. This is used for reasons of cost and durability. Bearings are also made from other materials such as stainless steel, ceramics and plastic.
Ferritic Alloys
These are typically the cheapest stainless steel alloys due to their relatively low nickel content. There are two common ferritic alloy grades: Grade 430. Grade 434.
Chromium is the hardest metal known to man. While you may not have heard of chromium, more than likely you've heard of stainless steel. Chromium is the key ingredient in stainless steel, thus it is used in a variety of settings.
Stainless steel is the most obvious choice for corrosion resistance. SMB Bearings supplies 316 stainless steel marine grade bearings with polyethylene, PEEK or PTFE cages. All these cages provide corrosion resistance to water, salt water and most chemicals.
What type of bearing lasts the longest?
“Longevity of a well-built high-quality ceramic bearing, in many cases, can be up to 10 times longer than commonly used stock bearings. The 'rule of thumb', as we like to call it when built well, and of high-quality materials, a ceramic bearing should always be able to outlast and outperform a steel bearing.
Angular contact bearings are the best bearing choice for high-speed applications. One reason is that the balls are smaller and smaller balls weigh less and produce less centrifugal force when rotating.
ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) covers primarily bolts and fasteners for construction applications. SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) covers fasteners for automotive, machinery, and OEM applications.
As mentioned above, ASTM fastener standards are typically specified for construction applications, while SAE grades are typically used for automotive and equipment applications.
SAE. The AISI/SAE numbering system uses a 4-digit number for classification. The first two numbers indicate the steel type and alloying element concentration, and the last two numbers indicate carbon concentration. For example, SAE 5130 describes a steel containing 1% Chromium and 0.30% Carbon.
High speed steel, also called HSS, is comprised of steel clad in metal carbide. Metal carbides can be made of tungsten carbide, molybdenum or vanadium.
AISI 52100 bearing steels are mainly used in the promising sector like bearing industry. These tool-type steel offer elevated hardness, excellent wear resistance, and dimensional stability. Due to the higher strength, these are suitable for bearing applications, particularly in automotive sectors.
Bearing SteelsAMS 6440/6444 (52100) Bar
Alloy 52100 is a deep hardening alloy steel. Typical applications are within the aerospace industry, specifically aircraft bearings and in other high stressed parts where good rolling contact fatigue strength is required.
These grades include M2, M3, M4, M7 and M42. They are very commonly used with M2 being the most popular form of HSS steel. Molybdenum-based HSS has well-balanced toughness, wear resistance and red hardness. The higher numbered grades include more carbon and vanadium contents, resulting in superior performance.
The three main classes of high speed steels are (i) tungsten high speed steel, (ii) molybdenum high speed steel and (iii) tungsten-molybdenum high speed steels. The other classes of high sped steels can be made by addition of cobalt, and increasing the carbon and vanadium content to the three main classes.
Are there different grades of high-speed steel?
HSSs are heavily alloyed, ferrous, conventionally cast tool materials that can be divided into four main categories: tungsten-, molybdenum-, molybdenum-cobalt-, and molybdenum-vanadium based grades.
M2 is widely considered the industry standard for high speed steels, well-balanced in toughness, abrasion resistance and hot hardness for general purpose, replacing the original T1 grade in most uses due to the molybdenum inclusion improving most properties and being more economic.
Tempering: to desired hardness, using available tempering curves, following water or oil quench. Machinability: in the spheroidized condition is 45 percent of that of B1112 steel. Weldability: This steel would not normally be welded.
Both 52100 grade chrome steel and 440 grade stainless steel are magnetic and conduct electricity.
Tool Steel AISI 52100 Round Bar, Unit Length: 3 m, Size: 30-40 mm at Rs 59/kg in Chennai.
Advantages of Chrome Bearing Steel 52100: Superior hardness, 60-67 on Rockwell hardness scale (Rc) at room temperature.
HSS versus Carbide: General characteristics
In general, the main characteristic of all High-Speed-Steels is a high working hardness with excellent toughness. HSS tools also cost less than Carbide tools and are often a good solution in 'high-mix, low-volume' applications.
Molybdenum High Speed Steels (HSS)
M2 is the "standard" and most widely used industrial HSS.
HSS taps will stay sharp a -lot- longer than carbon and do not break as easily. Carbon-steel taps are soft by comparison, they dull quickly. The bottom line is: HSS cost more, cut faster, stay sharper longer and last a long time.