Boron hardenable steel for longer-life tillage equipment
Cost-effective, durable, and tough, Boron grades significantly reduce steel hardening costs for moldboard plows, disc harrows, and cultivators — while increasing hardness and toughness. They are compelling replacements for carburized, triple-layered cladding, B27/B30, and high alloy tool steels for tillage implements.
Possibilities of using boron steel for tillage equipment
Boron steel for tillage applications is engineered to harden through, so you skip the case-hardening process entirely. Carburizing ties up a furnace for 12 to 24 hours, involves hazardous chemicals, and carries a real energy and carbon cost. Boron steel needs a single quench. Toughness comes out higher than carburized surfaces, and the risk of quench cracks drops substantially.
Triple-layer cladding is faster than carburizing, but the trade-off shows up in low toughness and a hardened layer that's tough to drill or cut in the workshop. Boron steel for tillage keeps the hardness manufacturers need without that processing penalty, and a single engineered steel costs less than a multi-layer cladding process. Shops handle it on standard equipment.
High-alloy tool steels do offer through-thickness hardness, which matters for tillage parts that wear down past their surface layer. Boron steel delivers that same through-hardness at a better price point, with improved toughness against stone and rock impacts and far fewer quench cracks. No special workshop procedures required. You get the hardness profile without the premium or the processing headache.
It is important for a mould board to be high hard as well as tough enough to take the impact load when the plow hits stones.
In the workshop, the material needs to have good properties to drill, cut and heat treat without quench cracks. Keeping these in mind SSAB has designed a novel hardenable steel.
Next generation SSAB M53 for moldboard plows
Economical, ≈59 HRC through-hardness, good toughness, excellent workshop properties
Economical, ≈59 HRC through-hardness, good toughness, excellent workshop properties. Tillage implements such as moldboards operate in high-wear environments, especially after the harvest. The wearing becomes even more aggressive if there is frost and crop residue. Moldboard plow manufacturers, therefore, search for high hardness steels to reduce wear, plus good toughness to resistant impacts against stones and small rocks.
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SSAB M53’s through-thickness hardness profile
SSAB M53 Charpy impact test @23°C
Make moldboard plows with high toughness, easier processing, and no quench cracks
When following our recommendations for heat treatment and quenching media, SSAB M53 virtually eliminates quench cracks. We recommend water polymer for normal quenching, in the case of press hardening, please contact your local SSAB technical development team for specific recommendations. When water polymer quenched and low-temperature-tempered, SSAB M53 typically delivers 18 Joules impact energy resistance, along with its ≈59 HRC through-thickness hardness.
SSAB M53 can be cut mechanically or by using lasers or plasma cutters when following our recommendations. Flame cutting is not advised. If you need to punch or counterbore SSAB M53, please contact your local SSAB technical development team for specific recommendations. We recommend not punching or cold forming SSAB M53 in the hot-rolled delivered condition.
SSAB M53 is available as hot-rolled sheets, from 4.0 to 8.0 mm thickness, 1000 to 1800 mm widths and a maximum length of 13 meters.
SSAB Boron 45 for longer-lasting disc harrows and cultivators
Compared to conventional B27/B30 steel, SSAB Boron 45 delivers 4 to 5 HRC higher hardness that goes all the way through its thickness. It can be used with a variety of common heat treatment processes, including press hardening and hot forming – without quench cracks.
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Hardness of SSAB Boron 45 compared to B27/B30
Typical surface hardness (HRC), not guaranteed, measured at 1,5 mm from surface.
SSAB Boron 45 is available as cut-to-length sheets, from 3.0 to 10.0 mm thickness (12 mm under development), 1000 to 1800 mm widths, and a maximum length of 13 meters. Options include hot-rolled and hot-rolled annealed.
Boron steel expertise and trial material for your tillage equipment
Contact us with any questions about your moldboard plow, disc harrow, or cultivator application. Our boron steel experts can help you choose the right grade, make your hardening production more economical, and extend the service life of your tillage equipment. We can also send a trial sample so you can test the material in your own workshop before committing to a full order.
Next generation hardenable boron steel for agricultural implements: cost-effective, durable & sustainable
Agricultural/tillage implements — such as mouldboard ploughs, disc harrows, and cultivators — face extreme wear conditions. This webinar will show you how you can reduce material costs and increase implement service life by using the next generation hardenable SSAB Boron (press hardening) steel.
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SSAB Boron steel – optimized steel for quench hardening
SSAB Boron steel stands for a new and wider range of advanced steel grades for quench and press hardening. It will improve overall productivity, yield and end product quality. It’s the right choice for trouble-free and cost-efficient performance in heat-treatment processes.
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