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15-5 PH Stainless Steel Forgings

15-5 stainless steel is a martensitic precipitation-hardening alloy with good fatigue strength, wear resistance, machinability, and excellent corrosion resistance. These advanced properties make 15-5 PH stainless steel forgings ideal for applications subjected to high pressure, including aerospace components, valves, shafts, and more.

At Great Lakes Forge, we custom-manufacture 15-5 PH stainless steel forgings with the industry's fastest lead times. We can create custom forgings up to 4,000 lbs., from 3.5" to 18" in diameter/thickness and up to 120" in length.

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Benefits & Characteristics of Stainless Steel 15-5 PH

15-5 PH stainless steel is favored for its high strength, hardness, and excellent transverse notch toughness and ductility. It offers corrosion resistance greater than straight chromium grades such as 410 and is comparable to chromium-nickel grades. It displays exceptional resistance to oxidation at high temperatures (up to 1,100°F/593°C). This material is chemically balanced to create an essentially ferrite-free microstructure, giving it a high degree of workability for forging. Advantages and characteristics include:

  • High strength and hardness, even at elevated temperatures
  • Excellent corrosion resistance
  • Good machinability
  • Non-magnetic
  • Good fatigue strength
  • Good wear resistance

Applications & Industries for 15-5 PH Stainless Steel Forgings

With robust strength and exceptional corrosion resistance, the components we forge from 15-5 PH stainless steel are used in some of the most demanding environments and industries. We manufacture forgings for components in aircraft, oil & gas refineries, marine applications, chemical processing plants, medical equipment, and more. Specific equipment that utilizes our 15-5 stainless steel forgings include:

  • Injection Molding Equipment
  • Medical Tooling
  • Food Processing Equipment
  • Extrusion Dies
  • Manifold Parts
  • Compression Molds
  • Plastic Processing

Forged 15-5 PH Stainless Steel Shapes

We offer open-die forging, milling, and rough turning capabilities to create 15-5 stainless steel forgings to your desired size and shape at a reasonable cost. Our in-house machine shop, quality-controlled heat-treating processes, and testing capabilities ensure quality, consistency, and dimensional accuracy that match your unique requirements. Shapes we forge include:

Alloy 15-5 PH Stainless Steel Composition

Element % Content
Carbon 0.07 (max.)
Chromium 14.00 to 15.50
Columbium + Tantalum 0.15 to 0.45
Copper 2.50 to 4.50
Manganese 1.00 (max.)
Nickel 3.50 to 5.50
Phosphorous 0.040 (max.)
Silicon 1.00 (max.)
Sulfur 0.015 (max.)
Iron balance

Exceptional Hardness

Tempered 15-5 PH stainless steel can achieve Brinell scale hardness of up to 420, and Rockwell hardness of up to C40.

Heat Treatment for Enhanced Performance

15-5 stainless steel can be solution heat treated at approximately 1,900°F/1,038°C; it should be allowed to cool to below 90°F/32°C to allow for complete martensite transformation.

Excellent Machinability

15-5 PH stainless steel machines easily, similar to 304 stainless. Machinability improves with increased aging temperature. The cutting speed of annealed 15-5 stainless steel forgings averages 80 ft/min; carbide tools can increase this speed up to three times. 

Your Trusted Open Die Forging Manufacturer

As an ISO 9001:2015 certified custom forging company, we offer you the flexibility and attention to detail you need in a forging manufacturer. In addition to 15-5 stainless steel, we open die forge over 100 different materials. If you have a forging project that demands a specific type or grade of steel, please don't hesitate to contact us - we may have the material you need on hand. If we don't, close relationships with our material providers allow us to bring in the steel you require quickly and cost-effectively.

Contact Us to Get Custom-Manufactured 15-5 PH Stainless Steel Forgings

Great Lakes Forge has the capacity and expertise to exceed your 15-5 PH stainless steel forging needs. Request a quote today for pricing estimates for your project. Or, contact Great Lakes Forge to learn more. We are your one-stop shop for custom-forged parts.