Meet Our Metals: Aluminum

Forging aluminum grades is an important part of Anderson Shumaker’s production. Our skilled team knows their metals inside and out. But, not everyone is familiar with the many materials we forge. Each metal has its own unique properties and attributes. Therefore, not all metals are appropriate for all products. A few weeks back we discussed carbon steels. Today we’ll take a look at aluminum, a popular open die forging choice.

What is Aluminum?

Aluminum is a non-magnetic, ductile metal that has low density and resists corrosion. It is actually the third most abundant material in Earth’s crust. Due to its abundance, aluminum has a wide variety of applications. For example, it’s used as foils, mailboxes, kitchen utensils, bike frames, beer kegs, and cans (just to name a few). Because it is lightweight, aluminum is key for aerospace industry parts. As a result, we see a lot of aluminum forging in our forge shop.

Aluminum open die forgings are ideal for lighter-weight metal applications. This includes situations with harsh environments or require faster speeds and energy efficiency. For example, aluminum is ideal for aerospace parts and machine components that experience high pressure. Additionally, racecar wheels are a common application that benefit from the performance of aluminum forgings. The material offers maximum impact strength, superior internal integrity, and eliminates internal voids, unlike castings. In short, aluminum is a great choice for these high-pressure applications.

Anderson Shumaker forges many aluminum grades. We can produce the sizes and runs our clients need, from a single piece to a large production run. We also forge many aluminum shapes. For instance, we regularly forge aluminum rings, hubs, discs, round bars, flat bars, step shafts, and blocks. Additionally, our aluminum open die forging feature no tooling and quick turnaround times.

Because of our extensive in-stock inventory, we can forge aluminum order quickly. This, combined with our in-house heat treating, gives us the flexibility to produce the following grades to virtually any specification: