Forging process may sound complex, but it becomes pretty easy and simple with the right guide. The main idea revolves around heading and shaping the metal with controlled force. Let’s break down the whole process into easy-to-understand steps.
Step 1: Selecting the Right Material
First, know what you want to create, then select the right material according to your project. For example, if you are planning to make a car crankshaft, then you need strong alloy steel, while a wrench might only need medium-carbon steel. After selection, the selected steel will be cut into pieces called billets or bars.
Step 2: Heating the Steel
Those pieces of steel will be heated under high temperature (900°C to 1250°C) in a furnace. They are heated until they become red or yellow hot. This much heat will soften the metal, but it will not melt.
Step 3: Forging or Shaping the Metal
After heating, metal is placed between two dies or under a heavy hammer or press. This pressure will shape the metal into the desired shape. There are different ways to do this: die forging, Press forging, or upset forging ( will discuss in detail in the coming sections of this blog).
Step 4: Trimming and Flash Removal
During forging, the extra metal (flash) squeezes out of the edges of the die. This extra metal is then cut off in trimming or during grinding of the part.
Forging of steel is just transforming raw metal into a useful, strong one. The process doesn’t end here. After forging, there are some heat treatments and post-forging processes to achieve the perfect strength, hardness, and finish.
