Dover, Duraluminum is just one of the many compositions of aluminum, basically it's 2024. Commercially pure aluminum is very soft and weak, not useful for much of anything.
When I used to make parts for my racing motorcycles out of aluminum I would have to take into consideration all the factors that the part would be stressed to before choosing the proper alloy. My most used were 2024, 3003, 6061 and 7075.So strictly speaking we call anyone of those above alloys aluminum although they all have different chemical and physical properties. The main ingredient by far is still aluminum.
Is steel really steel? Even more confusing than aluminum for most people is steel composition. There are thousands of different recipes for the alloys of steel that are used around us. Careful selection for the application just like the aluminum alloys is required. And just like aluminum, heat treating can change the physical properties of the material drastically.
Being a machinist it's just one of the many facets of the trade that one must learn to become truly effective. It's also why I keep material handbooks in my library.
BillWojo
When I used to make parts for my racing motorcycles out of aluminum I would have to take into consideration all the factors that the part would be stressed to before choosing the proper alloy. My most used were 2024, 3003, 6061 and 7075.So strictly speaking we call anyone of those above alloys aluminum although they all have different chemical and physical properties. The main ingredient by far is still aluminum.
Is steel really steel? Even more confusing than aluminum for most people is steel composition. There are thousands of different recipes for the alloys of steel that are used around us. Careful selection for the application just like the aluminum alloys is required. And just like aluminum, heat treating can change the physical properties of the material drastically.
Being a machinist it's just one of the many facets of the trade that one must learn to become truly effective. It's also why I keep material handbooks in my library.
BillWojo