How Maanshan Licheng Knife Delivers Reliable, Cost-Effective Cutting Performance At a Glance For many room-temperature guillotine shearing applications, 9CrSi tool steel offers a practical balance of hardenability, cutting-edge hardness, grindability and material cost. Its performance, however, depends on sound material selection and carefully controlled manufacturing and heat-treatment processes. Typical hardness Main strengths Common workpieces Key success factor HRC 58–61 Hardenability & grindability Carbon steel, aluminium, copper Controlled processing 1. Understanding Shear Blade Material Options Industrial shear blades are produced from different tool-steel families to meet varying requirements for wear resistance, impact toughness, operating temperature and service life. The most suitable grade depends on the material being cut, sheet thickness, machine condition and production volume. Material family Examples Carbon content (as stated) Typical characteristics High-carbon, high-chromium cold-work steels Cr12MoV, D2, SKD11 1.40%–1.60% High wear resistance; suitable for high-volume cutting with relatively low impact. Tough, impact-resistant tool steels H11, H13, 6CrW2Si 0.35%–0.60% Balance of hardness and toughness; good thermal-fatigue resistance and tempering stability. High-speed and powder-metallurgy steels W6Mo5Cr4V2, W18, ASP series 0.70%–1.30% High hot hardness and wear resistance for demanding high-speed or elevated-temperature conditions. 2. Why 9CrSi Is a Practical Choice for Many Guillotine Shears 9CrSi is a low-alloy tool steel listed under Chinese standard GB/T 1299. It is known for its hardenability, high hardness after quenching and useful tempering stability. For common room-temperature shearing of ordinary carbon-steel sheets and structural sections, it can provide a balanced combination of cutting performance and cost. Element Content range (wt.%) C 0.85–0.95 Si 1.20–1.60 Mn 0.30–0.60 Cr 0.95–1.25 P ≤ 0.030 S ≤ 0.030 Key Performance Advantages Good hardenability. Silicon and chromium improve hardenability compared with plain-carbon tool steels such as T10. With an appropriate process, larger cross-sections can achieve a more uniform hardness profile. At the same time, it has lower sensitivity to overheating, resulting in less deformation during quenching, making it highly suitable for slender parts and thin-edged shearing machine cutting tools. Meanwhile, the quenching process window for H13 and other heat-resistant steels is more stringent, and the cost of large-scale rework is higher. Balanced cutting-edge hardness. The carbon content of approximately 0.9% of 9CrSi gives the base material sufficient hardness for shearing. After normalizing, quenching, and tempering, its hardness typically reaches HRC 58-61, providing a balanced cutting-edge sharpness and wear resistance that are far superior to H13, and it is also softer and less brittle than the high-carbon, high-chromium steel Cr12MoV, so it is less prone to chippin...