Materials Notes

Here is some information about the materials we use.

Magnet Wire:  We use 200C (392F) double insulated magnet wire.  This seems to be a rarity for most standard commercial grade solenoids, but it helps ensure that our solenoids will work in the most demanding conditions.

430F Stainless Steel is the "solenoid grade" stainless used for many industrial duty solenoids.  It offers good corrosion resistance and has the magnetic properties required for solenoids.  Chief among the magnetic properties are low residual magnetism, so it does not become a permanent magnet, and good magnetic strength in the presence of a magnetic field.  Note: There are other magnetic steels and stainless steels available, some having overall better properties, but cost and availability limit them to "super duty" applications.  It is used for all our pole pieces and plungers.

316 Stainless Steel is a non-magnetic stainless steel with very good corrosion resistance. Like 430F, it is the standard for industrial duty solenoids. It is used for our springs and the lower barrel tubing.

Nylon is used for injection molded parts.  Nylon offers good toughness and heat resistance and has good dimensional stability.  We can mold very thin bobbin walls, which are important for good magnetic efficiency.  We use a grade of Nylon which is excellent for our solenoid body overmolding.

Though not a material, passivation is an extremely important part of producing excellent quality solenoids.  We use a triple bath, ultrasonic tank process and do a mechanical pre-cleaning before passivation.