Hot Rolled, Special Bar Quality (SBQ) and Merchant Bar Quality (MBQ) steels are part of the backbone of manufacturing.

Hot rolled steel bar is produced through a process that uses temperatures up to 3,000° F to melt specific quantities of iron, manganese, nickel, chromium, molybdenum, boron, titanium, vanadium, tungsten, cobalt, niobium, and other minor elements into a molten solution that is cooled into steel slabs, bars, rods, blooms, or billets. In turn, those are shipped to customers to create finished steel products, or, in some case, further processing is done before a customer is able to create a finished part. Hot rolled bars are the primary feedstock for many forging and machining applications and are used in their “as rolled” condition. It can be produced in round, hex, square, round corner square shapes, or as a flat bar.

Our diverse customer base and industry knowledge allow us to meet all of your hot roll needs. We have a readily available and proven supplier network, our team is friendly and responsive to your needs, we can provide Just In Time warehousing options to reduce overall inventory, footprint in your plants, and of course, payables. We are able to handle multiple processes while issuing a single invoice that includes steel, processing, testing, and freight.

THERE ARE SEVERAL ADVANTAGES OF HOT ROLLED STEEL: 

• Hot rolled steel is easier to make (less processes) than cold finished/cold drawn.
• It is cheaper than cold finished/cold drawn.
• It can easily be heated up and re-formed.

DISADVANTAGES OF HOT ROLLED STEEL: 

• Hot rolled steel can have dimensional imperfections caused by heating (expanding) and cooling (shrinkage/warpage).
• Rough surface texture needs to be removed before handling for some applications.
• Distortions of diameter and length are to be expected when compared to a cold finished/cold drawn product.

We sell several hot rolled steel products in a range of grades, sizes, lengths, and shapes.

Hot Rolled Bar & Billet

We stock a wide range of hot rolled bar and billet, and if we don’t have what you’re looking for in stock, please contact us to find out what the current lead time is to get it for you.

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Heat Treated Bar

Our full range of heat treating capabilities means we can meet your Heat Treated Bar needs.

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Hot Rolled Wire Rod

With both imported and domestic wire rods stocked, and customization available, we’ve got what you need to be your go-to supplier.

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Special Bar Quality (SBQ)

SBQ steel is a class of long steel products engineered for tough applications, such as bearings, crankshafts, gears, etc. These are the bars that will go into an engineered application and most likely have multiple processes done to the metal before you get to the finished part.

AIRCRAFT SBQ

Customers generally use this steel for important or highly stressed aircraft parts as well as other applications involving additional stringent requirements or safety-critical applications.

BEARING SBQ

Bearing quality generally applies to alloy steel bars that are used to manufacture anti-friction bearings. Typically, this quality level ranges from standard alloy carburizing grades to high-carbon chromium grades. These steels are produced in accordance with ASTM standards such as A 534, A 295, and A 485.

FORGING SBQ

Forging quality most commonly identifies Carbon Steel grades for its applications. Low carbon steels (1010-1025) are the easiest to cold form due to their soft and ductile nature. Medium carbon steels (1026-1055) are typically used in medium and large parts forgings. High carbon steels (1060 and higher) are used for applications in which high strength, hardness, and wear resistance are necessary.

COLD WORKING SBQ

Cold working quality steel is engineered so that the stresses put into the steel through the cold working processes do not create unintended consequences. The cold working process can include thread rolling, thread forming, swaging, crimping, among others. The steel bars we machine are typically cold drawn (cold worked). For example, cold working can be the act of cold drawing. This is when when a Hot Roll bar is cold drawn at room temperature through a carbide die to make it more machinable. No heat is added to a cold work process, and no chips are removed in the process of moving the metal into shape.

Merchant Bar Quality (MBQ)

Merchant Bar Quality steel is specified when standard steel quality for non-critical applications is needed. These types of bars are generally used in structural type applications involving bending, forming, punching, and welding. Merchant Bars are used by fabricators and manufacturers to produce a wide variety of products including bolts, support tower legs, steel floor and roof joists, and more.

Typical applications and uses for hot rolled Steel include:

• Bolts
• Fasteners
• Fittings
• Gear blanks
• Shafts
• Wheel hubs
• Connecting rods
• Pistons
• Forgings

We can also supply you with raw billets for your application as necessary.