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Posted: 5/5/2014 7:20:45 PM EDT
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I know Carpenter 158 steel is pretty popular, but what is the word on 9130 as a bolt steel? I bought a BCG from a reputable seller here thinking it was 158, but the bolt had 9130 stamped on it. I decided to keep it, and it's been great so far. The other thread just got me to thinking. |
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9130 is stronger when properly heat treated. Problem it's a tricky alloy to heat treat. It's heat ranges are pretty tight.
There in lies the problem, companies sell it and use it as a "budget" bolt alloy. Would you expect a company making a "budget" bolt to hit that, relative to c158, tight heat treat. While I realize the cheapness of 9130 comes from its non-strategic alloy designation and the fact that smaller quantities are available from Carpenter vs c158, it still adds up to kind of a gamble of sorts. |
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It's actually "9310", is a tougher steel than C158 according to many, but also some say is harder to get the heat-treat right.
It's not very different than C158, but has slightly different toughness when all is done correctly. ARP and a few others chose "9310" for their bolt material for various reasons. It supposedly can be purchased in smaller lots than C158 which requires a large chunk of money to purchase large quantities required. 9310 is not inferior. I have several "superbolts" made of 9310. There are even better steels available, but that's another story. HTH 
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