HOW IT'S MADE

Low melt alloys or Fusible Alloys are alloys that are made up of Bismuth, Lead, Tin, Cadmium, and Indium. Low melt alloys can expand up to 3.3% when solidifying from a liquid to a solid depending on the product. This expansion allows these alloys to precisely conform to any intricate details when molded.

CS Alloys is a modern facility with new equipment that enables us to offer our customers the most up to date and current methods of producing low melt alloys.

CS Alloys is proud to offer over 100 different low melt alloys; and can produce customer specific items to meet specific customer needs. Our products have a temperature melting range between 100 to 483 degrees Fahrenheit. We produce Low Melt items in various forms: Cakes, Extruded Bar, Wire, and Ingots.

Our manufacturing facilities are right here in America (North Carolina) and we ship our products worldwide. We are proud to help create jobs for Americans.

Directions for bending thin walled tubing with CS Alloys

1. Make sure that tubing is fully annealed.
2. Clean interior of tube with pull-through to remove any scale or foreign matter.
3. Tightly plug one end of tube with wood or rubber plug.
4. Fill tube with a light grade oil, preferably S.A.E. 10.
5. Pour oil from tubing leaving a small amount in the bottom of the tube. Careful attention to oiling is necessary to prevent the CS Alloys “tinning” the tube.
6. Fill tube with CS Alloys from an iron ladle or a welded stainless steel container suspended in boiling water or hot water jacketed stainless steel tank, allowing the alloy to run down the side of the tube in order to avoid air pockets. Small tubes (1/4” dia. or less) should be placed in boiling water while being filled.
7. Lower loaded tube immediately into a cold circulating water quenching tank and leave for sufficient time for tube and filler to attain room temperature throughout (About 15 minutes for 1” diameter tubing, 20 minutes for 1-1/2” diameter tubing, etc.).
8. After proper quenching, re-warm loaded tubes to about body temperature.
9. Remove plug from tube.
10. Bend loaded tube with a slow uniform pressure over a forming block or in a regular bending machine.
11. Immerse bent tube in boiling water tank (stainless steel preferred) and allow CS Alloys to run out (Do not use torch). Tilt and shake tube as necessary to remove alloy as completely as possible.
12. Plunge unloaded tube, while still hot, in cold water for two minutes to solidify and small drops of CS Alloys retained in the oil film.
13. Flush tube with a cold grease solvent to remove oil film and any solid particles of CS Alloys. Additional cleaning may be done with a tight fitting pull-through.

Important: Satisfactory results depend entirely on rapid quenching and thorough cooling, re-warming before bending, and using a slow uniform pressure during the forming operation.

(Rust-less iron or stainless steel are recommended for tank construction. Plain steel will rust when in constant contact with boiling water and steam. Copper, aluminum and galvanized iron tanks will contaminate the alloy).

The approximate weight of CS Alloys per foot of tubing for various inside diameters is as follows:

• 1/4” - .22 lbs.
• 3/8” - .47 lbs.
• 1/2” - .83 lbs.
• 5/8” – 1.29 lbs.
• 3/4” – 1.83 lbs.
• 7/8” – 2.50 lbs.
• 1” – 3.25 lbs.
• 1-1/8” – 4.16 lbs.
• 1-1/4” – 5.13 lbs.
• 1-1/2” – 7.39 lbs.
• 1-3/4” – 10.07 lbs.
• 2” – 13.16 lbs.

(CS Alloys weigh .34 lbs. per cubic inch)

Do not clean tubes by pickling or any wet process, as retention of acid salts will interfere with development of a continuous oil film and increase tendency for CS Alloys to stick to tube wall.

Modern motor oils contain detergents which tend to act as flux. Straight run mineral oils, containing no detergents, are recommended. Cities Service Co’s Amples-P2 has been found satisfactory. Silicone DC-7 is excellent.

An CS Alloys remaining in tube after following direction may be removed by blowing out with steam; dissolving in dilute Sulphuric or Hydrochloric Acid or Caustic Soda solution (start with 10% solution at 200 degrees F).

Additional information on removing residual particles of CS Alloys is available on request.