Alcoa North American Rolled Products QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy

QC-10® Aluminum Mold Alloy QC-10® Mold Plate and Forged Block Specifically designed for production injection molds, QC-10 offers greater strength, stability, and durability than any other 7000 series aluminum mold alloy on the market. Its improved alloy composition provides outstanding through thickness strength and hardness while its quench insensitive microstructure allows provides minimal strength drop-ff and unequalled machinability. Application QC-10 is an excellent mold material choice for production tooling applications in numerous industries such as automotive, consumer electronics, and industrial products. QC-10 machines faster than steel and can be electrical discharge machined, polished, and textured. Faster Machining A high hard type of aluminum mold material, QC-10 machines 8-10 times faster than steel for rough milling. With high speed spindles, rough machining of QC-10 can occur at cutting rates of 20,000 rpm and feeds of 0.325 mmpt Alcoa’s Signature Stress Relief cold work technology gives QC-10 consistent strength through the middle of block, differentiating it from other aluminum alloys. In one case, a mold maker was able to reduce mold manufacturing lead time by 40% due to the dramatic increase in roughing speeds over P20 steel. Faster Cycle Time Outstanding thermal conductivity is the key to faster cycle times. QC-10 conducts heat nearly 5 times faster that tool steel, reducing molding cycle times by 20-50%. Reduced cycle time increases productivity. Since QC-10 heats and cools more efficiently than tool steel, resins process more efficiently yield less warp concerns in the molded part. Lower Piece Price By offering reduced mold cycle time of 20-50%, QC-10 tooling has clear cost advantages for manufacturers. As much as 50% of the cost of an injection molded part is cycle time. Cutting cycle time increases production and decreases piece-price costs. One manufacturer has reported producing 5 days production rate in 4 days using QC-10, therefore opening up capacity to begin new jobs. Proven Durability Today many QC-10 molds have delivered in excess of 500,000 shots and in some cases approaching that ever important number of 1,000,000. Of course, proper maintenance routines must be fully adhered to assure a lifetime of reliable mold service. Nobody enjoys having to fix molds, but in case repairs are needed, Alcoa has developed a proprietary weld repair wire to match the chemical composition. Consult with an Alcoa Technician about repair techniques.