ISO P — Steel · P01
P01 — Low carbon steel
Hardness range: 125–180 HB. Part of the ISO P — Steels group. Steel is the most widely machined material. Carbon and alloy steels are the target material for the majority of turning and milling operations. Hardness ranges from ~125 HB (low-carbon) to 350 HB (high-strength structural). CVD-coated carbide (TiCN/Al₂O₃ multilayer) dominates. Positive geometry for finishing, negative for heavy roughing.
Material profile — P01
- ISO designation
- P01 (ISO P — Steels)
- Material
- Low carbon steel
- Hardness
- 125–180 HB
- ISO group colour
- Steel
Tooling guidance — P-group
- Group summary
- CVD-coated carbide at Vc 200–400 m/min. Positive geometry for finishing, negative for roughing.
Insert selection for low-carbon / mild steel (1018) — starting point
- ISO application class
- P (steel). Low-carbon mild steel (1018, S235) is gummy, so built-up edge and long stringy chips are the main problems, not wear. Match the ISO P class across brands rather than the brand name (Sandvik, Kennametal, Iscar, Walter, Seco and Mitsubishi each publish one), then confirm the exact grade for your condition.
- Grade & coating
- Coated carbide, P10–P25. A sharp positive geometry and a medium chipbreaker fight built-up edge and stringy chips.
- Geometry
- Positive, sharp edge with a chipbreaker sized to break soft, stringy chips.
- Starting parameters
- Vc ≈ 150–300 m/min, fn ≈ 0.10–0.40 mm/rev. Confirm in the advisor or on a sample part.
low-carbon / mild steel (1018): what goes wrong, and what to check first
- Built-up edge
- Mild steel welds to the edge at low speed. Raise Vc, use a sharper positive edge, and add coolant.
- Long stringy chips / bird-nesting
- Feed too low or wrong chipbreaker. Increase fn or pick a roughing breaker.
- Poor finish from BUE
- The same fix: more speed and a sharper edge so material shears cleanly.
- Smearing at low speed
- Keep the speed in band and the edge keen.
Reference data
Insert grade index
ISO insert-code index
CNMG120408 — general turning
CCMT09T304 — positive finishing
Tool-wear diagnosis
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