X153CrMoV12
1.2379High-carbon high-chromium ledeburitic cold work tool steel — AISI D2. 12% Cr + 1.5% C forms massive M7C3 carbides giving outstanding wear resistance and cutting edge retention. Air-hardening with minimal distortion. Lower toughness than H13. Used for blanking/stamping dies, thread rolling dies, cold forming tools, slitting cutters, and wear parts. Also popular as high-end knife steel.
International equivalents
| Flag | Standard | Country | Grade | Number | Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 | AISI | USA | AISI D2 / UNS T30402 | T30402 | REF |
| 🇪🇺 | EN | Europe | X153CrMoV12 / 1.2379 | 1.2379 | 100% |
| 🇯🇵 | JIS | Japan | SKD11 | — | 95% |
| 🇨🇳 | GB | China | Cr12Mo1V1 | — | 90% |
Sources: ASTM A681, EN ISO 4957, JIS G4404, GB/T 1299
Chemical composition comparison (wt%)
Side-by-side: X153CrMoV12 (EN) (EN ISO 4957) vs SKD11 (JIS)
| Element | X153CrMoV12 (EN) | SKD11 (JIS) | Overlap |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | 1.45–1.6% | — | — |
| Si | 0.1–0.6% | — | — |
| Mn | 0.2–0.6% | — | — |
| P | 0–0.03% | — | — |
| S | 0–0.03% | — | — |
| Cr | 11–12.5% | — | — |
| Mo | 0.6–0.8% | — | — |
| V | 0.7–1% | — | — |
Mechanical properties
Hardened Tempered
| Property | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness HRC | 58–63 | HRC |
| Tensile Strength | 2000–2300 | MPa |
| Elastic Modulus | ≥ 210 | GPa |
| Density | ≥ 7.7 | g/cm3 |
Annealed
| Property | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness HB | ≤ 255 | HB |
Annealed
| Property | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness HB | ≤ 255 | HB |
Hardened + Tempered
| Property | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness HRC | 58–62 | HRC |
General
| Property | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Density | 7.7 | g/cm³ |
Heat treatment
| Process | Temperature | Medium | Holding Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| hardening | 1020–1040 °C | air or vacuum | 20-30 min | Air-hardening — controlled atmosphere essential |
| Soft annealing | 830–860 °C | Furnace cooling | — | Cool 20°C/h, max 255 HB |
| tempering | 200–550 °C | air | 2x min 1h per 25mm | Low-temp temper (~200°C) for max hardness; high-temp (~520°C) for secondary hardness |
| Hardening | 1000–1040 °C | Air/Vacuum/Oil | — | Preheat 650°C then 850°C, hold 15-30 min |
| Tempering | 180–540 °C | Air | — | Double temper: 180°C→62 HRC, 520°C→58 HRC (secondary hardness) |
Compatibility verdict
X153CrMoV12 and SKD11: 95% composition match
Close equivalents but NOT identical.
Related materials
P20 / 40CrMnMo7
1.2311Pre-hardened plastic mold steel (usually delivered at 28-34 HRC). The most widely used mold base steel globally. Good machinability in pre-hardened condition, good polishability. Used for injection molds, die-casting dies, extrusion tooling, and structural mold components.
M2 / HS6-5-2
1.3343The most widely used high-speed steel worldwide. W-Mo-Cr-V composition gives excellent red hardness (cuts at temperatures up to 600°C). Used for twist drills, end mills, taps, reamers, bandsaw blades, and general-purpose cutting tools. The benchmark HSS grade.
X45NiCrMo4
1.2767Nickel cold-work tool steel with exceptional toughness from ~4% Ni content. Excellent through-hardenability, polishability, and impact resistance. Used for plastic injection molds (high-gloss), embossing dies, scrap shear blades, punches, cutlery dies, and bending tools.
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