A stainless steel tube making machine forms strip into tube and welds the seam, but it is not a carbon steel line running a different recipe. Stainless strip work-hardens as it is formed and carries heat away from the weld differently, so forming loads are lower and line speed is far below a carbon steel mill — the stainless units on this site are all published at 3 m/min to 7 m/min, against 30 m/min to 100 m/min for the carbon steel straight-seam lines.
That speed difference is the first thing to accept when specifying: a stainless line is bought for surface finish, corrosion resistance and clean weld, not for tonnage.
The three stainless units, published side by side
Model | Pipe ID | Wall thickness | Line speed |
|---|---|---|---|
ZT-20C | 7 mm to 25 mm | 0.3 mm to 1.2 mm | 3 to 7 m/min |
ZT-30 | 13 mm to 30 mm | 0.4 mm to 1.5 mm | 3 to 7 m/min |
ZT-50 | 20 mm to 76 mm | 0.3 mm to 1.2 mm | 3 to 7 m/min |
Across the three units the published range is 7 mm to 76 mm pipe ID with 0.3 mm to 1.5 mm wall. The figures above are as published on the ZT-20C, ZT-30 and ZT-50 unit pages.
Choosing between ZT-20C, ZT-30 and ZT-50
Pick by pipe outside diameter, not by the model number: ZT-20C covers 7 mm to 25 mm, ZT-30 covers 13 mm to 30 mm and ZT-50 covers 20 mm to 76 mm. The ranges overlap on purpose, so the choice is usually made by the smallest diameter you must run every week and by the wall range — ZT-30 is the only one of the three published up to 1.5 mm wall.
If your product range straddles two units, the usual answer is to buy the wider one and run the small sizes slower rather than to buy two lines, unless the small sizes are high volume.
What completes a stainless line
The tube mill is one unit in a line: the stainless line also needs the welding unit, the sealing unit for closed sections and the run-out and cut-off equipment. The stainless welding and sealing units published on this site are linked below with the three model pages.
Frequently asked questions
What pipe sizes do the stainless units cover?
Across the three units the published range is 7 mm to 76 mm pipe ID, with wall thickness from 0.3 mm to 1.5 mm.
How fast do the stainless lines run?
Each of the three units is listed at 3 m/min to 7 m/min. The carbon steel straight-seam lines on this site are published at 30 m/min to 100 m/min.
Which stainless unit should I choose?
Pick by pipe outside diameter: ZT-20C covers 7 mm to 25 mm, ZT-30 covers 13 mm to 30 mm, and ZT-50 covers 20 mm to 76 mm.
Related pages: stainless steel tube mills, ZT-20C stainless steel unit, ZT-30 stainless steel unit, ZT-50 stainless steel unit, high frequency stainless steel pipe roll forming machine
