ASTM A128 heat treatment
Solution annealed and water quenched in-house, the treatment that gives Hadfield steel its toughness.
Shredder Wear Parts
Manganese Steel Shredder Hammers
Hadfield steel hammers for automobile and scrap shredders, solution treated for maximum toughness.
Overview
About manganese steel shredder hammers
Shredder hammers take the most violent duty in a scrap yard. In an automobile shredder the hammer strikes car bodies, engine blocks and occasional unshreddable material at rotor speeds that leave no room for a brittle casting.
Melco casts shredder hammers in austenitic manganese steel to ASTM A128, solution annealed and water quenched so the carbides are in solution and the austenite is stable. The hammer arrives around 220 BHN and work-hardens past 500 BHN at the striking face within the first hours of operation.
We produce hammers for Wendt, American Pulverizer, Texas Shredder, Metso and Lindemann machines, from small pre-shredder hammers up to large mill hammers. Castings are supplied in weight-matched sets so the rotor stays in balance.
Applications
- Automobile and ELV shredders
- Scrap metal shredding and recycling lines
- Hammer mills in metal recovery plants
- Wendt, American Pulverizer and Texas Shredder machines
- Metso and Lindemann shredder installations
Features
What you get
Work-hardening wear face
Strikes its way from roughly 220 BHN to over 500 BHN while the eye and body stay ductile.
Weight-matched sets
Hammers weighed and paired so rotor balance is maintained across a full change-out.
Piece weights to 2,000 kg
From small pre-shredder hammers to large mill hammers, cast on the same line.
Specifications
Manufacturing specification
Applies to manganese steel shredder hammers produced at our works. Castings outside this range can usually be accommodated, so please ask.
| Moulding | No-bake resin sand and green sand |
|---|---|
| Melting | Induction furnace, spectrometer-controlled |
| Piece weight | 5 kg – 2,000 kg |
| Heat treatment | In-house, computer-controlled cycles |
| Dimensional control | Template and CMM check against drawing |
| Documentation | Chemical, hardness and dimensional report per heat |
Material grades
| Grade | Typical composition | Hardness | Suited to |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASTM A128 Grade A | 1.05–1.35% C, 11.0–14.0% Mn | 200–229 BHN as-cast, 500+ BHN work-hardened | Standard high-impact duty |
| ASTM A128 Grade B-3 | 0.9–1.05% C, 11.5–14.0% Mn | 200–229 BHN as-cast, 500+ BHN work-hardened | Heavier sections, improved toughness |
| ASTM A128 Grade C | 1.05–1.35% C, 11.5–14.0% Mn, 1.5–2.5% Cr | 220–250 BHN as-cast | Where extra initial hardness is needed |
| ASTM A128 Grade E-2 | 0.7–1.3% C, 11.5–14.0% Mn, 1.8–2.1% Mo | 200–229 BHN as-cast | Heavy sections, faster work-hardening |
Composition ranges are quoted against the published standard. Actual analysis for your heat is issued with the castings.
Gallery
From our works
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Export packing: palletised, strapped and heat-number marked. -
Dual hardness hammers: hard face bonded to a tough manganese body. -
Grate sections: opening pattern cast to the customer product spec.
Questions
Manganese Steel Shredder Hammers: common questions
How often should shredder hammers be turned or replaced?
Most operations turn hammers on a fixed schedule tied to tonnage rather than waiting for visible failure, because a hammer that fails in service can damage the rotor and grates. Your maintenance log is the best guide; we can help you set a turn point from it.
Why does the eye of the hammer wear as well as the face?
The eye takes bearing load against the pin and elongates over time. Once eye wear becomes significant the hammer sits differently on the rotor and hammer-to-grate clearance changes, so eye condition should be inspected alongside face wear.
Do you supply hammer pins and rotor caps as well?
Yes. We produce rotor caps, anvils, grates and grids alongside hammers, so a full wear package can come from one heat schedule and one shipment.
What piece weights can you cast?
Our range is 5 kg to 2,000 kg per piece, which covers pre-shredder hammers through to large automobile shredder mill hammers.
More from our range
Related products
Enquiry
Enquire about manganese steel shredder hammers
Tell us the machine, the feed and the quantity. If you have a drawing or photographs of the worn part, mention it and we will send an upload link.
Melco Castings is an independent manufacturer of replacement wear parts. Machine and OEM names are used only to identify the equipment our castings fit. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or a distributor for any of these manufacturers.