>
> I have always heard people say things like Snap-On uses better metal
> than craftman on their socket sets. Just by looking you can tell that
> there is an obvious difference in their finish. Is there a way to
> tell a good quality metal from a poor quality metal? Another
> example would be drill bits. How can you tell if a set is cheap or
> good quality?
Good question. Though I don't think a basic test of the metallurgy
will tell the whole story or anything approaching the big picture:
heat treating process or the grain structure of the forging, etc.
Richard Welty's wife was analyzing the metallurgy of coat hangers for
use as welding rods (!) a year or so ago. As much as I didn't agree
with that kludge, this might be interesting. Anyone want to donate a
couple of wrenches? ;-)
Brian
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