Genuine Hardox is made only by SSAB in Sweden. It is their brand name. The stuff is used as "wear plate". It comes heat treated and tempered to maximise it's abrasion resistance. So is very hard indeed.
And comes in a variety of standards. EN 10029, EN 10163-2, EN 10051, EN 10131 for example.
I was tasked with looking into this when my club was rebuilding its backstops, which at the time were smash plates. But I got totally confused about which sort was likely to be the most suitable, SSAB couldn't help, and besides we had no local steel supplier who could get any. Nor were any of our volunteers with metal working experience, of which there were several, prepared to have a go at cutting or drilling it. It seems that it doesn't take much to ruin the factory heat treatment. Water jet with abrasive seems to be the best way to do it, and that would have been expensive, though there was a local company with that capability.
In any case it seemed like expensive overkill for a 25m indoor range with a velocity restriction of 1705 fps. And unnecessary to have an ever-lasting backstop. So we continued with inexpensive mild steel, and carried on replacing them periodically when they got dinged up, and began to bow outwards (that is what happens, counterintuitive though it might seem). We also got good money back for the scrapped ones, which further reduced the cost.
As an experiment we did take a scrap one outside, stood it up against an earth bank and had at it with a variety of full power rounds. From a longer distance. As expected the high velocity stuff, e.g. 223, just made neat round calibre diameter holes in it, all the way through. If the bullets had actually expanded on hitting it we saw very little evidence. Even slower things like 308 nearly got through it and this was thick stuff.
www.ssab.com
I rather suspect that many of the "Hardox" gongs out there are not actually real Hardox.
Other makes and brands of wear plate are also available.
And comes in a variety of standards. EN 10029, EN 10163-2, EN 10051, EN 10131 for example.
I was tasked with looking into this when my club was rebuilding its backstops, which at the time were smash plates. But I got totally confused about which sort was likely to be the most suitable, SSAB couldn't help, and besides we had no local steel supplier who could get any. Nor were any of our volunteers with metal working experience, of which there were several, prepared to have a go at cutting or drilling it. It seems that it doesn't take much to ruin the factory heat treatment. Water jet with abrasive seems to be the best way to do it, and that would have been expensive, though there was a local company with that capability.
In any case it seemed like expensive overkill for a 25m indoor range with a velocity restriction of 1705 fps. And unnecessary to have an ever-lasting backstop. So we continued with inexpensive mild steel, and carried on replacing them periodically when they got dinged up, and began to bow outwards (that is what happens, counterintuitive though it might seem). We also got good money back for the scrapped ones, which further reduced the cost.
As an experiment we did take a scrap one outside, stood it up against an earth bank and had at it with a variety of full power rounds. From a longer distance. As expected the high velocity stuff, e.g. 223, just made neat round calibre diameter holes in it, all the way through. If the bullets had actually expanded on hitting it we saw very little evidence. Even slower things like 308 nearly got through it and this was thick stuff.
Product program
Hardox, the premium wear and abrasion resistant steel, is hard, tough and workshop friendly, helping you improve product performance and productivity.
I rather suspect that many of the "Hardox" gongs out there are not actually real Hardox.
Other makes and brands of wear plate are also available.
