Surface finishing treatments applied to stainless steel can take many forms. The main finishes are described below.
| Description | ASTM | EN 10088-2 | Notes |
| Hot rolled | 1 | 1E/1D | A comparatively rough, dull surface produced by hot rolling to the specified thickness, followed by annealing and descaling. |
| Cold rolled | 2D | 2D | A dull, cold rolled finish produced by cold rolling to the specified thickness, followed by annealing and descaling. May also be achieved by a final light pass on dull rolls. |
| Cold rolled | 2B | 2B | A bright, cold rolled finish commonly produced in the same way as No. 2D finish, except that the annealed ans descaled sheet receives a final cold roll pass on polished rolls. This is a general-purpose cold rolled finish and is more readily polished than No. 1 or No. 2D |
| Bright annealed | BA | 2R | BA finish produced by performing bright annealing in an inert atmosphere after cold rolling. Smoother and brighter than No. 2B. |
| Brushed or polished | No. 4 | 1J/2J | A general-purpose bright polished finish obtained by finishing with a 120-150 mesh abrasive, following initial grinding with coarser abrasives. |
| Satin polished (matt) | No. 6 | 1K/2K | A soft satin finish having lower reflectivity than brushed finish. It is produced by using a medium abrasive. |
| Bright polished (mirror) | No. 8 | 1P/2P | The most reflective finish commonly produced. It is obtained by polishing with successively fined abrasives then buffing with a very fine buffing compound. |
| Electropolished | - | - | This surface is produced by electrolysis in an electrolytic solution. This electrochemical process improves the surface finish. |
Guide to stainless steel finishes
The purpose of guide is to show to the architect and designer the wide range of possible surfaces at his/her disposal, to provide more detail on the processes involved and to provide basic technical advice on their application.
This guide is available in English, Czech, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.
Pickling and passivating stainless steel
This resource describes the surface treatments known as pickling and passivation that can be applied to stainless steel. Pickling uses nitric and hydrofluoric acids to remove a thin layer of metal from the surface. Passivation uses nitric acid to improve the quality and thickness of the passive layer on the surface. Procedures for removing weld heat tint and rust contamination are explained.
This brochure is available in Czech, Dutch, English, German, Finnish, French, Polish, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish
The mechanical finishing of decorative stainless steel surfaces
This document discusses the following points:
- Specifying mechanically finished surfaces for stainless steel fabrications
- Frequently used finishing methods
- Frequently used abrasives and power tools
- Best practice finishing
- Case studies
- Health, safety and environmental issues
This brochure is available in English, Czech, Dutch, German, Finnish, French, Italian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish
Depth, pattern and texture - the third dimension in stainless steel surfaces
When choosing a material, architects are increasingly looking not only at functional performance but also at less quantifiable characteristics, such as aesthetic effect, colour and texture, all of which have an important effect on the final result. This goes hand in hand with advances in manufacturing processes which are opening up new possibilities. This Euro Inox brochure highlights some of the possibilities and gives many examples of where three-dimensional surface structures were used and how they are created.
This brochure is available in English, Czech, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish
Electropolishing stainless steels
Electropolishing is a chemical surface-finishing technique, by which metal is electrolytically removed, ion by ion, from the surface of a metal object. This Euro Inox brochure explains the process in more detail.
The brochure is available in English, Czech, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish
