If you want steel tubing for any kind of project, from architecture items to furnishings, you need to choose the right type. There are some big differences in how the tubes are made and what you can use them for. We want to take a look the five different types of carbon steel tube here. Then if you need tube reduction services, you can rely on us.

ERW (electric resistance welding)

The first option is the most common. What you have is tubing that begins life as coil, strips, or sheets. They receive processing to cold form it into a cylinder, square, rectangle, or oval. Electric resistance welding is then used to bond the edges. It is effective to use ERW because it produces a small heat zone and means you don’t need any filler. In addition, automation can make it fast, cost effective, and repeatable.

DOM (drawn over mandrel)

This type of tubing is very similar to ERW and actually uses that type of welding to bond the edges. You also similarly start with coils of steel then cut and form it to the right shape. However, it has a major difference. As the name might give away, what you do here is draw the tube over a mandrel. It provides a number of benefits, including improving the tolerance.

CDS (cold drawn seamless)

There are some situations where applications mean tubing can’t have any kind of weld seam. This could be due to the high pressure or high loading. CDS tube is the best choice here. You begin with metal billets, solid metal bars. You heat them and then pierce to create the hollow. Further processes elongate the billet and reduce the diameter to create the tubes.

Hot finished

This is another option for seamless. It is a little different because the steel billet rotates as it is pierced. There is then processing such as milling to alter the wall thickness and diameter. The tube is a good option if people need seamless but don’t need tight tolerances and a high specification surface finish.

Hydraulic

One of the most interesting applications for steel tubing is hydraulics. It is vital for creating all kind of systems. The specific tubes can be either welded or seamless depending on the pressure and operating requirements. However, the tube must meet the right standards for hydraulic applications. This can require further processing such as normalising and annealing. It is also vital the products are consistent.

Do you need tube reduction services?

Multiform Tubes Engineering Ltd has a lot of experience with adapting tubing to suit a variety of specifications. A number of them focus on altering the tube ends, whether it is reducing or increasing them. The goal is to make it easier to create joints. That can be really useful for all manner of needs.

So, if you need tube reduction, expansion or anything else, contact us. We can work with various types of carbon steel tube and much more.