Materials Forming Technology
Chapter 9
Forging
Forging is the operation where the metal is heated
and then a force is applied to manipulate the metal in
such a way that the required final shape is obtained.
This is the oldest of the metal working processes
known to mankind since the copper age. Forging is
generally a hot working operation though cold forging
is used sometimes.
Two types of operations are used in forging in order to
arrive at the final object configuration. They are as
follows.
- Drawing out This is the operation in which the metal
gets elongated with a reduction in the cross-sectional
area. For this purpose, the force is to be applied in a
direction, perpendicular to the length axis.
- Upsetting This is applied to increase the cross-
sectional area of the stock at the expense of its
length. To achieve the upsetting, force is applied in a
direction parallel to the length axis.
Because of the manipulative ability of the forging
process, it is possible to closely control the grain flow in
the specific direction, such that the best mechanical
properties can be obtained based on the specific
application.
The grain pattern obtained without bending is shown in
Fig (a), whereas the one in (b) is obtained by bending
after drawing out. As a result, the grain flow is also
bent along the hook and thus provide the necessary
strength for lifting loads.
The gear blank shown in (d) is obtained by upsetting the
blank and then finish forging, whereas the one in (c) is
obtained without upsetting the blank. The upsetting
process provides the radial grain flow which is essential
for good strength in gear teeth for several applications.
Forging types
There are four types of forging methods which are
generally used. They are:
① Smith forging: This is the traditional forging operation
done openly or in open dies by the village blacksmith or
modern shop floor by manual hammering or by power
hammers.
Drop forging: This is the operation done in closed
impression dies by means of drop hammers. Here the
force for shaping the component is applied in a series
of blows.
Press forging: Similar to drop forging, the press
forging is also done in closed impression dies with
the exception that the force is a continuous squeezing
type applied by the hydraulic presses.
Machine forging: Unlike the drop or press forging
where the material is drawn out, in machine forging,
the material is only upset to get the desired shape.
9.2 Smith Forging
The process involves heating the stock in the
blacksmith's hearth and then beating it over the anvil.
To get the desired shape, the operator has to
manipulate the component in between the blows. The
types of operations available are fullering, flattening,
bending, upsetting and swaging.
In fullering, the material cross-section is decreased and
length increased. To do this, the bottom fuller is kept in
the anvil hole with the heated stock over the fuller. The
top fuller is then kept above the stock and then with the
sledge hammer, the force is applied on the top fuller.
The fullers concentrate the force over a very small area,
thus decreasing the cross-section at that point. Metal
flows outward and away from the centre of the fullering
die. Then the stock is advanced slightly over the fuller
and the process repeated,
After fullering, the stock would have the fullering marks
left which are then cleaned by means of flattening. To
obtain specific shapes such as round, square, hexagon,
etc. Open general purpose dies called swages are
used. The force for shaping is applied by manual
hammering or by means of the forging hammers, the
latter being the industrial practice.
Smith forging involves a lot of skill on the part of the
operator and also is more time consuming. But since no
special dies are used, smith forging is more beneficial in
the manufacture of small lots or in trial production,
because of the heavy cost of the closed impression dies
cannot be justified in these cases.
9.3 Drop Forging
Drop forging utilises a closed impression die to obtain
the desired shape of the component. The shaping is
done by the repeated hammering given to the material in
the die cavity. The equipment used for delivering the
blows are called drop hammers.
The drop forging die consists of two halves. The lower
half of the die is fixed to the anvil of the machine, while
the upper half is fixed to the ram. The heated stock is
kept in the lower die while the ram delivers four to five
blows on the metal, in quick succession so that the metal
spreads and completely fills the die cavity. When the two
die halves close, the complete cavity is formed.
The die impressions are machined in the die cavity,
because of which more complex shapes can be obtained
in drop forging, compared to smith forging. However, too
complex shapes with internal cavities, deep pockets,
reentrant shapes, etc. cannot be obtained in drop forging
due to the limitation of the withdrawal of the finished
forging from the die.
The typical products obtained in drop forging are crank,
crank shaft, connecting rod, wrench, crane hook, etc.
The final shape desired in drop forging cannot be
obtained directly from the stock in a single pass.
Depending on the shape of the component, and the
desired grain flow direction, the material should be
manipulated in a number of passes.
Fullering impression
Since drop forging involves only a reduction in cross-
section with no upsetting, the very first step is to reduce
the stock to the desired size. The impression machined
in the die to achieve this is called fullering impression.
Sometimes it may be possible to obtain this without a
special die impression, in open dies.
Edging impression
Also called as ‘preform’, this stage is required to gather
the exact amount of material required at each cross-
section of the finished component. This is the most
important stage in drop forging. Properly designed
preform ensures a defect free flow of metal, complete
die fill and minimum flash loss.
Bending impression
This is required for those parts which have a bent shape.
The bent shapes can also be obtained without the
bending impression, but then, the grain flow direction will
not follow the bent shape and thus the point of bend may
become weak. To improve the grain flow, therefore, a
bending impression is incorporated after edging
impression.
Blocking impression
Also called as 'semi-finishing' impression, blocking is a step
before finishing. In forging, it is very difficult for the material
to flow to deep pockets, sharp corners, etc. Hence, before
the actual shape is obtained, the material is allowed to have
one or more blocking impressions where it acquires the
shape very near to the final one. The blocking impression is
characterised by large comer radii and fillets but no flash.
For complex shapes, more than one blocking impression may
be used.
Finishing impression
This is the final impression where the actual shape required
is obtained. In order to ensure that the metal completely fills
the die cavity, a little extra metal is added to the stock. This
extra metal will form the flash and surrounds the forging in
the parting plane.
Trimming
In this stage, the extra flash present around the forging is
trimmed to get the forging in the usable form.
9.4 Press Forging
Press forging dies are similar to drop forging dies as
also the process. In press forging, the metal is shaped
not by means of a series of blows as in drop forging,
but by means of a single continuous squeezing action.
This squeezing is obtained by means of hydraulic
presses.
Because of the continuous action of the hydraulic
presses, the material gets uniformly deformed
throughout its entire depth. More hammer force is
likely to be transmitted to the machine frame in drop
forging, whereas in press forging it is absorbed fully by
the stock. The impressions obtained in press forging
are clean compared to that of the likely jarred
impressions which are likely in the drop forged
components.
The draft angles used in press forging are less than in
drop forging. But the press capacity required for
deforming is higher and as a result somewhat smaller
size components only are press forged in closed
impression dies. But there is no such limitation for
press forging in open dies.
The presses may have capacities ranging from 5 MN
to 50 MN for normal applications. For special heavy
duty applications, higher capacity presses of the order
of 150 MN are required. To get the equivalent weight
of the falling parts in kg of drop hammer required, the
capacity of the press expressed in tonnes is to be
multiplied by a factor ranging from 2 to 2.5.
To provide the necessary alignment of the two die
halves, die posts are attached to the bottom die so
that the top die would slide only on the posts and thus
register the correct alignment. This ensures better
tolerances for the press forged components
The tong holds which are normally required for
manipulating dies in drop forging are not required in
press forging, because metal is pressed only once in
each of the impression and generally mechanical
ejection is used for removing the piece from the die.
But for this, the press forging die is similar to drop
forging die with the various impressions such as fuller,
bender, blocker and finisher impressions properly
arranged.
9.5 Machine Forging
As it involves the upsetting operation, sometimes it is
simply called as upset forging. Though both drop and
press forgings are also done by machines, historically,
only upset forging is referred to as machine forging.
Originally this was developed for making the bolt
heads in a continuous fashion, but now there are fairly
large number of diverse uses of this process. Because
of the beneficial grain flow obtained from upsetting, it
is used for making gear blanks, shafts, axles and
similar parts
Some typical upset forged components
Upsetting machines called upsetters are generally
horizontal acting. The die set consists of a die and a
corresponding punch or a heading tool. The die
consists of two parts, one called the stationary gripper
die which is fixed to the machine frame and the other,
movable gripper die, which moves along with the die
slide of the upsetter. The stock is held between these
two gripper dies by friction.
The die set consists of a die and a corresponding
punch or a heading tool
The upset forging cycle starts with the movable die
sliding against the stationary die to grip the stock. The
two dies when in closed position, form the necessary
die cavity. Then the heading tool advances against the
stock and upsets it to completely fill the die cavity.
Having completed the upsetting, the heading tool
moves back to its back position. Then the movable
gripper die releases the stock by sliding backwards.
Similar to drop forging, it is not possible to get-the final
shape in a single pass in machine forging also.
Therefore, the operation is carried out in a number of
stages. The die cavities required for the various
operations are all arranged vertically on the gripper
dies. The stock is then moved from one stage to the
other in a proper sequence till the final forging is
ready.
A heading tool each, for every upsetting stage is
arranged on the heading slide of the upsetting
machine.
9.6 Forging Defects
Though the forging process generally gives superior
quality products compared to other manufacturing
processes, there are some defects that are likely to
come if proper care is not taken in the forging process
design.
① Unfilled sections in this, some sections of the die
cavity are not completely filled, by the flowing metal.
The causes of this defect are improper design of
forging die or using faulty forging techniques.
② Cold shut This appears as a small crack at the
corners of the forging. This is caused mainly by the
improper design of the die wherein the corner and
fillet radii are small as a result of which the metal
does not flow properly into the corner and ends up as
a cold shut
③ Scale pits This is seen as irregular depressions on
the surface of the forging. This is primarily mused
because of the improper cleaning of the stock used
for forging. The oxide and scale present on the stock
surface gets embedded into the finished forging
surface. When the forging is cleaned by pickling,
these are seen as depressions on the forging surface.
④ Die shift This is caused by the misalignment of the
two die halves, making the two halves of the forging
to be of improper shape.
⑤ Flakes These are basically internal ruptures caused
by the improper cooling of the large forging. Rapid
cooling causes the exteriors to cool quickly causing
internal fractures. This can be remedied by following
proper cooling practice.
⑥ Improper grain flow This is caused by the improper
design of the die which makes the flow of metal not
following the final intended directions.
9.7 Forging Design
Before the dies are designed, it is necessary to design
the shape of the forging to be obtained from the die.
Parting plane
A parting plane is the plane in which the two die halves
of the forging meet. It could be a simple plane irregularly
bent, depending on the shape of the forging. The choice
of a proper parting plane greatly influences the cost of
the die as well as the grain flow in the forging.
In any forging, the parting plane should be the largest
cross-sectional area of the forging, since it is easier to
spread the metal than to force it into deep pockets. A flat
parting plane is more economical. Also the parting plane
should be chosen in such a way that equal amount of
material is located in each of the two die halves so that
no deep die cavities are required. It may be required to
put more metal into the top die half since metal would
flow more readily in the top half than in the bottom one.
Example1 The required holes in the lever are to be
obtained by drilling after forging. But the surface to be
drilled is not flat but tapered because of the draft
provided on the sides for withdrawal of the forging.
Example1 This taper causes the drill to wander and is
not desirable. Therefore, a parting line, as shown in
Figure(b), would be desirable since it facilitates the
generation of the holes by forging itself. But this brings in
another problem of an inclined parting plane which
causes a sideward thrust as shown with an arrow.
sideward thrust
Example1 This sideward thrust may cause
misalignment of the two die halves. To take care of this,
the counter locking of the die is to be done as shown in
Figure(c) which is the final desirable parting plane.
sideward thrust
counter locking
Example1 Whenever the counter lock is provided, care
should be taken to see that enough resisting area is
provided so that the sideward thrust generated is
properly counter-balanced. The thickness of counter lock
should at least be 1.5 times the height for providing
enough strength. The height of the counter locking
portion should at least be the same height as the forging
detail which causes the sideward thrust.
counter locking
Example2 The counter locked portions cannot be
adequately lubricated and hence they wear out quickly
and calling for reworking of the dies. Therefore, it is
necessary that counter locking of dies should be
eliminated as far as possible.
Example2 The elimination of counter locking can be
done to a great extent by properly orienting the forging in
the die. The example shown in Figue(a), which, because
of the web causes the sideward thrust for the chosen
parting plane. A slightly redesigned component as
shown in Figure(b) cannot be produced with a flat
parting line but calls for a counter locking as shown.
Example2 But orienting the component as shown in
Figure(c) so that the 90° angle is inclined to the parting
line makes for an easier forging of the angle as well as
reduce the counter locking completely. For the design
shown in Figure(a), two components are produced in a
die, the sideward thrust can be compensated. The
components can be parted off after forging. This will
facilitate making the die completely in one half only.
Example3 The other aspect to be considered in the
choice of parting line is the punching of holes that are
perpendicular to the parting plane. Depending on the
depth of the hole compared to the diameter, it may be
necessary to choose such a parting line that the hole is
properly distributed and the punch used for making the
hole has enough strength.
Example3 In Figure(a) is shown one possibility of a
parting plane which simplifies the lower part of the die.
But the punch in the upper die half becomes excessively
long and hence there is higher draft. By changing the
parting line as shown in Figure(b), it is possible to punch
from both sides, thus reducing the machining which was
associated with the parting line shown in Fig(a). Also this
parting line gives a smaller height to diameter for the
punch increasing its rigidity.
Draft
Similar to castings, it is necessary to provide draft on
forging surfaces which are at right angles to the die
movement. Natural draft is provided by the cylindrical or
tapered surfaces. Otherwise it is necessary to provide
draft on straight surfaces. Internal surfaces require more
draft than external surfaces.
During cooling, forging tends to shrink towards its centre
and as a result, the external surfaces are likely to be
separated, whereas the internal surfaces tends to cling
to the die more strongly. The forged part is likely to be
left in the die half which does the punching of the hole.
In upset forgings, the draft problem is minimised
because the part is held securely by the gripper die
during the punch withdrawal and the gripper itself gets
opened to release the component. Thus, in upset
forgings a very small draft is normally used.
Recommended draft angle
Fillet and corner radii
Forging involves the flow of metal in an orderly
manner. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a
streamlined path for the flow of metal so that defect
free forging is produced. When two or more surfaces
meet, a corner is formed which restricts the flow of
metal. Therefore, these corners are to be rounded off
to improve the flow of the metal.
Fillets are for rounding off the internal angles,
whereas corner is that of the external angle. For
example, consider the flow of metal over a corner as
shown in Figure(a). Because of the large corner
radius provided, metal is allowed to flow smoothly into
the pocket.
But when the corner radius is small or not provided as
in Figure(b), the metal flow is first hindered and when
it finally enters the cavity, the metal would fold back
against itself forming a defect called 'lap' or 'cold shut'.
Shrinkage allowance
The forgings are generally made at a temperature of
1150 to 1300 C. At this temperature, the material
gets expanded and when it is cooled to the
atmospheric temperature, its dimensions would be
reduced, It is very difficult to control the temperature
at which forging process would be complete, therefore
to precisely control the dimensions.
Hence a shrinkage allowance is added on all the
linear dimensions as given in the following table.
Die wear allowance
The die wear allowance is added to account for the
gradual wear of the die which takes place with the use
of the die. The suggested values are presented in the
following table.
Finish allowance
Machining allowance is to be provided on the various
forged surfaces which need to be further machined.
The amount of allowance to be provided should
account for besides the accuracy, the depth of the
decarburised layer. Also, the scale pits that are likely to
form on the component should also be removed during
machining.
The component as affected by the various allowances
Cavities
The cavities and ribs including holes can be produced
up to certain depth only in drop forging. The main
reason for the limitation is that the punch needs to
have the necessary strength to withstand the forging
load. Thin, long punches are likely to wear out quickly
and need reconditioning of the die.
Maximum limits of depth
In addition to these allowances shown, the various
tolerances that are applicable to forgings such as
mismatch tolerance, weight tolerance, residual flash
tolerance, thickness tolerance, burr tolerance, etc. are
given in handbooks and standards.
9.8 Drop Forging Die Design
First step in the design of a drop forging die is the
decision regarding what impressions (or stages) are
necessary to achieve the necessary fibre flow direction
so that the requisite strength is obtained. Normally
fullering, edging and finishing impressions are
necessary. The other types of impressions are only
required in special situations.
A blocking impression becomes a necessity only when
the component is to be accurately made or the
component has deep pockets or thin ribs which are
difficult to be obtained in a single finishing impression. A
bending impression is required when the part is of bent
nature and the grain direction is to be along the bend
line. In such a case, the bending impression is to be
obtained before the blocking impression or finishing
impression when no blocking is used. Similarly a
flattening impression is used when the component is thin
and perpendicular to one plane.
Flash
The excess metal added to the stock to ensure
complete filling of the die cavity in the finishing
impression is called flash. Flash acts as a cushion for
impact blows from the finishing impression and also
helps to restrict the outward flow of metal, thus helping
in filling of thin ribs and bosses in the upper die.
Flash
The excess metal added to the stock to ensure
complete filling of the die cavity in the finishing
impression is called flash. Flash acts as a cushion for
impact blows from the finishing impression and also
helps to restrict the outward flow of metal, thus helping
in filling of thin ribs and bosses in the upper die.
The amount of flash depends on the forging size and
may vary from 10 to 50 per cent. The flash flows around
the forging in the parting plane. The flash is provided
uniformly around the periphery of the forging in the
parting plane. The minimum flash allowances suggested
are given in the following table.
It has been found that the forging load is greatly
influenced by the flash thickness and width. The forging
load can thus be decreased by increasing the flash
thickness. However, this increases the metal to be left in
flash increasing the scrap losses. Also, the forging load
decreases with an increase in the average thickness of
the component. Thus, it is more difficult to forge thin
components than the thicker ones.
In addition to the flash, provision should be made in the
die for additional space so that any excess metal can
flow and help in the complete closing of the die. This is
called gutter. Without gutter, flash may become
excessively thick, not allowing the dies to close
completely.
The flash land provided in the die should be about 3% of
the maximum forging thickness (0.5 to 8.0 mm). If the
flash land is too small, then the energy required for the
forging increases because of the excess metal trapped in
the finishing impression and the flash land wears out
quickly. Similarly, too high a flash land lets the work
material to flow into the gutter and thus the die cavity
gets unfilled.
Stock
As a rule, drop forgings do net get upset and therefore
the stock size to be chosen depends on the largest
cross-sectional area of the component. To get the
stock size, the necessary flash allowance is to be
provided over and above the stock volume.
The stock to be used is either round, rectangular or
any other section depending on the nature of the
component. Having decided on the cross section of
the stock, and from the total volume of the component
and the flash, it is possible to find the length of the
stock. The stock in the die is to be moved from one
impression to the other, and hence a tong hold is
provided in addition to the stock length. The tong hold
of about 50 to 60 mm normally is required.
Example Determine the stock size required for the
air radius arm。
Finished component Forging
The first job is to decide on the parting line which is
chosen as the one shown in figure(b) for its simplicity
and also it satisfies all the criteria laid out earlier.
parting line
The next job is to prepare the forging drawing. The
first to be decided is the choice of the holes. The
holes whose axes are perpendicular to the parting line
can be produced by forging unless they are too deep.
On this account only one hole as shown in fig(b) can
be produced whereas the rest are to be obtained by
drilling later.
The necessary allowances are added.
The maximum area of cross-section occurs at section
AA and its area is 1440 mm2.
Hence, stock diameter = 42.82 mm
Flash width = 5.3 mm, and flash thickness = 1.0 mm.
Area of stock with flash=1440+5.312=1450.6 mm2
Area of stock with flash=1440+5.312=1450.6 mm2
Stock diameter with flash=42.976 mm 43mm
Volume of the forging=72870 mm3 73000 mm3
Perimeter of forging= 30 30
33 34 24 78 78 33 408.25
2 2
Flash volume=5.31408.25=2163.725 mm3
Fullering impression
The first operation to be done in drop forging is to draw
out the stock at the necessary portions by striking the
metal with sharp and rapid blows. The amount of
drawing out depends on the differences in the maximum
and minimum cross-sections of the component.
If the drawing out is large, an auxiliary helve hammer is
used with standard round and square dies for drawing
out. After this drawing out operation, the stock is then
taken to the drop forging die.
For smaller drawing out applications, the fullering
impressions made along with the other impressions in
the same die. The stock is fullered to the required shape
in approximately 4 to 5 blows in the fullering impression.
The consideration in designing are to keep the two die
halves away from completely closing and to allow for the
smooth flow of metal.
The gap between the crests of the fullering impressions
in the two die halves are kept apart at a distance of 1.5
to5.0 mm less than the minimum area of the component.
This reduction is made to ensure that the two die halves
do not come into physical contact and thus provide
cushioning effect.
The length of the impression could be either 0.25% of
the fullered length or half of the stock length without flash
and tong hold, whichever is smaller. The distance
between the relief portions of the impressions should be
twice the diameter of the stock.