Stainless steel costs more than carbon steel and it earns it where rust, food contact, chemicals or looks matter. We source sheet, plate, bar, tube and pipe in the grades Texas fab shops, machine shops, marine builders and oilfield fabricators actually use, and we arrange the cut before it ships. Picking the right grade and finish up front keeps you from paying for 316 where 304 would do, or getting pitting where it wouldn't.
What shops use stainless for
Fabrication shops use 304 for food-service tables, hoods, tanks and railing. Marine and coastal work moves to 316, which carries molybdenum and resists chlorides and pitting far better. Machine shops buy 303 bar because it cuts like a free-machining grade, and 416 when they need a heat-treatable part that still machines well. 430 shows up in appliance panels and trim where some magnetism and lower cost are fine.
For welded work, buy the L grades. 304L and 316L have lower carbon, which keeps the heat-affected zone from losing corrosion resistance after welding. Most sheet and plate is dual-certified 304/304L or 316/316L, so you get both in one piece.
Common stainless grades
| Grade | Key traits | Typical uses |
|---|---|---|
| 304 / 304L | General-purpose austenitic, good corrosion resistance, welds and forms well | Food equipment, tanks, railing, enclosures |
| 316 / 316L | Added molybdenum, resists salt water and chlorides | Marine hardware, chemical and process equipment |
| 303 | Free-machining, poor weldability | Screw-machine parts, fittings, shafts |
| 410 / 416 | Martensitic, heat treatable, magnetic; 416 machines freely | Pump shafts, valve parts, fasteners |
| 430 | Ferritic, magnetic, lower cost, moderate corrosion resistance | Appliance panels, trim, interior parts |
| 2205 duplex | About twice the yield strength of 304, strong chloride resistance | Oilfield, offshore and process piping |
Forms and finishes
Sheet comes in 2B mill finish, #4 brushed and bright annealed, often with a PVC film on the good side. Plate is usually hot rolled, annealed and pickled, with a dull matte surface. Bar comes round, square, flat, hex and angle. Tube splits into ornamental and structural tube, sized by outside diameter and wall, and pipe, sized by nominal pipe size and schedule. Say which you mean: 1" tube and 1" pipe are not the same part.
Typical stainless size ranges
| Form | Commonly available range |
|---|---|
| Sheet | 26 gauge to 7 gauge (about 0.018"–0.1875"); 36", 48" and 60" wide |
| Plate | 3/16" to 3" thick, heavier to order; 48" and 60" wide, 96" to 240" long |
| Round bar | 1/8" to about 10" diameter |
| Tube | 1/4" to about 6" OD, 0.035" to 0.250" wall |
| Pipe | NPS 1/8" to 12" in Schedule 5S, 10S, 40S and 80S |
Commonly available ranges. Ask for anything outside them.
Cutting options for stainless
Thin sheet with detail cuts cleanly on a laser, with nitrogen assist for a bright, weld-ready edge. Thick plate goes to waterjet when the edge will be machined or has to stay free of heat tint, or to plasma when the edge will be ground or welded anyway. Bar, tube and pipe get saw cut to length. Stainless work-hardens, so a clean cut at the source saves tooling in your shop.
Mill certs for stainless
A stainless MTR shows the heat number, the chemistry (including chromium, nickel and molybdenum), mechanical test results and the spec, such as A240 for plate and sheet or A276 for bar. Ask for them on food, pharmaceutical, pressure and oilfield work, or whenever a customer needs proof that 316 is really 316. We can get mill certs on request.