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Dross grab

Is a stainless steel grab better for drossing than a mild steel one

Barry Pointon
galv manager - England
2007

Opinion: A spoon is better for dross removal than a grab. Making a grab from SS might have some minor cleanliness advantage, (of the grab) but I'd guess that would be far outweighed by the cost. (Have you priced any SS recently?)

Geoff Crowley
Crithwood Ltd.
Westfield, Scotland, UK

2007

Sir:
Stainless steel is attacked by the molten zinc (likely the nickel) and even when it looks good can easily break. The Hayes alloy 556 works extremely well for dross "spoons," "buckets," "scoops" (different names for the same device). "Grabs" or "clams" are not often used in hot dip galvanizing because product gets caught in the grab halves and dross drains out. Also a "grab" or a "clam" tends to mix the dross and zinc making it not recoverable. Temperature (of the dross) is extremely important during drossing. 556 alloy is also excellent for spin baskets as it is twice as strong as ordinary steel and does not "soften" at the galvanizing temperature as does mild steel. Spin baskets of 556 alloy have very long lifetimes.
Regards,

Dr. Thomas H. Cook
Galvanizing Consultant - Hot Springs, South Dakota, USA

adv.
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