Steel Suppier Quality Question

[Carburize]

Does anybody on the board have any direct or indirect experience of the quality of steel produced by Moravia Steel (formerly the Poldi Steel Complex) in the Czech Republic?
I am looking for a source of alloy steel material ( Cr,Mo - Ni,C, Mo type compostions), approaching bearing quality, in bar form from 125 mm up to 250 mm diameter.
Don't want to transgress the board rules about commercial activities - but I would like to pick some brains before I decide to travel several thousand kms to check them out!

 

[Metalguy]

No experience with them, but can't they send you some samples? Bearing steels need to be clean!

 

[Carburize]

Yes, I am looking for AMS 2301 cleanliness as a minimum and I will get samples. I was trying to short cut the process.

 

[ornerynorsk]

You raised the importance yourself in the comment "approaching bearing quality", (emphasize approaching). When the spectre of doubt has been raised, there are no shortcuts, in my opinion, that can offer reassurance except your own analysis of a physical sample. Certs vary widely throughout the world, and communist bloc countries tend to be overly optimistic when it comes to ladle analysis and physical properties.

 

[Carburize]

ornerynorsk - you have interpreted my concern exactly - previous experience with material from the same geographic area has, as you note shown a high degree of "optimism" on the part of the producer. I am reviewing potential suppliers and am trying to weed-out the one's who are already known to anybody on this board.

 

[bruv]

Metalguy -

Bear in mind that what you get as a one-off sample won't necessarily match the product. I'm not saying that these guys are like this, but I'm sure we've all met this problem somewhere along the line.