Design of Jigs & Fixtures/Material Used in Jig and Fixture

Jig and fixtures are made from a variety of the materials. There are times where the metals are hardened to resist wear and tear. Sometimes, to prevent damage to workpieces, they are made from nylon/fibre

Below are some of the materials used:

Material	Description
Mild Steel	Contains carbon (<0.3%). Most suitable for most jigs applications as it is the most economical and most widely used material in jigs and fixtures.
Carbon Steel	Contains carbon (0.85%~1.18%). Most suitable for workpieces like woodworking tools and hand tools such as files and chisels. It can be hardened to serve as locators and bushings.
High Speed Steel	Contains tungsten (18% ~22%) for toughness and cutting strength, chromium (4.3%) for hardening and wear resistance, vanadium (1%) for retention of hardness at high temperature. Most suitable for cutting tools like drills, reamers and cutters.
High Tensile Steel	Contains carbon (0.45% ~ 0.65%) and alloys Ni2Cr1M028 (40%). Most suitable for fasteners as well as high-stress machines such as ram presses.
Die Steel	Contains carbon (1.5%~2.3) for hardness, high chromium (12%) but alloyed with molybdenum (1%) and vanadium (0.3%~1%) for hardness retention used at high temperatures. Most suitable for forging, casting and extrusion.
Oil Hardening Non-Shrinking Tool Steels	Contain carbon (0.9%~1.1%), tungsten(0.5%~2%) and carbon (0.45%~1%). Most suitable for engraving tools and intricate pressing jigs.
Cast Irons	Contain carbon (2%~2.5%). Most suitable for milling fixtures, machine slides and guide ways, as they can withstand extreme vibrations.
Nylons & Fibres	Most suitable for use in soft linings for lever presses/clamps to prevent dents to workpieces under high-pressure forces.
Phosphor Bronze	Most suitable in corrosion-resistant parts such as boiler valves