The material used in the manufacturing of the bolts will determine its strength, applications, corrosion resistance etc. There are several materials of Bolts and some of the popular ones are:

● Zinc-Plated Steel: It is one of the popular and commonly used bolt materials for general purpose applications, usually indoor. Depending on the type of manufacturing, the color of the bolt may be bluish or yellowish tint. It is a low carbon steel with a Zinc coating that provides moderate corrosion resistance. They are very cheap to manufacture as well.

● Stainless Steel: One of the toughest bolt materials with very good corrosion resistance. As a result, stainless steel bolts are often used in industries, automobiles, ships (and other marine equipment) and outdoor objects in general. They are slightly expensive than the Zinc plated counterparts.

● Chrome / Nickel Plated Steel: Although stainless steel already consists of chromium, additional Chrome and Nickel plating of steel further increases the corrosion resistance. The other benefit of this plating is the surface of the bolt looks very shiny, smooth and polished.

● Hot-dipped Galvanized Steel: In this type, the steel is coated with even thicker layer of Zinc for increased corrosion resistance and thus making them suitable for outdoor use. Even the nuts and washers must be of the galvanized type for proper coupling.

● Brass / Bronze: These types of bolts have a natural resistance to corrosion as they are alloys of copper. They are generally expensive than other bolt materials and as a result they are often used in arts and decorative pieces.

● Alloy Steel: The Alloy Steel contains additional elements other than iron and carbon such as manganese, nickel, chromium etc. The result is a bolt with very good strength, corrosion resistance and wear resistance. It is often black in color due to additional black oxide coating.

Common Types of Bolts

As Bolts and Nuts are one of the commonly used fasteners, there are different types of bolts for different types of applications. Some of the more common and popular types of bolts are:

Product Parameters

Metric Bolt Size Chart

In metric system, the bolts (and nuts) are usually referred using the letter ‘M’ followed by additional dimensions. For example, a common metric specification of a bolt is “M6-1.0 x 20”. Here,

● ‘M’ indicates the bolt uses metric threads

● ‘6’ indicates the nominal diameter of the bolt (at the shank or the threads)

● ‘1.0’ indicates the thread pitch of the bolt in millimeter

● ‘20’ indicates length of the bolt in millimeter