Stainless Steel or Aluminum Telescoping Tube?

Randall Edwards

Stainless Steel or Aluminum Telescoping Tube?

Aluminum and stainless steel are common telescoping tube materials, and each offers characteristics which will make it the proper decision for a specified sector.

Stainless steel telescoping tube, known due to its fantastic durability ratio and high temperature performance. Offered many choice of sizes including hypodermics as small as 0.008 in OD.

Choosing the Right Metal for Telescoping Tube

In cases where you’re deciding on a telescopic tube materials, the alternatives may be confusing. Both of those aluminum and stainless steel consist of a variety of alloys and tempers, each one with their unique physical and mechanical properties. Each metal provides typical properties that happen to be authentic for all its alloys.

One aspect for taking into consideration may be the mechanical properties which were considered necessary for your application. In cases just where toughness is way more significant, chances are you’ll decide upon stainless steel because of its very good strength-to-weight ratio and ability to gather critical strength coming from cold working.

In case you are paying attention on having components lightweight, aluminum telescoping tube should better go well with your application. An aluminum part weighs about one-third less when compared to a stainless steel telescopic tube part in a matching sizes.

The next point to consider is the corrosion and rust resistance of telescoping tube. Normally, both stainless steel and aluminum are offering corrosion protection, and the quantity will be different based on the alloy selected. The passivating oxide films that form on the materials of the two metals help in keeping the metals from corroding.

The negative aspect of passivation is the oxide layer can slow down electrical conduction. As a result, stainless steels typically are not established for decent electrical conductivity. Aluminum telescoping tube is high conductivity, and also thermal conductivity 3 times better when compared to steel, provides led to its work with in electricity transmission lines.

If moving electricity or heat is pretty important in your application, aluminum telescoping tube can be the better option.

No matter of whether your telescoping tube is purposely conducting heat, you are getting to guarantee it will deal with the temperature of their operating environment. Stainless steels with high concentrations of chromium and nickel keep strength at high temperatures.

With the opposite end on the spectrum, aluminum’s tensile toughness raises as temperature drops, and aluminum telescoping tubes remains stronger at cold temperatures when compared to many steels.

The most important points to consider when deciding on what precisely metal and alloy are most effective for your application and uses of telescopic tube are the mechanical characteristics, corrosion resistance, and heat resistance. Once you have decided on a niche of metal that is suitable for the application, you’re ready to choose the exact telescopic tube you want.


Having received helpful feedback from forums and friends over the years, I felt it was time to give back to the online community to assist with making decisions when it comes to metal tubes. Furthermore, it is going to eliminate you from losing valuable time and cash - it’s the real reason I created this site - to help others make a promising choice.