Being American-made from the foundry to the finished product allows us to maximize our overall value while creating superior, competitively-priced plumbing solutions. Water Armor® invites you to join us in the resurgence of American manufacturing and born in the USA quality by buying American made brass and brassAmerican made from the foundry to the finished product allows us to maximize our overall value while creating superior, competitively-priced plumbing solutions. components.
Brass can be recycled indefinitely; therefore, it is very valuable to the scrap metal alloy industry. Water Armor uses recycled brass in our manufacturing process which helps reduce the overall supply costs.
Less Expensive
Brass is much more economical to use scrap metal than to mine for new metal. As a brass fabricator and manufacturer in the USA, we pride ourselves in keeping costs down so we can pass the savings onto our customers, while providing the highest-quality materials and products in the industry.
Recycle Source
We receive most of our source of recycled materials from our customers. Most brass that we manufacture for our customers that they do not use is bought back. Ultimately, our customers only use what they need and we are able to recycle the rest.
Brass casting is the method by which brass, an alloy of copper and zinc, is melted in a foundry and cast into various shapes to be used in manufacturing, fabrication, and machining. Our supplier uses the casting method for manufacturing the brass that is then used for our components.
Copper alloy chips and solids as well as new and recycled materials are poured into the melting furnaces where required chemistry adjustments are made prior to casting. When the casting temperature is reached, logs are cast using direct chill vertical semi-continuous casting and horizontal-continuous casting methods. These logs are inspected and cut into billets prior to the hot extrusion operation. Brass has a high melting point and the molten metal moves swiftly through the mold, all the while it does not completely solidify in the mold. The semi-finished slab is later extruded in the extrusion press.
Brass extrusion is a hot deformation process that involves pushing heated brass billets through a die to make a desired shape and size of a brass rod. These rods are the foundation of the parts that we sell. Extrusion is a cost-effective manufacturing method compared to other processes and can produce a variety of cross-sections for customers making any type of brass component.
More About the Brass Extrusion Process
First, brass billets are heated and taken to the extrusion press where they are extruded through a mold to make it into the shape and size needed for the manufacturing process. Depending on the size of the rod needed to supply the customer, the rod will be extruded either straight or coiled. Once extrusion is complete, the brass rod is cooled in a controlled way and sent through an acid cleaning to remove any oxidation from the extruded surface. That rod will then be cold drawn to meet the needed dimensional, mechanical property, and machinability requirements.
Brass Extrusion Benefits
The application of heat combined with pressure is the basis of forging. Shaping and enhancing metallurgical properties through forging has been done for centuries. This process enhances durability which ensures high-quality brass components.
Our components are manufactured using the forged brass step prior to final machining step.
Some brass and bronze rods are easier to machine than others. A system has been developed to rate the relative ease or difficulty of machining various metals. These ratings are called “Machinability Ratings.” Machinists use machinability ratings when they determine tool materials, feed rates, and machine speeds for cutting and grinding operations. Machinability Ratings also impact the cooling system required.
Water Armor components are made from ECO BRASS C69300 and ECO BRONZE C87850. These alloys are lead-free but machinable and corrosion resistant which provide an excellent solution for many of our suppliers.
The final step is to package the brass parts for shipping. Shipping our brass plumbing products in convenient packages of single or multiple parts ensures easy distribution for the end customer. Wholesale and bulk orders are packaged accordingly.
Our clearly-labeled package declares the component name and the model number. The lead-free declaration is clearly noted on packaging and the necessary warnings for the contents of the alloy are also marked and visible.
The plastic packing is easy to open. We package in units of 1, 2, 5, 10, and 25 to accommodate various order sizes and enable simple inventory tracking.
Finally, we proudly display MADE IN THE USA on all our packages so you too can be proud as you support the resurgence of American made products.
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