SeBiLOY I is marginally more difficult to machine and has been assigned a machinability rating of 75. Plumbing products cast in SeBiLOY II, C89520, can be machined exactly like leaded red or semi-red brasses. And, as an important added health benefit, neither of the SeBiLOY alloys produces any significant lead bearing airborne particulates when machined dry. Some machine shops may experience slightly higher tool wear with SeBiLOY compared with either C83600 or C84400. The reasons for this effect are not yet fully understood, however, and it seems to vary with type of tooling and machining operation.
Color is nearly identical to that of standard red brass casting alloys.
Platability is fully equivalent to C836000 or C84400, and the substitution of bismuth and selenium for lead does not alter the brass's corrosion resistance. The SeBiLOY alloys are not exotic laboratory curiosities. They have been thoroughly tested in commercial foundries and found to have casting properties similar to those associated with leaded red brasses. The SeBiLOYs are long-freezing alloys, as are conventional red brasses C83600 and C84400, although they have slightly wider freezing ranges. Pouring temperature is, therefore, similar to those of leaded alloys.