Common gear materials Gears can be made of all sorts of materials, including many types of steel, brass, bronze, cast iron, ductile iron, aluminum, powdered metals, and plastics. Nickel chromium molybdenum steels is the most common material overall, although over the years, we’ve worked with all of the material types mentioned. Nickel chromium molybdenum steels is often most desirable because it offers a winning combination of high strength-to-weight ratio, high resistance to wear, the ability to enhance the physical properties through heat treatment, and competitive pricing.
Factors of material selection In our experience, at a simplified level, there are four factors that are most important when selecting a gear material. They are chemical properties, physical property, mechanical properties, and cost, which includes both the cost of the material and the cost of manufacturing. While the importance of these factors may vary from one project to another, the key to material selection is finding the right combination of physical properties that satisfy the requirements of the project at the lowest cost.