Comparison of CNC Machining Materials

Acrylic (also known as polymethyl methacrylate, PMMA) boasts not only excellent optical performance but also outstanding UV resistance. With a light transmittance of up to 92%—comparable to glass—it has become a popular material in scenarios ranging from neon signs in shopping malls and display case panels in museums to precision optical lenses and stage light covers.

Nylon is a versatile and widely used material in CNC machining due to its exceptional properties. Its high tensile strength, low coefficient of friction, and resistance to wear and abrasion make it an excellent choice for applications requiring durability and reliability, such as gears, bushings, and bearings. Additionally, nylon’s low moisture absorption and good dimensional stability ensure consistent performance even in humid or varying temperature conditions.

Its ease of machining, coupled with its chemical resistance, also makes it suitable for applications in the automotive, aerospace, and medical industries. With its remarkable combination of properties, nylon stands out as a versatile and reliable material for a diverse range of CNC machining applications.

PEEK (Polyetheretherketone) is a top-performing thermoplastic engineering plastic, featuring excellent high-temperature resistance, robust mechanical properties, versatile corrosion resistance, top-tier biocompatibility, exceptional dimensional stability, and outstanding electrical insulation and radiation resistance. It is widely used in high-end fields such as aerospace, high-end medical care, and electronic semiconductors.

ABS (Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene Copolymer) is a well-balanced engineering plastic with good mechanical properties, excellent impact resistance, and easy processability. These characteristics have led to its widespread application in fields such as consumer electronics, household appliances, automotive industry, and daily necessities.

Titanium alloys are high-performance materials that combine exceptional strength, a superior strength-to-weight ratio, outstanding corrosion resistance, high-temperature stability, and excellent biocompatibility. While costlier and more difficult to process than steels or aluminum alloys, their unique advantages—high strength, light weight, and durability in extreme environments—make them indispensable in aerospace, advanced medical, and deep-sea applications, where performance takes priority over cost.

Stainless Steel 17-4PH is a high-performance martensitic precipitation hardening stainless steel, featuring excellent corrosion resistance and high strength, making it suitable for a wide range of industrial applications. Its chemical composition and physical properties enable its extensive use in fields such as aerospace, chemical engineering, marine engineering, food processing, and nuclear industry. Through appropriate heat treatment processes, its mechanical properties and corrosion resistance can be further optimized.

AISI 4140 Alloy Steel is a medium-carbon chromium-molybdenum steel with a carbon content of about 0.38–0.43%. It offers an excellent combination of strength, toughness, wear resistance, and machinability. When heat-treated, it provides outstanding mechanical properties, making it widely used in gears, crankshafts, connecting rods, bolts, and critical components in the oil and gas industry.

Stainless steel 316 combines exceptional corrosion resistance with excellent machinability. This unique balance of “high corrosion resistance + ease of processing” makes it a material of choice for applications demanding the highest levels of reliability. It is widely employed in fields such as chemical processing, food production, and marine engineering, where it consistently meets stringent performance requirements across diverse operating conditions.

stainless steel 304 is also known as 18/8 stainless steel, which contains approximately 18% chromium (Cr) and 8% nickel (Ni). It not only possesses excellent oxidation resistance and corrosion resistance, but also has good workability and surface quality. Currently, it is the most widely used stainless steel grade in industrial manufacturing and civil applications.

Low carbon steel (with carbon content not exceeding 0.25%) is one of the most commonly used types of steel in both industry and daily life, thanks to its excellent plasticity, weldability, and low cost. It is widely applied in components such as pistons, screws, and drive shafts. However, due to its limited strength, it usually requires post-treatment.