What kind of steel for frame ?

[redpiper777]

Hi all, I'm just gathering materials for the building and welding of my electric cooler kart frame..My question is : Is there a good choice for steel tubing other than chrome moly ? I want to stay away from angle iron as much as possible...I hear chrome moly is very hard to bend and a couple of the bends I have to make ( from what I have been told) are going to require a "mandrel bender" which I dont have. Needless to say I dont want to take it to a custom shop because of the cost....Anyhelp would be very cool...

Thanks

 

[frederic]

4130 alloy is stronger and lighter than mild steel for a given dimension/thickness and takes heat treating much better as well. It's also a "little" easier to weld by all methods than mild steel.

But, it costs a lot more and for something like a go-kart, you could easily double your price tag by using a fancy alloy steel. Mild steel (1018, 1020) is fine for this purpose and you can it get it in all sorts of shapes other then angle iron since you're opposed.

Square tube and bar, round tube and bar, rectangular bar, etc.

Mild steel is also much easier to bend.

 

[brendonv]

any mild steel will do. Dont go with alloy, to expensive.