MS
Mild Steel Bright Bar
The general purpose workhorse — weldable, formable, economical.
Also known as Mild Steel · IS 2062 E250
Overview
What MS is, and where it belongs
Mild steel bright bar is the most widely used bar on any general engineering shop floor. With carbon held below about 0.20%, it welds without preheat, bends without cracking and machines predictably — and it costs less than every other grade we produce.
What cold drawing adds is precision. The same steel that arrives as a scaled, out-of-round hot rolled bar leaves our drawing line bright, straight and within a controlled diameter tolerance. For a machine shop that means the bar can go straight into a collet — no roughing pass to clean up the surface, no compensation for ovality.
MS is not a hardening steel. If the finished part needs a wear-resistant surface, it is carburised or induction hardened after machining. For everything else — brackets, spacers, pins, welded frames, fabricated assemblies — it is the correct and economical choice.
Chemistry
Chemical composition
As per IS 2062 (typical mild steel range) — consistent with incoming heats certified by our rolling mill suppliers. Values are percentage by weight.
| Element | Symbol | Min % | Max % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carbon | C | 0.150 | 0.230 |
| Silicon | Si | — | 0.400 |
| Manganese | Mn | — | 1.500 |
| Phosphorus | P | — | 0.050 |
| Sulphur | S | — | 0.050 |
A dash in the minimum column means only an upper limit applies to that element.
Properties
Mechanical properties
Typical values in the Cold Drawn condition. Certified values for your consignment appear on the test certificate.
- Tensile Strength
- 410 – 520 MPa
- Yield Strength
- 250 MPa minHot rolled basis; raised by cold drawing
- Elongation (A5)
- 18 – 24%
- Hardness
- 120 – 160 HB
Availability
Sizes and tolerances
We draw MS across the range below. Exact availability for a given size is confirmed on enquiry.
Round bar
6 – 65 mm
Nominal diameter
Hex bar
7 – 46 mm
Across flats (AF)
Tolerance bands
All bands are ISO 286 ‘h’ — the bar is never above nominal size. See exact values for your size.
Where it is used
Typical applications
- Fabricated frames and welded assemblies
- Brackets, spacers and mounting pins
- Anchor bolts and general fasteners
- Agricultural and structural components
- Base material for carburised parts
Application guides
Cross reference
International equivalents
Nearest designations under other standards. Equivalents are close but rarely identical — check the specific requirement that matters for your part.
Full equivalents chart| Standard | Designation |
|---|---|
| IS (India) | IS 2062 E250 / C15 |
| BS (UK) | 080A15 / EN3B |
| DIN (Germany) | St 37-2 / 1.0037 |
| AISI / SAE (USA) | 1015 – 1020 |
| JIS (Japan) | SS400 / S20C |
Index relative to AISI 1212 = 100. Higher is faster to machine.
Machines cleanly but tends to produce a continuous, stringy chip because there is no free-machining sulphur. On automatics, chip breaking geometry or a chip breaker insert is worth the effort. Where volume turning is the main operation, EN1A is the better grade.
Weldability: Excellent
Related grades
Chemical composition and mechanical properties shown are as per the applicable standard and are indicative. Actual values for your consignment are certified in the Mill Test Certificate supplied with each dispatch. Available sizes and tolerances are confirmed at the time of enquiry.
Need MS?
Send us the size and quantity — Round 6–65 mm · Hex 7–46 mm. We will confirm availability and come back with a price.