Value-added Services

When your project specifications require more than just a stock tube or bar, National Tube Supply’s knowledgeable customer service team is on-hand to help you navigate the array of services available to get you exactly what you need, as quickly and efficiently as possible. Our experts will analyze your project’s requirements and recommend the best services to meet your needs and save you time and money. Turning is the process of removing material from the exterior/OD (outside diameter) of a tube or bar on a lathe. Turning is normally the first step in a series of adjustments to the exterior of the product, and can be followed by grinding and/or polishing, depending on the surface finish and tolerances your project requires. Grinding is the use of a stone on the OD of a bar or tube after turning. Grinding prepares the surface of the product for plating or polishing. Plating is the practice of depositing chromium to the surface of a tube or bar through electroplating. Products are coated in hard chrome—.0005”, .001”, or .002” per side—to increase wear-resistance. Hard chrome is thicker than decorative chrome and is ideal for industrial applications due to its strength and durability. Boring uses a cutting tool on the ID (inside diameter) of a tube to remove material to reach a certain size or surface finish for your project’s specific tolerances. As with turning, boring is often the first of multiple steps. Honing uses a stone on the ID of a tube to remove small amounts of material to suit tight tolerances. Honed tube is ideal for holding a seal in fluid power applications. Heat Treating carbon & alloy tubing has numerous benefits depending on your unique needs: Quench & Temper involves heating the material (either carbon steel or alloy) to above the transformation range, and then rapidly cooling it. This increases the tube’s durability, which is especially ideal for use in oil & gas industry applications. Stress Relieving uses heat to remove stress and increase tolerance after material had been drawn, formed, or machined. Normalizing is when steel is heated up and then allowed to return to room temperature. Normalizing gives the steel a uniform, fine-grained surface, as well as increased ductility. Annealing works similarly to Normalizing and yields an even more ductile product. Induction Hardening is used to increase the durability of chrome bar. The process is used on all of National Tube Supply’s hard chrome bar. Cutting & Deburring is the process of cutting steel and removing the rough barbs left from the saw to create a smooth edge. All our tube and bar products can be cut-to-length per your project specifications. Charpy Impact Testing measures a tube or bar’s toughness. The majority of our stock has been impact tested. And if the product you need hasn’t yet been tested, we’re happy to arrange that for you.