What Is Wrought Iron?

What Is Wrought Iron?

If you’re searching “What Is Wrought Iron?”, you might be considering a new wrought iron entry door, or maybe a wrought iron railing.  Today’s savvy consumers want to know exactly what they are getting and this article will help you understand what wrought iron is and if its right for your home or office.

Wrought iron is an abused product in the commercial marketplace of today, as it is applied to everything from cast aluminum to bent steel wire. Technically wrought iron should only be used to iron that has been worked white hot and the physical force from a blacksmith hammer that is used to cause the metal to flow and be reshaped into the form that is wanted.

Much of what is called wrought iron is just bent work, which is commercially available mild steel strips, bars or tubing that has been cut, heated and then bent or sometimes worked with while cold. Separate elements will then be joined through arc welding or with a mechanical fastener. A purist metalsmith will reject the term wrought iron for bent work because it hasn’t been hammered, stretched, twisted, and pierced that wrought iron is actually subjected to. Instead of arc welding, a metalsmith will forge weld by joining two pieces together by heating them until they are white hot, fuse them together by using a hammer. Though the use of these techniques such as piercing, forge collars and forge welding, a metalsmith will be able to assemble a grille or ornamental ironwork without having to use bolts or arc welding. True wrought iron is able to be distinguished by the curves and patterns and often times you can see evidence of the metalsmith hammer. Because wrought iron is forged by hand, small irregularities will be apparent and valued as part of the metalsmith’s work.

From the description that was provided, it is quite easy to understand why wrought iron is rare today. The amount of labor, skill and time that is needed to make it makes it much more expensive than bent work that is found today. Because most customers don’t have the eye to appreciate or understand top level metalsmithing, they won’t pay the difference between bent work and wrought iron.

Significantly more uncommon than aptitude close by manufacturing is the low-carbon iron that is the reason for authentic wrought iron. Other than its trademark grain structure that confers a practically natural hope to genuine wrought iron, the low-carbon material has another appealing trademark: it is significantly more impervious to rust then mellow steel which is generally utilized now for elaborate iron work. Notwithstanding when the most elevated amount of fashioning expertise and method is utilized, the material being created is gentle steel. The main hotspot for low-carbon iron today is a little boutique process is England. In the U.S., a couple of metalsmiths have been sufficiently farsighted to squirrel away reserves of low-carbon iron rescued for devastated nineteenth century structures and scaffolds.

Wrought Iron Versus Cast Iron

What are the differences between them? Find out and learn just how they are used.

Antique iron fencing is made from wrought iron.

Wrought iron is normally used for architectural and decorative applications like railings or fencing.

People normally assume that wrought iron and cast iron are the same term for early iron work, but there are a lot of differences.


Cast iron is iron that is melted and poured into a mold, and then allowed to become solid.

The main difference between wrought iron and cast iron is how they are produced. The differences can be found in the names: wrought means past work or worked iron and cast describes anything that is formed during a casting process.

The different methods will create metals that have different strengths and weaknesses, which is why you never see a wrought iron frying pan or a cast iron fence.

What is wrought Iron?

Wrought iron is made from elemental iron with a small amount of slag. Slag is the by-product of iron ore smelting and is normally a mixture of aluminum, phosphorous, sulfur, and silicon oxides. Wrought iron is made by repeatedly heating the metal and using tools to form it into something.

Wrought iron is made principally out of basic iron with little measures of included slag (the result of iron metal refining, by and large comprising of a blend of silicon, aluminum, phosphorous, and sulfur, oxides). This type of wrought iron is created by constantly heating the iron and using tools to work it and  distort it.

Wrought iron is very pliable, enabling it to be heated, and reheated, and worked into different shapes—the iron becomes more grounded the more it’s worked and is portrayed by its sinewy appearance. Wrought iron contains less carbon than cast iron, making it gentler and more pliable. It is likewise profoundly impervious to exhaustion; if a lot of weight is connected, it will experience a lot of disfigurement before fizzling.

The term wrought iron is regularly abused today; it is ordinarily used to portray outlines like chronicled wrought iron pieces—paying little respect to the metal utilized. Gentle steel that has been machine-twisted into shape in a chilly state or cast steel and iron pieces that have been painted dark are both frequently mislabeled as wrought iron work. To be really assigned as wrought iron, a metal piece must be created by a metal forger who warms it and mallets it into shape.

Wrought iron was utilized as right on time as 2000 BC in the Anatolian landmass (now Turkey), and it was generally utilized as a part of development all through the nineteenth century. Progressions in metallurgy in the twentieth century, in any case, have made it simpler and more affordable to machine-shape and weld metal parts. The relatively costly and tedious nature of blacksmithing prompted the finish of its huge scale business in the mid-1970s. This implies most genuine wrought iron pieces today are either collectibles or a claim to fame pieces that have been smithed by neighborhood craftsmans.

What is cast iron?

Cast iron refers to a range of iron alloys, but it is mostly associated with a gray iron. Just because it has the name iron, it is not pure elemental iron. It is actually an alloy that contains carbon with small amounts of manganese and silicon. There are other items like phosphorus and sulfur that are quite common.

Cast iron is made by melting pig iron or smelting iron ore and then mixing it with various types of scrap metals as well as other alloys. The liquid is then pour into a mold and allowed to cool and become solid.

The final result is a strong but brittle product. Because of the high carbon content, cast iron will become solid as a heterogeneous alloy, which means that it contains multiple materials in various phases within its microstructure.

Cast Iron is quite naturally brittle, which means it is hard and non-malleable.

This blended microstructure is the thing that gives cast iron its particular physical properties. The inward carbon particles make inner emphasize directs favorable toward crack. Cast iron is harder, more fragile, and less flexible than wrought iron. It can’t be twisted, extended, or pounded into shape, since its powerless elasticity implies that it will break before it twists or contorts. It does, in any case, include great pressure quality.

Cast iron pipe fittings are one case of cast iron’s utilization in an assortment of uses.

Cast iron has practically boundless modern applications.

Casting is essentially less work serious than assembling wrought iron, and was an unmistakable type of generation all through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The coming of steel and computerized machining advances have lessened the part of casting in a few businesses, however it remains a savvy and broadly utilized process in numerous others. While steel has totally uprooted solid metal in development, cast iron stays prominent for items with complex shapes that are less demanding to cast than machine to shape. Cast iron is less responsive with shape materials than steel, and has a lower liquefying point, making it more liquid.

Old cast iron benches will demonstrate the limit with respect to iron to be filled extremely mind boggling, lavish shapes

Cast iron has positive properties which actually make it perfect for delivering parts like elaborate outside furniture.

Ductile iron: Versatility and Strength

Pliable iron, otherwise called malleable cast iron, is a cutting edge and exceptional type of cast iron created by analysts amid the 1940s. They found that by including select combinations—at first a magnesium-copper compound, and in the end cerium—they could control carbon particles to frame an unexpected microstructure in comparison to in cast iron. The ductile iron microstructure keeps splits from framing, bringing about a metal that has the benefits of cast iron without the weakness.

Ductile iron can be fabricated to accomplish high pliability and elasticity

Ductile iron can be made to various evaluations to accomplish high pliability and rigidity. As tempered ductile iron, created with extra warmth treatment, has surprisingly better mechanical properties and protection from wear.

Bendable iron additionally shows moderately little shrinkage as it cools, influencing it to ideal for exactness casting. Ductile iron is frequently utilized “as-thrown,” which means it doesn’t require warm medicines. This can help diminish fabricating costs, particularly finished the long haul.

Emptying liquid iron into a sand casting mold

Both pliable and cast iron castings are delivered by emptying liquid iron into molds

Corrosion Considerations

Wrought iron and cast iron are susceptible to corrosion whenever the bare surface is exposed to oxygen when wet. This can be challenging for outdoor environments that have constant exposure to humidity and precipitation. Unlike other types of metals that can form an oxidative coating, iron if it is given enough time will flake and rust away completely.

In order to prevent rust, iron products will need to be coated in order to prevent exposure. Paint is normally used to coat and protect bare metals. Powder coating is a method that is great for outdoor furniture that is prone to wear in high traffic areas. Powder coating is highly durable and it won’t fade, crack or chip over time.

Historical Preservation

From Lincoln, Nebraska to Lincoln, Massachusetts to Lincoln, Ontario, North America is filled with history. Each town has a story to tell and all of the buildings in these areas have played a part in crafting in the past.

When it comes to restoring historical buildings with architectural metalwork and iron, authenticity and quality are important. Large outdoor elements like lamp posts, fences, park benches, gates and bollards will play a big role in setting the mood to historical times. Modern metal workers are able to reproduce early metalwork just by using design cues that came from original structures or historical drawings.

Phoenix Valley Ornamental Iron

From gates and stair railings to range hoods and entry doors Victory Metal Works will help you design, fabricate, and install the style of wrought iron or other alloy elements for your commercial or residential property.  If you’ve got a home or business in the valley that could use new sturdy entry doors that are stylish and secure, we can help!  No matter what metal architectural element you need we can help.  Give us a call today to discuss your project 480-584-6220.

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