Carbide woodworking consists of 80-98% of tungsten carbide and a binder, usually cobalt.
- The carbide raw materials are milled, mixed and spray dried.
In spray drying, the mixed carbide powder is blown through a fine nozzle into a typically 6-8 meters (20-26 feet) high tower, where it receives its spherical shape, so important for pressing.
- The finished powder or granulate is then compressed under several tons of pressure on a powder press in a mold to a solid with the consistency of chalk.
- It can as well be mixed with further materials and shaped by injection molding or by extrusion. In this stage carbide can be processed either in the still soft state or immediately sintered at about 1400℃ / 2550° F for several hours, then reaching its final shape, size and hardness.
- The final sintered product, if necessary, is then ground and cleaned.
