# SSAB Hardox 500

Thickness-dependent hardness, typical properties and fabrication limits for the SSAB wear-steel product.

Reviewed: 2026-11-01

Tags: materials, steel, wear-steel, producer-products

## Product identity and specification

SSAB guarantees **1,560–1,740 MPa tensile strength** for **Hardox 500 sheet at 2.0–2.49 mm**. The **470–530 HBW** entry is typical hardness converted from tensile strength. [SSAB thin-sheet supplement 2067en](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/2067-en-hardness-conversion-of-thin-hardox-wear-sheet-2023.pdf?m=20231010070102)

For **10 mm plate**, the bending guide gives minimum **40 mm transverse and 45 mm along-rolling punch radii**, with a **140 mm recommended die opening**. The setup uses roll dies, normal friction without lubricant and a single bend to **90° after unloading**. Verify the final inside radius separately. [SSAB bending guide, Table 2](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/bending-hardox-wear-plate-105-en-v3-2024.pdf?m=20240912072244)

**Hardox 500** is SSAB's abrasion-resistant steel product with nominal hardness of **500 HBW**. The number is not a guaranteed yield strength or a complete material specification. Keep Hardox 500 separate from Hardox 500 Tuf, tubes, round bars and other product variants. Specify the exact grade, supplied form, dimensions, condition and required inspection documentation. [SSAB: Hardox 500](https://www.ssab.com/en/brands-and-products/hardox/product-program/500)

## Hardness and typical properties

The product page distinguishes these thickness ranges:

| Form | Thickness | Listed hardness |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Sheet | 2.0–7.0 mm | 470–530 HBW, with thin-sheet exception below |
| Plate | 4.0–32.0 mm | 470–530 HBW |
| Plate | 32.1–103.0 mm | 450–540 HBW |

It labels **1,400 MPa yield strength as typical, not guaranteed**. Its **37 J at −40 °C** Charpy figure is a **typical longitudinal value for 20 mm material**, referenced to a 10 × 10 mm specimen. Impact testing is upon agreement, uses an average of three tests and proportionally accounts for subsize specimens for 3–11.9 mm thickness. [SSAB: mechanical and impact properties](https://www.ssab.com/en/brands-and-products/hardox/product-program/500)

### Thin-sheet exception

SSAB's supplement **2067en, 27 September 2023** explains that Brinell testing is less suitable below 2.5 mm. For Hardox 500 sheet at **2.0–2.49 mm**, it guarantees tensile strength **1,560–1,740 MPa** and lists **470–530 HBW as converted typical hardness, not guaranteed**. The conversion is material-specific; it is not permission to apply a universal tensile-to-hardness formula to arbitrary steels or finished parts. Read the supplement together with the product datasheet. [SSAB: thin Hardox hardness conversion](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/2067-en-hardness-conversion-of-thin-hardox-wear-sheet-2023.pdf?m=20231010070102)

## Guarantee and inspection scope

**Hardox Guarantees, V5–2026**, covers dimensional, flatness, bending and inspection conditions. It requires special inspection scope and document type to be specified when ordering; testing and reporting otherwise follow the relevant datasheet or agreed material standard. Its ultrasonic provisions also distinguish guaranteed internal-soundness classes from testing performed upon agreement. Do not assume every ordered plate received every optional test. [SSAB: Hardox Guarantees V5–2026](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/155--en--hardox-guarantees--v5--2026.pdf?m=20261002082401)

For a liner or fabricated wear part, establish whether acceptance concerns nominal dimensions, actual thickness, flatness, bendability, surface condition or internal soundness. Record the required method, sampling and acceptance class. Cutting a small blank from a large plate does not automatically preserve its original flatness or eliminate residual-stress effects.

## Bending: preserve the test configuration

The SSAB bending guide distinguishes sheet and plate recommendations, rolling direction and thickness. Its plate recommendations are based on dies with rolls, normal friction without lubrication, and a single-step bend to **90° after unloading**. For Hardox 500 **plate** at **8 ≤ t < 15 mm**, the listed minimum punch-radius ratio is **Rp/t = 4.0 transverse** to rolling and **4.5 along** rolling; the recommended die-opening ratio is **W/t = 14**. [SSAB: bending Hardox wear plate, Table 2](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/bending-hardox-wear-plate-105-en-v3-2024.pdf?m=20240912072244)

The current guarantee document assigns product-specific bending classes and makes their validity conditional on the bending brochure. A class or nominal hardness alone does not qualify another tool geometry or multistage forming sequence. [SSAB: bending-guarantee conditions](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/155--en--hardox-guarantees--v5--2026.pdf?m=20261002082401)

## Welding and thermal processing

**Welding Hardox wear plate, V5–2024**, addresses hydrogen control, preheating, interpass temperature, consumables and joint preparation as linked requirements. Its table lists **225 °C maximum recommended interpass/preheating temperature** for Hardox 500. The guide defines interpass measurement at or adjacent to the joint just before the next pass; this is a welding control, not a continuous service rating. [SSAB: welding guide V5–2024](https://www.ssab.com/-/media/files/en/hardox/hardox-welding-103env52024.pdf?m=20241205074348)

Choose minimum preheat and heat input using the applicable guide conditions, joint thickness, restraint, consumable and process. A maximum temperature cannot replace that assessment. Qualify the weld for required strength, toughness and wear behavior, including the heat-affected zone. Welding a hard plate does not make the weld metal automatically as hard or wear-resistant as the parent material.

Before thermal cutting, straightening, coating bake cycles or other heating, obtain current product-specific limits and workshop recommendations. Retain the supplied condition and assess what later processing changes. This article supplies no general heat-treatment recipe or welding-current setting.

## Wear selection and field validation

SSAB's WearCalc guidance separates sliding, impact and erosive wear. Its models consider factors including abrasive hardness or mineral composition, particle size, impact angle and velocity. Consequently, nominal steel hardness alone does not determine service life. [SSAB: WearCalc model scope](https://www.ssab.com/en-ca/support/support-and-tools/calculators-and-tools/wearcalc-web-app)

For a proposed upgrade, record the actual abrasive, flow, impact loading, corrosion environment and temperature. Compare thickness loss and failure mode against a reference part under representative duty. Separate uniform wear from denting, cracking, joint failure and loss of support. Use predicted relative life as a selection aid and validate it with measurements; do not promise a universal life multiplier from changing to Hardox 500.

## Purchase and release record

Retain the exact product/form, thickness and dimensions; certificate and heat traceability; required tests and guarantee edition; cutting, bending and welding procedures; and finished-part acceptance results. Where a component carries structural loads, use the governing design requirements separately from its wear-material selection.

The cited guarantee and welding guides print **V5–2026** and **V5–2024** respectively; the thin-sheet supplement prints **2023-09-27**. The live product page and wear-model guidance do not establish a clear technical revision date. Obtain current controlled documents for the order rather than interpreting a URL timestamp as an edition.

## Related reference

[Grades, conditions and material selection](../grades-tempers-and-conditions.md)