Hello to all:

I've read much about "billet this" and "billet that", however I don't really know what billet means and what advantages it offers over other castings or metals.

Can anyone clue me in on "billet"?

Thanks,

Wilk

 

Billet is basically a large hunk of aluminum that is machined (NOT CASTED or FORGED) into something... That is why it is much better looking....Colorado Customs www.coloradocustoms.com takes a block of aluminum, heat it and pressurize it to get all of the imputiries out of it then machines it into some of the best looking wheels make.....being that they are machined they will have a better finish than say a Centerline wheel which is casted.

 

Shanker:

Thanks for the response. However, I am still unclear as to the process. Are you saying that the manufactures takes a solid aluminum shape and machines that down to the finished product, like a grille? That sounds like a lot of aluminum filings on the floor.

Can you, or anyone else, clarify or explain?

Thanks again.

Wilk

 

I think that's the idea. And whatever metal that's left on the floor probably gets recycled so it's that particularly wasteful.

Oh, and I should add this... Manufacturers are calling "billet" some products that look like they have been billeted but are not. My '01 Harley F150's grill is plastic I think (at least it doesn't feel like a solid hunk of metal), just with aluminum tone on it. But it's called billet grill. I think now any horizontal grills with aluminum shine on them are called "billet."

 

Yeah, for some reason 'billet' became a synonym for 'polished aluminum. It's actually just a hunk of aluminum that is machined.

 

According to my friend who owns a huge Gov't contracting machine shop, billet comes in any form: bar, strip, cylinder, cube, etc. It can be steel or aluminum (or any metal, I reckon) and is typically machined into its final form as opposed to a molten metal which is forged or cast.
Billet is also not nearly as strong as a forging, it just looks cooler cuz the 5 axis machines can mill the heck out of it and render awesome shapes - if you like that look.

brad

 

Actually, billet describes the form of an as-poured mass of material from a ladle at the foundry. A billet is then sized and/or shaped into commonly used forms such as bar, plate, or tubing. NOTHING is machined from billet. ‘Billet’, as it is commonly used in retail, is a catchall advertising word whose definition is ‘cool’. That is all.

 

No? Then what are all the aftermarket Harley parts machined from? Seems like I read "machined from 6061 billet aluminum" all the time. Heck it's got to come to the machine shop in some form, huh

 

Read: "machined from chunk of 6061 aluminum"

 

billet bil·let
n.
1 A short, thick piece of wood, especially one used as firewood.
2 One of a series of regularly spaced, log-shaped segments used horizontally as ornamentation in the moldings of Norman architecture.

3a A small, usually rectangular bar of iron or steel in an intermediate stage of manufacture.
3b A small ingot of nonferrous metal.

4a The part of a harness strap that passes through a buckle.
4b A loop or pocket for securing the end of a buckled harness strap.

www.dictionary.com

 

Agreed. Billet is a MARKETING term. And in your case it's working.
Exactly! Depending on the size of the part, it is either BAR or PLATE. I guarentee the isn't a single shop out there that has billet in their inventory. They have AL 6061 bar, plate, strip, or tubing all in some sort of heat treated condition.

 

keep in mind too,, there may be a lot of aluminum falling to the floor in machinging,, but basically according to my experience with machining, aluminum cuts like butter when you put it under a carbide insert. both easy to deal with and fast to a good finish

~Toast