high-speed steel

American  

noun

1. an especially hard, heat-resistant steel for use in lathe tools and for other applications involving high friction and wear.

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high-speed steel British  

noun

1. any of various steels that retain their hardness at high temperatures and are thus suitable for making tools used on lathes and other high-speed machines

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Etymology

Origin of high-speed steel

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

The manufacture of high-speed steel represents the highest art in the making of steel by tool-steel practice.

From The Working of Steel Annealing, Heat Treating and Hardening of Carbon and Alloy Steel by Colvin, Fred H. (Fred Herbert)

The rolling of high-speed steel is an art known to very few.

From The Working of Steel Annealing, Heat Treating and Hardening of Carbon and Alloy Steel by Colvin, Fred H. (Fred Herbert)

For annealing high-speed steel, some makers recommend using ground mica, charcoal, lime, fine dry ashes or lake sand as a packing in the annealing boxes.

From The Working of Steel Annealing, Heat Treating and Hardening of Carbon and Alloy Steel by Colvin, Fred H. (Fred Herbert)

This characteristic led to the term "red-hardness," and it is this property that has made possible the use of very high cutting speeds in tools made of the tungsten-chromium alloy, that is, "high-speed" steel.

From The Working of Steel Annealing, Heat Treating and Hardening of Carbon and Alloy Steel by Colvin, Fred H. (Fred Herbert)

The manganese and silicon contents are relatively unimportant in the percentages usually found in high-speed steel.

From The Working of Steel Annealing, Heat Treating and Hardening of Carbon and Alloy Steel by Colvin, Fred H. (Fred Herbert)