What is meant by billet aluminum

[Rotate]

Is it hot or cold forged?
How about extruded aluminum?
Is it stronger than non-billet aluminum?

If you cast aluminium, it be converted to a billet?

Albert

[gvasale]

The answer is probable all of the above. What it means to you is that you're going to have to machine the daylights out of it. It will be a large hunk, round or otherwise. You gotta whittle it down to size. Its that fancy object you found in the pile of chips.

[Forrest Addy]

In heavy industry billet is a term covering rough material sized and intended to be re-forged. It's usually in the normalized state. Heat treating follows forging and/or machining.

Hot rodders and bikers, ever careless of language, noise statutes, and the laws of nature, have adopted this term to mean anything machined from solid stock that sparkles. Like crows they're attracted to shiny things and abjure daily productive work and self discipline. It's monkey see, monkey do in that culture where a one trick leader is followed by a zillion unwashed, lazy, violent, beer swilling sycophantic lemmings. One of these days I'm gonna catch a bunch of those big talking ignoramuses and....

Wait a minute, I hear engines. Hey, those dumb lookin' guys can't park in my driveway. Hey!! Whattya you low rent bozos want? Oops! No. NO! No-o-o-o. ARRGH! Gurgle!

[This message has been edited by Forrest Addy (edited 02-10-2003).]

[ShavingMaker]

I believe that these are aluminum sided buildings that house military personnel, probably air force. Hence the term "Aluminum billet"......

[rbregn]

forrest
I won't lower myself to answer your asshole reply

[wierdscience]

Don't mean nothing but a block,chuck or blob of aluminum.Only means something when they put an alloy spec on it i.e.7075-t6 or 2024-t4you get the picture.I also have noticed the above statement to be true that a hot rod or scooter nut would buy a billet aluminum pile of dog doo and find some place to bolt it up.I have seen guys (the ones who played at the other end of the school yard)take cast iron original parts off a replace them with something they drank beer out of the week before. Also had some kids ask me why their car lost time after a tune.And I told them the reason was they needed a chrome timing cover,next week sure enough chrome timing cover! Oh ya I forgot to mention if you want to sell some be sure and mill some perfectly usless cooling fins in it I find it doubles the price.

[This message has been edited by wierdscience (edited 02-10-2003).]

[Samuel]

Gentlemen, lets keep it clean! for the sake of all.

Respectfully,

Samuel

[wierdscience]

I thought that was clean?

[JoelK]

Forrest,

I resemble those remarks... LOL

[This message has been edited by JoelK (edited 02-10-2003).]

[Thrud]

Forrest
As one who happens to prefer "Shiney" as opposed to dull and boring - I too, resemble that remark. I have known many hot rodders and bikers that although not perfect, are better than most "respectable businessmen" and certainly have more honor than those "so called pillars of the community".

Instead of beriding them for not understanding, you should be tring to help them learn in a compassionate and understanding manner. We were all ignorant of what we know now at one time - patience my brother!

[This message has been edited by Thrud (edited 02-10-2003).]

[roberlt]

Please lighten up Forrest!!!
As a practicing machinest, hot rodder, racer and custom bike nut I can understand your being upset with these flakes. HOWEVER a serious racer, rodder, bike nut etc. does pay attention to lots of things. If the racecar goes faster looking UGLY it goes faster. however if it also looks good it is better. (better to find sponsors) My custom bike is not a racer (or loud) but is made to look good and be safe.
I think we all apprecate your knowledge and experience however please remember there are flakes and good people everywhere.

Rob

[ShavingMaker]

If I can get back to basics and help answer the original question, if it is "billet aluminum" it just means it was machined out of a solid block of aluminum. Cast aluminum can have air bubbles or particles so it is not the best raw material.
At the risk of offending everybody let me say that most people are in some kind of "group" that has rules and uniforms. Bikers, street rodders, attornies, doctors, all have their own language and bathing habits. But if they can drink beer once in a while they are OK with me.
What I don't like is if they criticize me for not being exactly like them. Like if I build a rod in my garage and don't have billet parts or have it slammed into the ground (neither of which I like), especially if they just bought their sled from a "rod factory" and never got their hands dirty.
I think everybody on this site can identify with that. Anybody out there with hands that never got dirty? I doubt it. Let's stick together.

[NAMPeters]

Forrest will be alright. Somebody must have stuffed a potato up his tail pipe and the bang scared him.

Vroooom Vroooom Squeal!

------------------
Neil Peters

[Forrest Addy]

We all have our blind enthusiasms.

Consider my collection of cast iron. Now great big cast iron machine tools are lots cooler than ol' motorcycle and car parts. And just think of how much more money you can spend on it.

And they never get crossways and hit the wall. I never got a ticket for running a planer.

OTH lusty blondes don't dig 'em.

[abn]

Forrest, I assume you're probably both a biker and a hot rodder...So I'm LOL.

Are billets forged? As both cast and billet are poured from molten stock, how are voids and the course grain structure that affect cast aluminum managed?

As an aside, I bought a bunch of 7050 Forged aluminum plate. Obviously there are structural considerations with loading and grain diraection...but are there any machining considerations?