The Stahlschlüssel (Key to Steel) is an essential trilingual cross-reference guide (German, English, French) used worldwide by engineers, purchasers, and designers to decode steel designations and find equivalent materials across different international standards.
A steel that is called 1.2343 (Werkstoff number) in Germany might be sold as X32CrMoV33 (DIN standard) in Europe, SKD6 in Japan, H11 in the USA (AISI/SAE), and BH11 in the UK. Imagine trying to source a replacement die-casting tool without knowing these equivalents. The Stahlschlüssel does the heavy lifting: you look up any standard from any major industrial nation, and it instantly shows you the corresponding grades across 20+ international standards.
While the full database requires a purchase (approximately €290 for the book or €690+ for software), you can access partial information for free: stahlschlussel key to steel pdf free
Yes and no. While you cannot get the full, current printed database for free, there are legal alternatives that provide 90% of the functionality of the Stahlschlüssel at zero cost.
Stahlschlüssel (Key to Steel), 2025 Edition - ASM International The Stahlschlüssel (Key to Steel) is an essential
Price: often $40–$80. The data may not include the newest ultra-high-strength automotive steels, but for general machining and tooling, it is perfectly adequate.
Alternative resources
If you work in metallurgy, mechanical engineering, or manufacturing, you've likely heard of the Stahlschlüssel, also known as the Key to Steel. Since 1951, it has been the definitive cross-reference manual for identifying and comparing steel grades across international standards .