Cast Iron or Steel?

Cast iron has a rough surface finish. Steel is usually pretty smooth.

 

Price.

 

Magnet. Won't stick to cast iron like it does to steel.

 

Unless it's stainless.

 

Right. Somebody put a sheet of stainless steel on top of the old work bench here, before we bought the place. I really thought it would be gal steel, or aluminum. Nope. Tougher than boiled owl chit. Had to drill 3 holes to install a vise... that was fun. Always hated working on elec signs that had stainless cabinets. PITA. Drill bits no likey.

 

Some things to look for,

Steel is welded & usually straight lines, sharp corners/edges

Most cast iron are bolts & rivets
Cast is usually a fancier design, more curves.

 

Not all SS is non magnetic

 

Some stainless is magnetic, some is not as another poster already said.

Back to the steel vs. cast iron: a good example of what cast iron looks like is an old fashioned (although still made, brand new) cast iron frying pan. Notice the ridges, the rounded edges and the generally bumpy surface (other than the inside). Compare that with smooth, flat steel (or copper or stainless steel) pans that do not taper, do not usually have any curves or rounding of the edges and do not have any ridges or projections. The same thing is basically true of all form of steel vs. cast iron. Others have also pointed out other good methods to tell cast iron stoves from steel stoves such as construction, curved fronts, etc. Welds are also a dead give-away; steel stoves are welded, cast iron stoves are usually bolted or pinned together.

Brian

 

Then there is always the spark test. That is if you are willing to put a grinding wheel to what ever it is you are curious about.
http://www.esabna.com/euweb/oxy_handbook/589oxy24_4.htm

 

No difference in magnetic between steel and cast iron. But a magnet will stick stronger to a smooth surface than it will a rough surface.

 

When drilling stainless, run your drill at slower RPMs. Apply wax or oil to the bit numerous times while drilling.

 

Good ideas. Used to use some special stuff whenever we had to drill SS. Can't remember the name of it but it was amazing.

 

Doesn't have to be anything special, wax or oil will do. Most important is to go slow.

Wax or oil will always extend the life of your bit, no matter what the metal.

 

True. This stuff I remember using made drilling SS with a 1/8" pilot hole like you were drilling aluminum. Not sure, but I think it was called Tap Free, or something like that.