SteelKey facts
- Steel wire is classed by three independent choices: the steel, the surface and the temper.
- Carbon steel is sorted into low, medium, high and ultra-high carbon classes, and more carbon raises strength while lowering ductility.
- Drawing hardens wire, annealing softens it again, and ASTM A641 names soft, medium and hard temper for zinc-coated wire.
- Wire is bare, as EN 10218-2 treats bright wire, or zinc coated under EN 10244-2 and ASTM A641.
- Reinwent supplies four carbon steel wire types: galvanized, black annealed, cold drawn and high carbon spring wire.
The short answer
There is no official family tree of steel wire. In practice a buyer sorts it with three questions: which steel, which surface and how hard. Answer all three and you have named a type. Answer only one and two suppliers can send you two different wires.
This page is the map. Each section below is a signpost with one idea and a link to the guide that goes deeper. We cover the carbon steel wire types Reinwent supplies.
The three things that decide a type
Steel. The carbon content of the steel sets how strong and how ductile the wire can become. See high carbon steel wire.
Surface. The wire is either bare or coated with zinc. This decides where it can be used and how long it lasts in the weather. See what galvanized wire is.
Temper. Drawing makes wire hard and annealing makes it soft. This decides how it behaves in the hand and on the machine. See hard drawn vs annealed wire.
Size is a fourth detail, but it does not change the type. A thin and a thick wire can be the same type. The wire gauge chart converts gauge numbers into millimetres.
Sorting by steel
Wikipedia sorts carbon steel into low, medium, high and ultra-high classes by carbon content, and says a higher carbon content makes steel harder and stronger but less ductile. Its spring steel article describes spring steel as mostly medium or high carbon.
For buyers this matters at one end of our range. Spring wire comes from the high carbon end. The other three products are bought by surface and temper, and none of our product pages or sources states a carbon class for them, so we do not assign one. We quote no percentage here.
Sorting by surface
Bare. EN 10218-2 treats bright steel wire as uncoated, and so does the trade. Bare wire can rust where air and moisture reach it. Black annealed wire is bare too. See what bright wire is.
Zinc coated. Wikipedia describes galvanizing as a protective zinc coating that works as a barrier and corrodes first where the coating is damaged. Hot-dip galvanizing gives a thicker layer than electrogalvanizing. EN 10244-2 sets the coating mass requirements and ASTM A641 covers zinc-coated carbon steel wire. The coating classes are explained in types of galvanized wire.
Sorting by temper
Wikipedia says drawing at room temperature is cold work, which raises hardness and strength and lowers ductility. IspatGuru gives the same picture for drawn steel. Annealing then increases ductility and reduces hardness. Hard and soft wire are therefore one steel in two conditions.
ASTM A641 carries the idea into coated wire with three tempers: soft, medium and hard. Our drawing guide shows where each step sits: the wire drawing process. If your concern is strength alone, read what high tensile wire means.
Where our four products sit
The values come from our product pages.
| Type | Surface | Temper | Diameter | Strength or coating | Standard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot-dip galvanized | Zinc coated | Agreed per order | 0.8 to 8 mm | 50 to 300 g/m² | EN 10244-2, ASTM A641 |
| Black annealed | Bare, black | Soft, annealed | 0.8 to 8 mm | 300 to 450 N/mm² | EN 10218-2 |
| Cold drawn (bright) | Bare, bright | Hard, drawn | 0.8 to 6 mm | 500 to 1,000 N/mm² | EN 10218-2 |
| High carbon spring | Agreed per order | Agreed per order | 1.3 to 4 mm | On request | On request |
The galvanized row lists no strength, because its product page gives none. Its temper is stated in the order, which is why it appears there as agreed per order.
Type by type
Hot-dip galvanized wire. Steel wire with a zinc layer. It is for tying, agriculture and industrial bundling that sees weather. Read what galvanized wire is and types of galvanized wire.
Black annealed wire. Soft, bare wire that knots by hand. It is for binding and fixing in construction work. Read black annealed wire uses and what annealed wire is.
Cold drawn (bright) wire. Hard, bare wire at the highest strength band we list. It is for nails, staples, bolts and other small hardware. Read what cold drawn wire is and what bright wire is.
High carbon spring wire. Wire from the high carbon end, for coil springs, suspension springs and formed parts that return to shape. Read what spring wire is, spring wire standards and high carbon steel wire.
Each type has its own page on our range: galvanized wire, black annealed wire, cold drawn wire and spring steel wire.
What is not a wire type
Some words that turn up in searches describe a stage or a paperwork label, not a wire.
- Wire rod is the hot-rolled starting product, not a finished wire. We do not offer it. See wire rod vs wire.
- Customs codes are a paperwork label. See steel wire HS codes.
- Price follows the specification and is built up in a quotation. See how steel wire is priced.
How to name the type you need
Write one line per item, with all three choices in it.
- Steel. Say whether a spring or other high-strength duty applies.
- Surface. Bare or zinc coated, and the coating weight in g/m² if coated.
- Temper. Soft, hard, or a tensile band in N/mm².
- Diameter in millimetres, and the standard your customer names.
- Quantity and port.
How coils are packed and loaded for shipping is in the container loading guide.
Steel wire types from manufacturers in Türkiye
Reinwent is a trading and sourcing company, not a manufacturer. We do not draw, anneal or coat wire. We source steel wire from manufacturers in Türkiye, collect their offers and set them on one basis so that you compare the same type against the same type. Supply routes are described on our pages for galvanized wire from Türkiye, black annealed wire from Türkiye, cold drawn wire from Türkiye and spring steel wire from Türkiye.
A quotation reaches you within 12 hours at the latest, and we stay in contact until delivery. Some products are available from stock. Once you know the type, request a quote.
