Brinell
Brinell is one of the oldest methods of hardness testing, and is ideal for testing forgings, castings and larger coarse samples of materials. Brinell testing uses a larger diameter indenter, removing the variability caused by localised, structural differences and surface inconsistencies.
Brinell testing is a test method for bulk metal hardness determinations. If we were to use another type of hardness test, the inconsistency or roughness of the material would give different readings depending on where on the surface of the material the test is carried out, due to the variability of the sample.
By using a Brinell hardness test, it uses a wider indentation across the surface area, giving a more representative hardness measurement.
This test makes a relatively deep, wide indentation in the material, which means it tests the average hardness over a larger surface area than some of the other hardness tests.
Examples of materials that may benefit from Brinell hardness tests include non-ferrous metals, pre-heat treated steel, forgings and castings.