Q: For a marine project will 316SS cold worked (grade A4-80) hold up in strength pretty close to Monel K500? And what is the price comparison?
A: Thanks for contacting and good question. The major difference is the strength and corrosion resistance. You will have decent strength of a A4-80 bolt with a min tensile of 116 KSI however K500 bolts will have around 160KSI. However even more of an issue will be the corrosion resistance in sea-water. The Monel K-500 will be immune and has no corrosion rate in sea-water, whereas the A4-80 will get attacked over time. The alloy K500 will be more expensive but if you so you have to balance the costs versus the risk of failure.