Precious Metal 950 Silver (Minerve)
950 Silver (Minerve) is a silver–copper alloy at the first-standard fineness of 95% Ag, hallmarked with the Minerva head and worked mainly as sheet, wire, tube and castings.
Reference datasheet — 950 Silver (Minerve) is not in the instant-quote catalog. Upload your part and an engineer will quote it in this grade or suggest the closest stocked equivalent.
Values for the O condition
950 Silver (Minerve) tempers and conditions
950 Silver (Minerve) is supplied in 6 conditions, soft to hard. O is the default FabDigit quotes; the values on this page are for it.
Compare all 6 conditionsHide
| Condition · open for datasheet | Best for | Yield MPa | Tensile MPa | Elong. % | Hardness | Conductivity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ODefault Annealed | Standard stocked condition for sheet, wire and blanks that will be raised, spun, chased or deep drawn. | 65 | 250 | 45 | 52 HB | 92 % IACS |
investment / sand cast | Pick for hollowware bodies, handles and cast figural silverware detail produced directly to shape. | 70 | 210 | 25 | 48 HB | 90 % IACS |
Quarter hard | Pick when a little stiffness is wanted but further bending, chasing or forming still follows. | 200 | 300 | 22 | 71 HB | 91 % IACS |
Half hard | Usual temper for flatware blanks, bezels and rims that must hold shape yet still take a final bend. | 280 | 350 | 12 | 85 HB | 90 % IACS |
Full hard | Pick for knife handles, tine ends and wear surfaces where dent resistance beats formability. | 360 | 420 | 5 | 104 HB | 89 % IACS |
Spring hard | Pick for spring clips, hinge pins and fine drawn wire needing maximum stiffness; essentially unformable. | 400 | 460 | 3 | 113 HB | 88 % IACS |
What is 950 Silver (Minerve)?
950 Silver (Minerve) is a silver–copper alloy at the first-standard fineness of 95% Ag, hallmarked with the Minerva head and worked mainly as sheet, wire, tube and castings. Silversmiths and product engineers choose it for near-maximum cold formability (45% elongation, formability score 95) together with 92% IACS electrical conductivity, and it is stocked from as-cast and O through H01, H02, H04 and H08 tempers off a 65 MPa yield and 250 MPa tensile. The limits are low strength, a 200 °C maximum service temperature, sulfide tarnish and copper-driven firescale during annealing. Sterling 925 is the nearest lower-cost alternative. 950 Silver (Minerve) has a density of 10.42 g/cm³ (0.376 lb/in³), heavier than 52% of precious metal grades. It melts at 875°C (1,607 °F). 950 Silver (Minerve) has a yield strength of 65 MPa (9.43 ksi) and a tensile strength of 250 MPa (36.3 ksi) — weaker than 91% of precious metal grades. Elongation at break is 45% and the elastic modulus is 76 GPa (11 Msi).
What is 950 Silver (Minerve) used for?
- luxury French flatware
- hollowware
- hallmarked objets d'art
Advantages
- Ductile — tolerates forming and impact — 45%, better than 97% of precious metal grades
- Easy to machine — 60/100, better than 97% of precious metal grades
- Conducts heat well — 380 W/m·K (219.6 BTU/hr·ft·°F), better than 96% of precious metal grades
- High electrical conductivity — 92 % IACS, better than 96% of precious metal grades
- Polishes to a fine finish — 97/100, better than 96% of precious metal grades
Limitations
- Low stiffness — 76 GPa (11 Msi), worse than 96% of precious metal grades
- Low strength — 65 MPa (9.43 ksi), worse than 91% of precious metal grades
- Limited service temperature — 200°C (392 °F), worse than 89% of precious metal grades
950 Silver (Minerve) properties
Typical room-temperature values for 950 Silver (Minerve)-O; bars are the position among precious metal grades.
Physical3
950 Silver (Minerve) has a density of 10.42 g/cm³ (0.376 lb/in³), heavier than 52% of precious metal grades. It melts at 875°C (1,607 °F).
Mechanical11
950 Silver (Minerve) has a yield strength of 65 MPa (9.43 ksi) and a tensile strength of 250 MPa (36.3 ksi) — weaker than 91% of precious metal grades. Elongation at break is 45% and the elastic modulus is 76 GPa (11 Msi).
Thermal6
950 Silver (Minerve) is rated for continuous service to 200°C (392 °F). It conducts heat at 380 W/m·K (219.6 BTU/hr·ft·°F), better than 96% of precious metal grades. Thermal expansion is 19 µm/m·K (10.6 µin/in·°F).
Electrical3
950 Silver (Minerve) conducts electricity at 92 % IACS, better than 96% of precious metal grades.
Chemical & Environmental3
Corrosion resistance is very good (82/100), better than 53% of precious metal grades.
Sustainability4
Producing a kilogram of 950 Silver (Minerve) takes about 1,500 MJ of energy and emits 105 kg of CO₂ — more than 51% of precious metal grades. Typical recycled content is 35%.
Manufacturability8
950 Silver (Minerve)'s machinability is good (60/100, better than 97% of precious metal grades); weldability very good (70/100); formability excellent (95/100).
Common Calculations5
Values are nominal handbook figures for design screening. Certified mill or lot data ships with every FabDigit order on request.
Strength versus weight in the precious metal family
Yield strength against density for every precious metal grade FabDigit runs. 950 Silver (Minerve) is highlighted; hover a dot for its name, or open the interactive family chart.
Working with 950 Silver (Minerve)
Is 950 Silver (Minerve) easy to machine?
Very soft and gummy — use sharp, high-rake carbide or HSS tools, generous relief, light feeds and oil mist; collect all chips for refining.
Can 950 Silver (Minerve) be welded?
Rarely fusion welded; laser or PUK spot welding works with matching filler, otherwise join with 950-compatible hard silver solders (easy/medium/hard sequence).
Can 950 Silver (Minerve) be formed, bent or molded?
Excellent cold formability annealed — raise, spin, chase and deep draw with interstage anneals at 600–650 °C, quench or air cool; watch firescale from the copper.
950 Silver (Minerve) chemical composition (wt %)
Limits by weight percent from the governing specification, written the way the spec states them — a single maximum for impurities, a range for alloying elements, and the base element as balance. Nominal is the typical mid-range value.
| Element | Spec limit (wt %) | Nominal |
|---|---|---|
| AgFrench first standard (950/1000), Minerve hallmark; no negative tolerance | 95 – 96 | 95 |
| Znoccasional deoxidiser/casting addition | ≤ 0.2 | |
| Other (each)Si, Ge, B trace as anti-firescale additions in some modern melts | ≤ 0.1 | |
| Cubalance, essentially all copper | ≥ 4 (balance) |
What surface finishes work on 950 Silver (Minerve)?
Polishes to a bright mirror (tripoli then rouge); protect with lacquer, rhodium plate or anti-tarnish paper — never anodized.
Equivalent designations
Standards and trade names that resolve to Precious Metal 950 Silver (Minerve) in FabDigit's catalog. Equivalence is nominal — check the exact specification when certification matters.
- Also called
- 950 Silver
How much does 950 Silver (Minerve) cost?
950 Silver (Minerve) is a high-cost precious metal ($$$$), pricier than about 78% of the materials FabDigit quotes. Part price depends far more on geometry, tolerance and quantity than on the raw stock — upload a CAD file for a live quote.
950 Silver (Minerve) — frequently asked
What is 950 Silver (Minerve) used for?
950 Silver (Minerve) is typically used for luxury French flatware, hollowware and hallmarked objets d'art. In short: higher fineness than sterling; near-maximum cold formability; hallmark-grade decorative silver.
What is the yield strength of 950 Silver (Minerve)?
950 Silver (Minerve) has a typical yield strength of 65 MPa (9.43 ksi) and a tensile strength of 250 MPa (36.3 ksi) — weaker than 91% of precious metal grades. Strength varies by condition: see the 6 listed tempers.
Is 950 Silver (Minerve) easy to machine?
Reasonably — machinability is rated good (60/100, better than 97% of precious metal grades). Very soft and gummy — use sharp, high-rake carbide or HSS tools, generous relief, light feeds and oil mist; collect all chips for refining.
Can 950 Silver (Minerve) be welded?
Yes — weldability is rated very good (70/100). Rarely fusion welded; laser or PUK spot welding works with matching filler, otherwise join with 950-compatible hard silver solders (easy/medium/hard sequence).
What surface finishes work on 950 Silver (Minerve)?
Polishes to a bright mirror (tripoli then rouge); protect with lacquer, rhodium plate or anti-tarnish paper — never anodized.
Can 950 Silver (Minerve) be formed, bent or molded?
Excellent cold formability annealed — raise, spin, chase and deep draw with interstage anneals at 600–650 °C, quench or air cool; watch firescale from the copper.
What is the maximum service temperature of 950 Silver (Minerve)?
950 Silver (Minerve) is rated for continuous use to about 200°C (392 °F). Strength falls off well before that limit — check the elevated-temperature data for load-bearing parts.
What is the difference between 950 Silver (Minerve)-O and 950 Silver (Minerve)-H08?
O is the default condition — standard stocked condition for sheet, wire and blanks that will be raised, spun, chased or deep drawn. H08: pick for spring clips, hinge pins and fine drawn wire needing maximum stiffness; essentially unformable. Yield strength is 65 MPa in O versus 400 MPa in H08.
How much does 950 Silver (Minerve) cost?
950 Silver (Minerve) is a high-cost precious metal ($$$$), pricier than about 78% of the materials FabDigit quotes. Part price depends far more on geometry, tolerance and quantity than on the raw stock — upload a CAD file for a live quote.
Sources
- ASM Handbook Vol.2: Properties and Selection — Nonferrous Alloys (precious metals) — ASM International (1990)
- NF EN ISO 9202 — Jewellery, fineness of precious metal alloys — AFNOR/ISO (2019)
- The Metallurgy of Silver and Its Alloys (silversmithing practice) — Santa Fe Symposium proceedings (2010)
- Ag-Cu binary phase diagram — ASM Alloy Phase Diagram Database (2016)
Property data is compiled from published supplier and standards handbooks and normalised for comparison; hardness values on non-Brinell scales are converted approximately for charting only. Manufacturability limits are FabDigit quote-engine defaults and may be relaxed by engineering review. Nothing on this page is a certification — request mill certs, CoC or material test reports with your order.