If you spend enough time on ultralight backpacking forums, you’ll eventually come across the titanium cult. It starts out harmless enough, like cutting the tags off your fleece or the handle off your toothbrush. But it always ends with you spending fifty dollars on a mug that weighs less than a slice of bread. People […]
The moment you decide to upgrade a component from stainless steel to titanium, you are immediately faced with a second, potentially more expensive dilemma: Which grade do you actually need? While the industry offers nearly 40 distinct grades, the choice almost always boils down to the two titans of the market: Grade 2 (Commercially Pure) […]
You can’t tell the difference between Titanium Grade 1 and Titanium Grade 2 just by looking at them. They have the same silver-grey shine, the same density (4.51 g/cm³), and the same resistance to corrosion in most places. However, mixing up these two “Commercially Pure” (CP) grades on an engineering drawing can cause a catastrophic […]
Titanium is a master of disguise. You see it building the skeletal frames of supersonic jets, yet you also unknowingly eat it as a white powder additive in donuts. You are told it is one of the strongest materials on Earth, yet if you pick up a titanium ring, it feels unnervingly light—almost like plastic. […]