Overview of Materials and Finishes for Door Hardware

The path to high-quality door hardware always leads through quality base materials that surface finishes adhere perfectly to. What materials are the most suitable for producing handles? And what colors and finishes does modern door hardware offer?

MATERIALS

The most suitable material for producing handles is time-tested solid brass, which excels in both aesthetic qualities and durability. Stainless steel is also equally suitable in terms of characteristics.

Solid Brass

• the most suitable material for producing door hardware
• stands out with high strength and aesthetic qualities
• has highly antimicrobial properties, quickly and effectively destroying all bacteria and viruses caught on its surface, and this happens several times faster than materials containing silver
• can be finished with both surfaces applied through electroplating and titanium surfaces, or left in its raw form, including a polished appearance
• the surface finish on brass handles lasts a long time without any wear or other damage

Stainless Steel

• another high-quality material for door hardware
• distinguished by high strength and very good mechanical properties
• stainless steel handles are produced at M&T from stainless steel using hollow casting technology, which helps optimize the shape and weight of the hardware
• can be either polished or brushed, as well as available with electroplating or one of the titanium finishes

SURFACE FINISHES

M&T applies real hard metal layers on its products, not using spray coatings or paints in RAL shades. For perfect coordination of the entire door set, individual surfaces can be used not only for handles but also for locks, bolts, hinges, and other details.


Electroplated Finishes
Electroplated finishes are applied to hardware using electroplating technology, which guarantees perfect adhesion to the brass or stainless steel material of the handle and high resistance to wear and corrosion. "The entire galvanization process consists of three parts: three-phase degreasing, pickling, in which residues of alkaline substances from degreasing are removed, and the last phase involves functional baths where the respective surface finish is applied to the hardware with a uniform current," explains Roman Ulich, designer at M&T, a Czech manufacturer of designer door and window hardware.

M&T offers electroplated finishes in variants of matte nickel, matte brushed nickel, shiny chrome, and unique black chrome natural, which is hand-brushed into a 3D surface reminiscent of distressed wood. This surface finish is not offered by any other hardware manufacturer.

Titanium Surface Finishes
Currently, matte titanium finishes are in vogue. "The titanium surface finish is applied to the hardware through physical vapor deposition using plasma discharge, which guarantees perfect adhesion of a uniformly thin hard layer to the underlying material," explains Roman Ulich from M&T. Titanium surfaces are characterized by exceptional hardness, wear and scratch resistance, and color and chemical stability, where the surface does not change its shade even after many years of use.

M&T offers titanium surfaces in five color variants: titanium chrome matte, titanium black matte, titanium brown matte, titanium bronze matte, and titanium brass matte.

Brass Finishes
The aesthetic potential of brass, which is used to produce quality door hardware, is undeniably significant, making it equally suitable for the surface of the handle. The brass surface matures with each touch and, over the years, changes its shade and acquires a patina depending on environmental conditions and usage frequency.

M&T offers brass finishes in three variants – natural brass with a mechanically treated surface of the brass product, polished brass with a shiny surface that gradually acquires a patina, and antique brass, which is a technologically treated, accelerated aging surface with the effect of several years of use.

Stainless Steel Finishes
The appearance of the base material can also be preserved in stainless steel hardware – the surface is merely mechanically treated.

M&T offers stainless steel finishes in the variants of brushed stainless steel with a fine texture and polished stainless steel with a highly glossy surface.

Old Iron
For a range of forged hardware with a traditional historic appearance, M&T uses the surface finish old iron. This is a special manufacturing process that allows iron to age in a completely natural way, without the use of colored coatings. The final visual and tactile result is in all respects similar to a genuine piece of ancient hardware.

More at www.kliky-mt.cz.