DH, a former lecturer in engineering materials tells me that whether steel rusts or not depends on whether there is free iron in it. Rust is oxidised iron. Moisture and oxygen causes iron to rust. Steel is a carbon/iron alloy. If the iron has been converted to austenite, the steel will not rust. The higher the quality of the steel (austenitic as opposed to ferric) the less it will rust. Good quality knives, scissors, are made from austenitic steel and cost more. Cheaper items will be made from ferric iron and will rust. It's possible that pins are made from ferric iron because they bend, and that form of steel is softer than the austenitic type. That's as far as he can remember from 30 years ago.
It seem that it's like everything else - you get what you pay for. If you have the choice of expensive or cheap pins, the expensive ones *should* last longer unless you're just getting ripped off. Jean in Poole - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
