This study aims to minimize material loss caused by the pointing section in the cold drawing process of high-value hydrogen embrittlement-resistant alloy steel and to design and validate a swaging-based pointing process that enables continuous drawing...
This study aims to minimize material loss caused by the pointing section in the cold drawing process of high-value hydrogen embrittlement-resistant alloy steel and to design and validate a swaging-based pointing process that enables continuous drawing without additional post-processing. Conventionally, the pointing has been machined by cutting, which increases processing time, generates chip waste, and reduces material utilization. To address these limitations, this study designed the swaging and shape drawing processes using drawing load prediction and cross-sectional division methods. Finite element analysis (FEA) was then used to derive the optimal swaging conditions for forming the minimum-diameter pointing and the optimal die half angle for hexagonal drawing. Swaging experiments were conducted on a 22.3 mm diameter round bar, and the resulting pointing achieved a diameter of 17.609 mm, closely matching the target without surface defects or cracks, while maintaining excellent straightness. The swaged pointing was applied to the drawing of a hexagonal crosssection bar (19.05 mm across flats) and showed no fracture or necking during processing. The final product exhibited a dimensional deviation within 0.06% of the target. Compared to conventional cutting, the proposed method reduced material usage by approximately 30.6% and improved yield by 4.5%, demonstrating superior efficiency and economic viability.