About Invar Machining
A matching service for one narrow alloy family, not a directory and not a factory.
What this site is
Invar Machining connects buyers who need a part cut from Invar 36, Super Invar, Kovar or Alloy 42 with machine shops that have actually cut those alloys before. We are not a machine shop ourselves, we own no equipment, and we do not touch your part. We read your RFQ, match it with up to 3 shops suited to your alloy, tolerance and heat treatment requirement, and step back once the introduction is made. You order from and pay the shop directly.
Why one narrow alloy family
Low-expansion alloys are a small, specific niche inside CNC machining. The buyers who need them, optical and photonics engineers, composite tooling designers, metrology and semiconductor equipment builders, aerospace program managers, are searching for something more specific than "CNC machining." A general job-shop directory does not surface which shops actually run a stress relief furnace or measure at a controlled temperature. Staying focused on this one alloy family is what lets us ask the right qualifying questions before a shop ever sees your drawing.
How matching works
You send a drawing and the details covered in what to include on an Invar RFQ: alloy and spec, heat treatment requirement, critical tolerances, and any certification or environmental requirements. We review it, and if something is missing we ask before we match anything. We then send it to up to 3 shops whose alloy experience, heat treatment access and part size fit your request. Each shop that takes the lead contacts you directly with a quote. We take no commission on the order and never see your final price.
On the shop side, we ask the questions covered in how we vet machine shops before a shop is matched with any request: which low-expansion alloys they have actually machined recently, where stress relief happens, how they fixture thin sections, and where and at what temperature they measure. A shop that cannot answer these specifically does not get matched.
Editorial standards for our guides
The guides on this site are written to be useful to someone about to write an RFQ, not to sell a specific shop. A few rules we hold ourselves to:
- Typical values, labeled as typical. CTE figures, tolerances and cost ranges are handbook-style values for planning, not a promise for your specific heat lot or part. A shop's own quote and, where relevant, measured data for your material is what you should rely on for a real commitment.
- No invented case studies or client counts. We do not publish fabricated project examples, customer counts or testimonials. Where a guide gives a worked example, it is described as an example, not a real past order.
- No unverified certifications. We do not claim ISO, AS9100 or any other certification for this site or for shops in general. Certifications shown in a supplier's own profile are the shop's claim, not ours.
- Standards cited by name. Where a guide references a specification, ASTM F1684 for Invar 36 or ASTM F15 for Kovar for example, that is the standard actually governing the material, not a paraphrase.
Contact
Buyers: . Shops interested in registering: . We reply within 24 business hours.