What a carbide spec sheet is actually telling you.
Compare published TRS, HRA/HV hardness and grain-size references for YG8C, YG11C and CERATIZIT CTM17-BC (BC20), then use a current mill certificate to approve the actual batch.
Read a Grade Like a Metallurgist
TRS, hardness and grain size help screen a carbide grade; finished-tip geometry, joining and testing still decide application fit.
What "Won't Crack on Rebar" Actually Means
Higher TRS indicates stronger resistance to impact-driven fracture, but rebar survival still depends on head geometry, joint design and finished-bit testing.
Why the Same Grade Carries Two Numbers
HRA and HV measure the same thing — resistance to indentation — through different mechanics. HRA presses a 120° diamond cone under 60kgf and reads depth; Vickers presses a diamond pyramid and measures the indent's diagonal under a microscope. In the 87–93 HRA band where every hammer-drill grade lives, HRA's scale is too coarse to separate close grades — 89.5 and 90.5 look almost identical but perform differently in the field. That's the resolution Vickers buys, and why European mills like CERATIZIT report HV alongside HRA.
The Wear-vs-Toughness Trade-off
Selecting a grade sets its published grain class. You can then compare medium and coarse grain behavior independently.
Smaller, more numerous WC grains pack tighter, so the grade holds its cutting diameter longer before wearing undersize — at the cost of a crack having a shorter path to travel between grains. CERATIZIT catalogs CTM17-BC (BC20) as medium grain.
Source Data
Where These Numbers Come From
CTM17-BC/BC20 values come from CERATIZIT's published stone-working catalogue, while YG8C and YG11C use typical procurement reference bands. Approve production against current batch documentation and the applicable Chinese references listed below, including GB/T 18376.2-2024.
Primary references
Use a current supplier mill certificate and finished-bit test report for production approval; public catalogue and standard values are reference data only.
Read the full grade breakdownNeed a Grade Spec'd Into an RFQ?
Send your rebar exposure, expected impact duty, and target bit diameter — we'll confirm which grade and head geometry the production line actually runs at that spec.