Comparison of 304 or 316 and 304L or 316L Stainless Steel wire
As American AISI basic grades, the only practical difference between 304 or 316 and 304L or 316L is carbon content.
The carbon ranges are 0.08% maximum for 304 and 316 and 0.030% maximum for the 304L and 316L types.
All other element ranges are essentially the same (nickel range for 304 is 8.00-10.50% and for 304L 8.00-12.00%).
There are two European steels of the ’304L’ type, 1.4306 and 1.4307. The 1.4307 is the variant most commonly offered, outside Germany. The 1.4301 (304) and 1.4306 (304L) have carbon ranges of 0.07% maximum and 0.030% maximum, respectively.
The chromium and nickel ranges are similar, nickel for both grades having an 8% minimum.The European grades for the 316 and 316L types, 1.4401 and 1.4404, match on all elements with carbon ranges of 0.07% maximum for 1.4401 and 0.030% maximum for 1.4404.
