Kennametal's grade codes are not arbitrary. The prefix tells you whether the insert is coated at all, and the number tells you where it sits between wear resistance and toughness. Here is the full map — plus the three things that actually differ when a Chinese plant quotes the equivalent.
Send us the grade code or a photo of the box. We identify the ISO class, confirm substrate and coating, and quote the closest equivalent made by a vetted Chinese plant. Free cross-reference, 48-hour quotation.
Kennametal grades fall into three families, and the prefix tells you which one you are holding:
K — uncoated. Bare WC/Co substrates. Still specified today for cast iron, non-ferrous and high-temperature alloys, where a coating would add heat rather than remove it. K313 and K68 are the two you will meet most often.KC / KCU — PVD-coated. The KC series is single-purpose; KCU (“universal”) covers a wider material range. Kennametal's own literature notes that the current KC5010 coating allowed cutting speeds to rise by 50–100% over the grade it replaced.KCP — current-generation steel grades (KCP10B, KCP25C, KCP30B, KCP40B), superseding much of the older KB / KY range.North American catalogues also quote an ANSI C-class (C2–C6) alongside the ISO class. If a drawing or a job sheet specifies a C-number, the table below gives you the ISO equivalent.
| Grade | Coating | Substrate & application | ISO class | ANSI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K313 | Uncoated | Hard, low-binder, unalloyed WC/Co fine-grain. Titanium, cast irons, austenitic stainless, non-ferrous, most high-temperature alloys. Excellent edge wear resistance with high strength; strong resistance to thermal deformation and depth-of-cut notching. | M10–20, K05–20, N10–20, S10–20 | C3–C4 |
| K68 | Uncoated | Hard, low-binder, alloyed WC/Co fine-grain. Cast irons, austenitic stainless, non-ferrous. Used as the alternative to K313 on high-temperature alloys. | K, N, S | C3 |
| K1 | Uncoated | Tough unalloyed WC/Co. Roughing through heavy interruptions in stainless, cast irons, cast steels, rough cast non-ferrous and most high-temperature alloys including titanium. | K20–30 | C2 |
| K420 | Uncoated | Medium binder, alloyed, larger grain. General-purpose steel cutting with a balanced wear/toughness ratio; takes heavy chip loads in soft to moderately hard steel. | P20–30, M15–30 | C6 |
| K110M | Uncoated | Universal non-ferrous grade, light to general machining, with or without coolant. | K10–15, N10–20, S10–15 | C2–C3 |
| K115M | Uncoated | Premium fine-grain for high edge wear resistance in non-ferrous and cast iron. Recommended with coolant. | K05–10, N05–15 | C3 |
| K125M | Uncoated | Suited to dry machining of steel, light to general. | P20–30 | C5 |
| K600 | Uncoated | Micrograin; extreme toughness with a controlled wear rate. The micrograin structure permits very sharp edges. Multi-material. | N15–30 | — |
| KC5010 | PVD AlTiN | Deformation-resistant unalloyed substrate. Finishing through general machining at higher speeds; also performs on hardened and short-chipping material under stable conditions. | P, M, K, N, S + hardened | C3–C4 |
| KC5025 | PVD TiAlN | Tough ultra-fine-grain unalloyed substrate. General purpose from low to medium speed, with the edge toughness to handle interruptions and high feed rates. | P, M, K, N, S, H | C2, C6 |
| KCU10 | Multilayer PVD | Very deformation-resistant unalloyed substrate. Finishing to general machining across a wide speed and feed window, with improved edge stability. | P, M, K, N, S | C3–C4 |
| KCU25 | PVD AlTiN | Fine-grain unalloyed substrate. General machining across steel, stainless, high-temperature alloys, titanium, irons and non-ferrous, with edge toughness for interrupted cuts. | P, M, K, N, S, H | C3–C4 |
| KC5410 | PVD TiB2 | Purpose-built for aluminium. TiB2 is harder than TiN and TiAlN with an extremely smooth surface; its very low affinity for aluminium prevents built-up edge. Free-machining aluminium (<12.2% Si) and magnesium. Ground-periphery inserts are polished before coating for a sharp edge. | N | C3–C4 |
| KCK05 | MTCVD TiCN–Al2O3 | Composite coating on a high deformation-resistance substrate. High-speed turning of grey and ductile iron, including longitudinal and varying-depth-of-cut operations. A CW5 coating stress-relief step is part of the process. | K | — |
| KCP25C | CVD (KENGold) | Current-generation general steel turning grade. | P20–P25 | — |
Grade descriptions condensed from Kennametal catalogue and grade-selection documentation. Kennametal has retired and replaced grades several times — a 2012 catalogue and a current one do not list the same KCP range. If you are holding an older code, send it to us and we will tell you which current grade it maps to.
Three things, in order of how often they cause a failed batch:
We measure all three before we accept a batch: spectrometer for composition, ball-crater for coating thickness, Rockwell indentation for adhesion.
If your reference point is a Kennametal grade, the plant you are most likely to be quoted is Zhuzhou Cemented Carbide (ZCC-CT) or a plant built by engineers who trained there. ZCC-CT's steel-turning equivalents to the table above include YB6315, YB6325 and YBC352, with YBC103 and YBC252 in the coated range — the same ISO classes at a materially different price.
| ISO grade | WC content | Co binder | Grain size | Character |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K10 | 94–96% | 4–6% | Ultrafine / fine | High hardness, excellent wear resistance, low toughness |
| K20 | 92–94% | 6–8% | Fine | Balanced wear resistance and toughness |
| K30 | 88–92% | 8–12% | Medium | Higher toughness, heavy load |
| M10 | 93–95% | 5–7% | Fine | Wear resistance for stainless finishing |
| M20 | 91–93% | 7–9% | Fine / medium | General-purpose machining |
| M30 | 88–91% | 9–12% | Medium | Toughness for interrupted cutting |
| P10 | 92–94% | 6–8% | Fine | High-speed steel finishing |
| P20 | 90–92% | 8–10% | Medium | General steel machining |
| P30 | 87–90% | 10–13% | Medium / coarse | High toughness, heavy cutting |
| P40 | 85–88% | 12–15% | Coarse | Maximum toughness, impact resistant |
Typical ranges. A grade sold as “K20” by two different plants can sit anywhere in the range — and cobalt content is the single largest driver of both price and tool life. This is why we run a spectrometer on the delivered batch rather than trusting the label.
Grade cross reference hub
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