After fifteen years of die-casting medals in Huizhou, we have a fairly simple rule when a customer asks which metal to use: start with the environment the medal will live in. If it is going to sit in a display case, zinc alloy gives you the deepest relief and the best value. If it is going to be worn on a uniform, hung on a sea wall, or handed to someone who will still be wearing it a decade from now, the conversation changes — and that is where stainless steel comes in. Our medal materials guide covers every metal we work with; this article is the stainless steel chapter.
We should say up front that we are a die-casting factory, not a stamping-only shop. We build our reputation on zinc alloy Zamak parts with deep 3D relief. So when we recommend stainless steel, it is not because it is easier for us — in several ways it is harder. It is because for a specific set of awards, nothing else lasts as long outdoors or on a uniform. Here is the honest version of where stainless wins, where it loses, and how we actually make it.
What “Stainless” Actually Means on an Award
The chromium oxide layer
Stainless steel earns its name from chromium. When the alloy is exposed to air, the chromium forms a thin, self-healing oxide film on the surface. Scratch it, and the film rebuilds. That is the entire mechanism behind corrosion resistance, and it is why a stainless medal can sit on a humid dock, a salt-sprayed coastline, or a sweaty uniform for years without the pitting and rust bloom you get from plain iron.
What it is not
Stainless is not unbreakable, and it is not rust-proof in every grade. Chloride-heavy environments — think splash zones on a ship — will eventually attack lower grades. And stainless is not a magic material for detail: it cannot be cast into the deep, sculpted relief that zinc alloy delivers. That single limitation shapes everything else in this article.
Why we still steer some clients toward it
Because awards are judged by how they look in year eight, not week one. A long-service pin, a service ribbon medal, a finisher’s medal for an open-water swim — these are objects that get worn, washed, dropped and stored in a damp drawer. Stainless survives that life. Plated zinc, if the plating is thin or the lacquer seal fails, does not.
Stamped, Not Die-Cast: How a Stainless Steel Medal Is Made
This is the part most buyers get wrong, so let us be precise about the forming route.
Stamping and cutting, not casting
Stainless steel medals are stamped and cut, not die-cast. A flat sheet goes under a press and a hardened die punches the shape and presses a shallow impression into the face. There is no molten metal poured into a cavity, no sprue to cut off, no casting flash. The result is a dense, homogeneous part with a smooth surface and sharp edges — and a relief depth measured in fractions of a millimetre rather than millimetres.
Why we cannot push the relief deeper
Compare that with how we run our zinc line. Our zinc alloy — Zamak 3, 5 and 7 — has a density of 6.7 g/cm³ and melts at 385 °C. We die-cast it on an 88-ton press, and we can hold a minimum wall thickness of 2 mm while still filling deep cavities. That combination is what produces the sculpted 3D figures, openwork cut-outs and heavy bas-relief that define a premium die-cast medal. Stainless sheet will not do that. You can press a shallow emblem, a rim, a sunburst or a shallow portrait into it. You cannot press a rearing horse standing 4 mm off the face.
The workaround we use on the line
When a client wants stainless durability but die-cast detail, we split the build. The body is stamped stainless; the high-relief centrepiece is die-cast zinc and mounted or riveted onto the stainless base. We do the same on multi-material builds. It costs more and adds a step, but it is the only honest way to get both properties in one award. The full sequence is described in our medal manufacturing process page.
Head-to-Head: Stainless Steel vs the Other Four Metals
This is the table we actually draw on a whiteboard when a client is deciding. Every number for zinc, brass, iron and aluminium comes from our own production data.
| Property | Stainless Steel | Zinc Alloy (Zamak 3/5/7) | Brass | Iron | Aluminium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Density | ≈7.9 g/cm³ (close to iron) | 6.7 g/cm³ | 8.9 g/cm³ | 7.8 g/cm³ | 2.7 g/cm³ |
| Forming route | Stamped / cut | Die-cast | Stamped / cut | Stamped / cut | Stamped / cut |
| Practical relief depth | Shallow only | Deep 3D relief, openwork | Shallow; hard to stamp above 3 mm | Shallow; hard to stamp above 4 mm | Shallow |
| Corrosion resistance | Excellent — self-healing chromium oxide | Good once plated and sealed | Good, tarnishes without lacquer | Poor — rusts easily | Good; takes anodizing |
| Finish options | Polished, brushed, laser, plating, colour fill | Full plating line, every colour | Plating, polishing, lacquer | Plating or paint only | Anodized colours, dye, print |
| Weight in hand | Heavy, dense | Heavy | Heaviest | Heavy | Light |
| Relative cost | Mid to high | Low to mid (best value for detail) | High | Low | Low to mid |
| Best for | Long-service, military, outdoor, marine | Sculpted emblems, openwork, hero pieces | Heritage and premium presentation | Budget flat awards | Lightweight, colour-led awards |
Read the table the way we do: stainless wins on corrosion and durability, zinc wins on detail and value, and aluminium wins on weight. There is no single best metal — there is only the best metal for one specific award.
Finishes, Colour Filling and Printing on Stainless
Stainless takes a wide finish range, but it behaves differently from a cast part, so the order of operations matters.
Plating and polishing
Our plating line runs in a fixed sequence: dewaxing → ultrasonic cleaning → alkaline copper plating (about 500 seconds) → acid copper plating (20–60 minutes) → colour plating → tunnel-oven drying at 100 °C for 40 minutes → lacquer sealing → unhang. Colour options include mirror gold, silver, copper, rose gold, chrome, black nickel and platinum; matte gold, silver, copper and rose; antique gold, silver, copper and matte black; rainbow; and two-tone.
On stainless, the copper strike layer matters more than on zinc, because it is the adhesion bridge between the passive chromium surface and the decorative plate. We do not shorten that step to save cycle time.
Brushed and mirror base finishes
Many stainless awards never see the plating line at all. A brushed or mirror-polished stainless face with laser-engraved text is a clean, modern look that reads as technical rather than ornamental — which is exactly why it suits engineering, safety and service awards.
Colour filling and printing
Where a design needs colour, we use the same filling catalogue we run on other metals: soft enamel with a minimum line width of 0.3 mm, imitation hard enamel at a minimum of 0.5 mm polished flat, plus glass enamel, translucent, glitter, glow-in-the-dark and soft enamel with an epoxy dome. For print-led designs we run UV printing, which covers relief up to 7 mm, UV-on-enamel, offset, sticker or photodome, silkscreen for spot colours with no gradient, pad printing which works over relief, and laser engraving for variable data such as names, dates and serial numbers. On a shallow stamped face, laser engraving is usually the sharpest and most durable choice.
Where Stainless Steel Earns Its Place
Military, service and commemorative awards
Anything worn on a uniform is going to meet sweat, rain and repeated cleaning. We see strong demand for stamped stainless in service and commemorative work, and you can see the wider category on our military medals page. If the design calls for a deep sculpted emblem, we build it as a two-part stainless-and-zinc piece rather than compromising the artwork.
Long-service and milestone awards
A ten-year service pin has to look like a ten-year service pin at the ceremony — and still look like one at the twenty-year ceremony. Stainless does not rely on a lacquer seal to stay presentable, so it ages far more gracefully than a thinly plated part.
Outdoor and marine events
Open-water swims, rowing regattas, coastal triathlons, sailing series, surf and beach events. Salt air and repeated handling destroy plated zinc quickly if the seal is not perfect. This is the clearest stainless use case we handle, and it sits naturally alongside the rest of our sports medals range.
Sites and environments with heavy handling
Mining, offshore, construction and utility safety awards are handled constantly, often with gloves and often in the wet. A brushed stainless medal with laser engraving simply takes that abuse.
Cost, MOQ and Lead Time From Our Factory
We are a real factory, so we publish real numbers rather than “contact us for pricing”.
- MOQ: 100 pcs per design. This applies to stainless as well as zinc.
- Bulk lead time: 7–15 days after artwork approval and deposit.
- Free design proof: within 24 hours, with unlimited revisions.
- Physical samples: 7–10 days.
- Capacity: 30,000+ pcs per day across our lines.
- Payment: T/T 30% deposit, 70% balance.
- Certifications: BSCI, Disney, ISO9001, Reach, RoHS, TUV Rheinland, Sedex and USJ.
On cost, stainless sits mid to high relative to zinc. The material is more expensive than Zamak, stamping tooling is a different investment from a die-casting mould, and if you want plating, the copper strike and polishing add cycle time. For volume programmes this is where the per-piece price comes down fastest — see our bulk custom medals options for how we structure tiered runs.
Our practical advice: if your design is flat or shallow and the piece will live outdoors, stainless is usually cheaper over the life of the programme than replacing rusted awards. If your design is deep 3D relief, zinc is cheaper per piece and better looking, and you should not fight the material.
Quality Control: Three Stages, Every Batch
Stainless is unforgiving about surface defects. A stamped sheet shows every scratch, every polish swirl and every plating blister, so our inspection standard is the same regardless of metal.
- Incoming material check. Sheet grade, thickness and surface condition verified before anything is pressed.
- In-process inspection. Shape, edge quality, relief depth and finish checked at the press and again after plating or engraving.
- Final inspection before packing. Colour match against the approved proof, plating adhesion, engraving legibility, hardware fit and ribbon assembly.
We work to a 100% conforming delivery target. If a batch fails any stage, it does not ship.
When Stainless Steel Is the Wrong Choice
We would rather lose an order than sell the wrong metal, so here is when we say no.
- Deep 3D relief is the whole point of the design. Choose zinc. Stainless cannot reproduce it, and a two-part build adds cost that a simple cast piece does not need.
- The design is openwork. Casting handles pierced and hollowed forms naturally; stamping them requires extra operations and weaker structure.
- The budget is tight and the award stays indoors. A plated zinc medal is the better buy.
- The client wants a heavy, ornate, jewellery-like look. Brass at 8.9 g/cm³ and a full plating line deliver that far more convincingly.
- The design relies on fine enamel colour work. Imitation hard enamel polished flat needs a defined recess depth, and a stamped stainless face gives you less room to work with than a cast cavity.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a stainless steel medal better than a zinc alloy medal?
Better for corrosion and long-term wear, not better for detail. Stainless is stamped and holds only shallow relief; zinc alloy is die-cast and holds deep 3D relief, openwork and fine plating. If the medal will live outdoors or on a uniform for years, stainless is the safer material. If the design depends on sculpted detail, zinc wins.
Can you die-cast stainless steel?
No — not in the way we die-cast zinc. We die-cast Zamak 3, 5 and 7 on an 88-ton press with a minimum wall thickness of 2 mm, which is what makes deep relief possible. Stainless medals are stamped and cut from sheet. Where a client wants both, we stamp the stainless body and mount a die-cast zinc centrepiece onto it.
Will a stainless steel medal rust?
It will not rust the way iron does, because the chromium oxide film on the surface is self-healing. It can still corrode in sustained chloride exposure — marine splash zones, for example — or if the surface is contaminated with iron particles during handling. We specify the grade for the environment and inspect for surface contamination before packing.
What is the minimum order quantity for stainless steel medals?
100 pcs per design, the same as our zinc alloy medals. Bulk production runs 7–15 days after artwork approval and deposit, and we send a free design proof within 24 hours with unlimited revisions. Physical samples take 7–10 days.
Can stainless steel medals be plated in gold or antique finishes?
Yes. They go through the same line: dewaxing, ultrasonic cleaning, alkaline copper plating at roughly 500 seconds, acid copper plating for 20–60 minutes, colour plating, tunnel-oven drying at 100 °C for 40 minutes, lacquer sealing, then unhang. Available colours include mirror and matte gold, silver, copper and rose gold, chrome, black nickel, platinum, antique gold, silver, copper, matte black, rainbow and two-tone.
How do I add names, dates or serial numbers to a stainless medal?
Laser engraving is the usual answer, because it produces variable data with no tooling and it is extremely durable on a stamped face. For colour we use soft enamel from a 0.3 mm minimum line width, imitation hard enamel from 0.5 mm polished flat, UV printing which covers relief up to 7 mm, pad printing over relief, or silkscreen for spot colours.
Which stainless design should I send you?
Send artwork at any stage — a sketch, a photo of an existing medal, or a finished vector file. We will tell you honestly within 24 hours whether the design suits stainless, or whether it should be cast in zinc instead, and we will show you a proof either way.
Getting Started on Your Stainless Steel Award
Stainless steel is the material we reach for when the brief says “this has to last”. It is not the material we reach for when the brief says “make it sculpted”. Knowing which one you are asking for is most of the decision, and it is a decision we are happy to make with you rather than for you.
Badge Artisans has been manufacturing in Huizhou, Guangdong since 2010, exporting metal medals, trophies and accessories to more than 50 countries. We die-cast, we stamp, we plate, we fill colour and we inspect in-house — which means when we tell you a design suits stainless or does not, we are telling you from the line, not from a catalogue.
Send us your artwork and we will come back within 24 hours with a free proof, a clear material recommendation and a price at 100 pcs or at 10,000. If you want the short version of everything else we make, start with our custom medals overview, or send the design straight over and let us quote it.
See also: hard enamel award medals — our hard enamel medal line: Pantone colour matching, 0.3 mm minimum fill and 100-piece minimum.
