Materials · Compare
Compare metals side by side
Choose two to four metals. The finish you see is decided on a physical sample, so ask for one before you decide.
Swipe sideways to see every metal.
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| Character | Soft, ductile, and never quite finished changing. | Practical, weatherproof, and honest. | Strong, direct, unapologetically structural. | Cool, precise, structural. |
| How it looks | Bright pink-orange when new, moving through browns to deep near-black, or driven deliberately to green and blue verdigris. | Grey with a crystalline, spangled zinc surface that dulls to an even matt grey outdoors. | Matt grey raw; most often blackened, painted or powder-coated. | From full mirror through vibration and hairline to a soft brushed matt. |
| Where we use it |
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| Outdoors | One of the classic exterior metals. | Made for outdoor use: the zinc coat protects the steel beneath. | Used externally throughout, always with a coating system appropriate to the exposure. | Widely used externally. |
| Finishes | 11: mirror, brushed & satin, hammered, hand-beaten, embossed, special texture, special effects, antique… | 1: brushed & satin | 3: brushed & satin, special texture, distressed | 10: mirror, hairline, brushed & satin, vibration, embossed, etched, special texture, special effects… |
| In short | The most workable metal on the floor and the most unpredictable in service — which is exactly why it is used where character matters more than uniformity. | Mild steel with a coat of zinc. | The metal behind the metal. | The metal that holds a mirror polish and holds it in public. |
| Next step | Ask for a sample | Ask for a sample | Ask for a sample | Ask for a sample |
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