I have a question. Is it a good idea to use the "L" suffexed stainless. The "L" stands for lead that was included in the mix for easier machining. I would think that the lead would leach out and contaminate any food stuff that was cut plus the lead fumes during forging.

 

As I understand it, the "L" in stainless stands for "low carbon" not lead.  This makes it more resistant to cracking after welding/fabrication. 316L is a common choice for food preparation.

While there are alloys that use L for leaded; this is not one of them.  Low Carbon is correct.

Thank you both for the clarification.  It is truly aggravating to find out that the information I received from Navy Machinery Repairman School ( machinest) in early 1990 was wrong. I never thought to research it myself. Again thanks for correcting this. 

For most machining alloys the L is "leaded"; it's use for Low Carbon in stainless is an oddball.  So if you were in a machining program being taught that L means leaded is correct.   If you were in a welding program most likely you would be taught it was Low Carbon WRT stainless alloys and again be correct. That's the great thing about standards, they are such a good idea that everyone has one! (I've had to break it to some folks gently that "gauge" is not a specific term as there are a number of gauge systems out there and few agree; always use decimal inch or metric to identify a thickness!)

If in doubt look up the letter designations for specific metals. I've seen F used to indicate leaded free machining alloys. Case by case is the safest way to know what you're using, even then. . . 

Frosty The Lucky.