Continental Trading Corp. supplies secondary PC wire and PC wire strand — prestressed concrete wire — sourced from North American producers at wholesale prices. PC wire is used to apply pre-compression to concrete before external loads are applied, dramatically improving the structural performance and crack resistance of concrete elements.
Our secondary PC wire and strand is material that fell outside a specific customer order due to tensile variation, diameter tolerance, surface condition, or overproduction. The wire retains its high-carbon, high-tensile characteristics. Buyers include concrete product manufacturers, precast plants, and wire distributors who have flexibility in their incoming specifications.
PC Wire & PC Wire Strand — Properties & Specifications
| Property | Specification |
|---|---|
| Carbon Grade | Very high carbon C1070–C1090 |
| Tensile Strength | 1,570–1,860 MPa |
| Diameter Range | 4.0mm – 12.0mm (wire); strand per construction |
| Surface Finish | Plain round or spiral ribbed (indented) |
| Strand Construction | 7x1 (7-wire) or 19x1 (19-wire) — stress relieved, low-relaxation |
| Standards | ASTM A421 / A416 (secondary — may not be certified) |
| Supply Form | Coils or reels |
| Quality | Secondary / Second choice (non-prime) |
Who Buys Non-Prime PC Wire & Strand?
PC wire and strand buyers include precast concrete manufacturers, prestressed concrete product producers, and construction supply distributors. In markets where exact certification to ASTM A421 or A416 is not required — which includes many construction applications in Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East — second choice PC wire and strand that meets the functional tensile and dimensional requirements is widely accepted.
Precast concrete plants manufacturing railway ties (sleepers), utility poles, concrete piles, and floor planks are significant buyers. These plants have their own testing capabilities and can verify that incoming wire meets their construction requirements, regardless of prime certification status. For these buyers, second choice PC wire from a major North American producer — with its high-quality steel and consistent tensile properties — represents a compelling value.
Post-tensioning contractors and structural concrete specialists in export markets also purchase non-prime PC strand for applications where the engineering requirements are met by the actual mechanical properties of the wire rather than the prime certification. Contact us with your diameter, tensile grade, construction, and destination to receive current offers.
Sourcing & Availability
PC wire and strand are produced at specialized wire facilities that draw very high carbon rod through multiple dies to achieve the required diameter and tensile strength, then stress-relieve the wire to produce the low-relaxation characteristic required for prestressed concrete applications. Second choice material arises when tensile values fall at the edge of the specified range, when surface condition is slightly outside specification, or when production exceeds the ordered quantity.
Continental Trading Corp. has sourced PC wire and strand from North American producers for many years. Availability is periodic rather than continuous — PC wire is not produced in the same volumes as commodity wire products, and second choice lots arise less frequently. When available, we offer 7-wire strand (the most common construction) and single-filament wire across a range of diameters from 4mm to 15mm.
All tensile test data and the specific reason for downgrading is communicated with each offer. We do not represent second choice material as prime-certified. Contact us to register your requirements — we will notify you when matching lots are available.
PC Wire vs. PC Strand
PC wire (single filament) is a smooth or indented high-carbon steel wire used in pretensioned and post-tensioned concrete applications. It is available in plain round or spiral ribbed (indented) finishes. PC strand is a twisted assembly of typically 7 wires (7x1 construction) or 19 wires (19x1), stress-relieved and low-relaxation, providing superior bond to concrete. Both are very high carbon (C1070–C1090) and high tensile (1,570–1,860 MPa typical).
Applications
PC wire and strand are used in precast concrete beams and girders, floor and roof slabs, prestressed railroad ties (sleepers), concrete poles and piles, bridges and highway structures, nuclear containment structures, and post-tensioned slabs. Secondary PC material is in demand particularly in markets where exact certification to ASTM A421 or A416 is not required. Contact us with your diameter, tensile grade, and quantity.
