In this study, the effect of friction stir welding of AISI 430 (X6Cr17, material number 1.4016) ferritic stainless steel is examined. Two thin sheets with dimensions of 0.4 × 50 × 200 mm3 are joined in lap configuration. Optical microscopy and field emission electron microscopy were used in order to microstructural evaluations and fracture analysis, respectively. Tensile test and microhardness measurements are employed in order to study the mechanical behaviors of welds. Also, vibrational sample magnetometry (VSM) is employed for characterizing magnetic properties of welded samples. Texture analysis is carried out in order to clarify the change mechanism of magnetic properties in the welded area. The results show that AISI 430 sheets are successfully joined considering both, the appearance of the welding bead and the strength of the welded joint. It is found that by friction stir welding of AISI 430 sheets, texture components with easy axes magnetization have been replaced by texture components with harder magnetization axes. VSM analysis showed that friction stir welding leads to increase in residual induction (Br) and coercivity (Hc). This increase is attributed to the grain refining due the friction stir welding and formation of texture components with harder axes of magnetizations.
