Methods of forming a high-strength metal alloy precursor by tailor-casting strips having a tailored thickness across a width of a strip material are provided. The tailor-cast strips have varying thickness throughout the width, which can then be further tailor rolled to a final required thickness profile/tailored thickness. Such tailor-casting method can be conducted by contacting a patterned surface of a casting roller or a casting block with a liquid high-strength metal alloy in a continuous casting process. The present disclosure provides methods of continuously casting a strip having varying thickness across the width allows for improved product in subsequent processing, like tailor rolling. Methods of making a high-strength metal alloy structural automotive component from a tailor-cast blank having a tailored thickness are also provided.

To efficiently and stably produce an H-shaped steel product with a flange width larger than a conventional flange width by creating deep splits on end surfaces of a material such as a slab using projections in acute-angle tip shapes and sequentially bending flange portions formed by the splits to thereby suppress occurrence of shape defects in a material to be rolled and reduce growth of a crop portion. A first caliber and a second caliber of a plurality of calibers are formed with projections configured to create splits vertically with respect to a width direction of the material to be rolled to form divided parts at end portions of the material to be rolled; a third caliber and subsequent calibers excluding a final caliber of the plurality of calibers are formed with projections configured to come into contact with the splits to sequentially bend the divided parts formed; and in at least one pass or more of rolling and shaping in the plurality of calibers, the rolling and shaping is performed with a rolling roll gap for a predetermined section at a rear end portion in a rolling longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled expanded as compared with a rolling roll gap for other than the predetermined section.

A variable thickness roll forming system for forming a variable thickness blank including at least two sets of cylindrical shaped rollers. Each of the sets of rollers include: a first roller including a face which is linear where the first roller contacts the metal sheet; and a second roller including multiple shaping faces positioned about a perimeter and directed toward the face of the first roller. Each roller set incrementally alters a thickness of a metal sheet in a direction transverse to a metal sheet feed direction when the metal sheet is passed between the first and second rollers. The metal sheet after passing between the first and second rollers forms a roll formed blank having a first portion and a second portion positioned in the direction transverse to the feed direction with respect to the first portion, the first portion thicker than the second portion.

A variable thickness roll forming system for forming a variable thickness blank including at least two sets of cylindrical shaped rollers. Each of the sets of rollers include: a first roller including a face which is linear where the first roller contacts the metal sheet; and a second roller including multiple shaping faces positioned about a perimeter and directed toward the face of the first roller. Each roller set incrementally alters a thickness of a metal sheet in a direction transverse to a metal sheet feed direction when the metal sheet is passed between the first and second rollers. The metal sheet after passing between the first and second rollers forms a roll formed blank having a first portion and a second portion positioned in the direction transverse to the feed direction with respect to the first portion, the first portion thicker than the second portion.