Subheading 722880 is a deliberate structural exception: hollow drill bars and rods used in mining and drilling are classified here regardless of whether the steel is alloy or nonalloy, because their specialized hollow form and end use distinguish them from ordinary bars. This means a nonalloy hollow drill bar that would otherwise go in a different chapter is pulled into 7228.

Mill test certificates showing the full chemical composition are essential. Importers should compare the composition against the scope language of any active antidumping or countervailing duty orders on alloy steel bars from China, and consider requesting a scope ruling from the Department of Commerce if the product sits near a definitional boundary.