Surface and grain boundary wetting and penetration of pure Fe and a martensitic steel by Pb and Pb-Bi eutectic alloys were studied by the sessile drop and dispensed drop techniques at different temperatures (400-900 degrees C) and times (up to 30 h). By using two different atmospheres-high vacuum and a He-H-2 gas-and different heat treatments, wetting was studied for both oxidized and deoxidized solid substrates. (C) 2005 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.