Metal stock?

I go to the local steel supply yard about 20 minutes away from me for particular project stuff. I think I just paid $24 for a 6 foot stick or 1" diameter aluminum rod. I know that is a lot cheaper than HD or Lowes. I would imagine it is cheaper than any place that would have to ship it to me.

Every place I have lived had has a steel supply yard somewhat close (with in an hour). Do most large towns / small cities have these?

About 2 years ago I scored several hundred pounds of stainless bar stock for $70 at an online live auction. It was worth the the 2 hour drive. I discovered machining stainless is a whole lotter more difficult than carbon steel or aluminum! Since I already had the stainless lot I bid on a couple more lots and ended up with a nice heavy duty sheave for $5 in a misc lot. The lot also had about 25 various rated / certified lifting cables. I was going to sell the cables but haven't gotten around to it and have used them many times for lifting and moving machines.

Anytime I come across a good deal on steel, aluminum or lumber I pick it up knowing I will find a use for it someday.

When I have looked for metal online shipping always seems to be outrageous.
 
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We have a couple large steel distributors in a town of about 200,000. They have just about anything you could want, but it's expensive. There's another about 40 miles away. Their prices are about half the prices of those in town. They will also give you the certs if it's necessary for the job. Other than that, there are a couple used equipment dealers. They're by far the cheapest, but you never know what they might have in stock. Sometimes it's 20-foot sticks, others it's just some short drops. When I visit the equipment dealers, I usually go home with either some aluminum or stainless stock, even if I don't currently have a project that needs it. It's nice to just go over to the rack in the shop and select what you want rather than have to call around to see if anyone has it.

As for stainless I use a fair amount. It's expensive from the distributors, but fairly cheap from the used equipment dealers. The company I worked for made most of its own processing and packaging machinery. Since most of the machinery had to go through a daily washdown it was made from 316 stainless or 6061 aluminum. The cooling units that were exposed to calcium chloride were made primarily of 17-4 PH. It was a bit of a learning process milling and turning the different types of stainless, but since we did it every day you got used to it in a hurry.
 
I've had good luck with Oakland Steel on ebay, the seller is: steeldawg9061 Prices are reasonable and free shipping on most things.

Also have purchased stock from 2 local junk yards for $.30/lb - $.40/lb. The downside to this is not knowing the pedigree of the stock and you never know what you'll find (which is also the fun of it!).
 
Try the scrap yard. There’s one on airport road in Indiana. I have family near there. No idea how they are but their website says the also sell new steel.

integralscrap.com

Integral Scrap & Recycling Inc.

"WE WANT YOUR SCRAP"
integralscrap.com integralscrap.com

I get most of my material from scrap resale in Columbus Ohio at Stargate Metals. Important stuff that needs certifications is either Goodman steel, Alro, or McMaster Carr.

industrial auctions can also be a goldmine if you can handle a few tons at a time.
 
shobe9904 said:
Where do you guys get your stock? I've seen the main sites (online metals, fastmetals, etc) wasn't sure if these are what y'all use or if you guys have specific places you like to get stuff? I live like 1.5 hrs from Pittsburgh, PA and I'm sure i could get some there but that drive is a pain. I've found alot of other smaller suppliers online too, but the issue is that I'm looking for 17-4 specifically and it seems like nowhere other than "big box" metal sites carry it.

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Today I find on Amazon and Walmart not bad pricing.

Dave
 
One thing to consider when starting out is getting some samples of known stuff so you can calibrate your expectations.

McMaster-Carr is good for this since you can just buy a foot or two of specific alloys and you know what you’re getting.

Try some 6061 aluminum and 12L14 steel to start with then branch out. Each material has its own properties and will require different cutting tools and techniques so understanding how your machine reacts to different stuff is important.

If you can make friends with a local machine shop they might let you choose from their offcuts as well as helping you choose which material to use for which job.

Label your stock as you get it so you know what you have to choose from. Also, don’t overlook free sources of mystery metal like copy machines, treadmills and other appliances.

John
 
matthewsx said:
One thing to consider when starting out is getting some samples of known stuff so you can calibrate your expectations.

McMaster-Carr is good for this since you can just buy a foot or two of specific alloys and you know what you’re getting.

Try some 6061 aluminum and 12L14 steel to start with then branch out. Each material has its own properties and will require different cutting tools and techniques so understanding how your machine reacts to different stuff is important.

If you can make friends with a local machine shop they might let you choose from their offcuts as well as helping you choose which material to use for which job.

Label your stock as you get it so you know what you have to choose from. Also, don’t overlook free sources of mystery metal like copy machines, treadmills and other appliances.

John
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I appreciate the advice, and i will be experimenting with other, softer materials as well, but i need 17-4 specifically for a project and the machine i got can definitely handle it. It'll take some learning as to how my machine works best with it, like you said, but it's definitely capable.

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GT-6 Racer said:
Try the scrap yard. There’s one on airport road in Indiana. I have family near there. No idea how they are but their website says the also sell new steel.

integralscrap.com

Integral Scrap & Recycling Inc.

"WE WANT YOUR SCRAP"
integralscrap.com integralscrap.com

I get most of my material from scrap resale in Columbus Ohio at Stargate Metals. Important stuff that needs certifications is either Goodman steel, Alro, or McMaster Carr.

industrial auctions can also be a goldmine if you can handle a few tons at a time.
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Hey man, thanks! I really appreciate your response. I'll check out that scrap yard. There's another scrap yard in town here too that claims to be one of the biggest in america but they have mostly beams and railroad stuff and like scrap scrap, not usable stock. I'll definitely check out the place you mentioned tho.. airport road isn't too far from me.

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