Source of cheap turning stock?

I have purchased aluminum and brass round stock for decent prices on eBay and Amazon. I have purchased aluminum and 12L14 steel from McMaster. McMaster's prices are not the lowest, but their shipping is a bargain.

There is an online supplier called "hobby metal kits" who has decent prices. www.hobbymetalkits.com

I have purchased steel drops from welding shops, but not rounds, for excellent prices.

I try to avoid brass unless there is a real need. The stuff is almost a precious metal.
 
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Bob La Londe said:
. That last part is what got my attention. I mill a lot of aluminum and I have a lot of scrap aluminum. I actually have more use for casting than forging equipment and I've been struggling with whether I want to build a proper foundry furnace or a forge first. How big is your forge, and how easy is it to use it for casting work? I'd like to be able to pour as much as 20 lbs of aluminum in a run. 10 lbs might not be enough for some of the stuff I want to cast. I was thinking if I designed it right I could just change burners and top (side) bricks depending on what I was doing so I didn't have two big furnaces taking up space in my shop.
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The forge is coal fired. For small pours, it is sufficient to build up coke around the crucible. For larger pours, I would make an impromptu furnace by stacking firebrick.

Back about forty years ago, I made an open top propane fired furnace. I made my own triple jet forced air burner and it was capable of melting about 30 lbs. of aluminum. I could also achieve temperatures to melt silver. A coal fired forge is capable of much higher temperatures than propane. I once brought a 100 lb. anvil up to welding temperatures so I could forge weld a new face on the anvil. That would be the largest piece of work.

The down side of using a forge is the lack of precise temperature control. If I was doing more than occasional casting, I would opt for a proper furnace. You might want to take a look at
. He has done quite a bit of metal casting in the building of his boat.

Aluminum alloys like 6061 are not the best for casting. Most aluminum used for casting has a fair amount of silicon. I save all the aluminum castings for future casting. Things like small engine blocks. pistons, etc.
 
Wow! Thanks for all the welcomes and suggestions! It reminds me of meeting my wife's 50 relatives the first time I went home with her for Thanksgiving --really nice but kind of overwhelming! :)

I will definitely read through carefully when I get a chance, and check my local resources.

Thanks again for all the great info! Glad this is such a friendly and active forum.
 
I just got my Amazon prime order from Online Metal, 2024 T351 1.250x4' 38 dollars. Not sure where that is price wise. I plan to use sections for truing cuts after leveling my lathe, WHEN it gets here.
 
JPMacG said:
I have purchased aluminum and 12L14 steel from McMaster. McMaster's prices are not the lowest, but their shipping is a bargain.
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Reading this made me curious so I checked OnLineMetals for shipping cost of (3) 1/2" x 6 ft long 1018 cold rolled bars = $33.61 Same items from McMaster ship for $18 ! I also noticed that OnLineMetals charges $1.50 each piece for cutting fee. So, it looks like even with one of their discount codes McMaster wins, IMO anyways.

I've always been happy with the shipping charges at McMaster but never dreamed they would be so good for materials like this!

Thanks for posting this,
Ted
 
McMaster has a reputation for being expensive on a lot of things, but they will also surprise you. There are a few things I buy just form them because after researching many companies they had the best price on a product that met my specifications. They also have one of the best hardware selections around.
 
Bob La Londe said:
McMaster has a reputation for being expensive on a lot of things, but they will also surprise you. There are a few things I buy just form them because after researching many companies they had the best price on a product that met my specifications. They also have one of the best hardware selections around.
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I agree. And from my experience, their items are of good quality as well, even their "generic" no brand name items.

Ted
 
McMaster must have a very efficient shipping operation -- they don't charge much, and have always gotten stuff to me very quickly. I also confirm that their prices can be competitive for some things.
 
yes buying material can be expensive. your local scrap dealers are going to be your best source of stock. machine shops routinely bring in scrap metal of all type some of it has a id marked on it . complete machines are scraped also. these are a good source of motors pulleys electrical components etec. scrap yards are a gold mine for home shop machinists.
 
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