A number of years ago I needed about 2m of 5/16 – 8mm titanium for a racing car project. I tried all of the metal suppliers who wanted to sell me hundreds of metres but were not interested in a small order like mine. Finally I started ringing around the F1 teams on the basis that they probably used loads of titanium in their cars. Williams GP were very helpful when I explained the issue, decided that it was too complicated to try and pay them to supply it but needed a contribution to the Christmas party fund that they held each year. Not only that, but they used to have a van that passed our gates twice a week so they  even delivered it. Naturally I have looked on this team in a different light ever since then.

It might pay you to try a similar exercise for such a small quantity of metal – F1 teams, top-fuel dragsters, anyone else that might use Ti….

BTW, I seem to remember that there were specific points regarding the fire safety when machining Ti, I seem to remember that it is reactive in small particles (like swarf) in the same way that applies to magnesium and that certain cutting fluids should be avoided. A swift web search should help.

Regards,

Simon

Some plate heat exchanger plates are made from titanium. If you can find a manufacturer like Alfa Laval, the cut outs on the corners are circles of up to 100 mm diam. They are waste and can usually be had for nothing.  The plates are made in the factory with all corners  intact. each heat exchanger is designed to a flow pattern. This pattern is obtained by cutting out the corners with a chassis punch type devise