I get most of my stock metals from either Macc Models or M Machine.

In general modelling materials are not cheap; it is a small (and shrinking) customer base and individual modellers buy relatively small quantities.  It is possible to buy bar ends and offcuts cheaper from e-bay sellers but I prefer to support dealers who understand my needs and will still be there when I need them in future.  I also prefer to buy material that I can be confident is a known specification and suitable for working on my hobby machinery.

I would suggest that, as a beginner, you use known suppliers and buy known materials at least until you get used to your machinery.  I’m sure there are many modellers on here who would agree that you should avoid material of unknown spec from scrap bins and other cheap sources.

Jim

Unles syou are going to by 3m or 6m lengths then you will end up paying a bit of a premium for the typical 1ft or 300mm lengths and more again if it is a larger section sold by teh inch or mm.

I tend to use M-machine as they have  agood range but do use Ringwood For steel rounds which I tend to buy at their 3x 1m rate for upto 12mm and anything bigger by the 1m or 500mm.

Also watch postage, some sellers will include it with each piece of metal even if it says “post free”, others will bunch the items together and do postage based on weight thresholds. Though long lengths will again cost a premium.

Sometimes it can be worth looking round local industrial estates to see what fabricators are around. A while back when looking for a lot of angle for framing I found a small trailer maker who used masses of such and was prepared to sell at the advantageous rate they got it.
Some scrap yards are cooperative and some are  not.
In a club there is often a selection of ‘unknownium’ when cleaning out a members shed. Don’t decry the rusty stuff as it can clean up. Sadly many sheds where the owner thinks having holes in the walls for ventilation is a good idea so have their stock rusty on the upper side where condensation has been landing twice a week for ten years but it will clean up.

It would be interesting to know what the disappointment was. Is it the general cost of metal these days or the cost compared with what industry can buy at?

For mild steel, visit your Steel Stockist and see if they sell their off cuts at a reasonable rate.  I am afraid that for brass, bronze etc you will not find off cuts – it’s too precious.  Get to know the price of things and look on flea b’y.

I am surprised that as we grow older (or even pass away) that those left behind don’t advertise on this site not only tools, but the materials under the bench.

Bob

have a local suplyer, Better Metal, I dont know where you are but these are resonable priced and collect if you can.

Better Metal Stores Ltd
Unit A2 Salcombe Rd,
Alfreton,
DE55 7RG

I also buy from M-Machine Metals     They have an online catalogue which you download and call for informayion as they are very helpfull and will cut other sizes as well if asked.

M-Machine Unit 6 Forge Way, Cleveland Trading Estate, Cleveland St, Darlington DL1 2PJ

David

It might be something for us to compile a list that can be turned into a map on here. Our usual suppliers advertising in the mags normally do materials if they do castings though not always. I remember going to Chronos where they had brass but not steel – not checked current policy. I started with a visit to Kennions for a beginners pack they used to advertise 30 years ago.

If anyone knows of a cheap source of metal please let me know!

I advise being careful with scrap because many alloys used by industry don’t machine well.  Aluminium extrusions are too soft and sticky, many stainless steels work-harden, cast-iron may be full of inclusions and chilled diamond hard, and much else.  Industry use metals that suit their production needs, likely chosen because it’s good for welding, stamping, bending, grinding, extruding, tough, hard, springy, or cheap and pretty etc, and not because they want to machine it.  Trying to machine scrap can be horrible!

The metal provided by HMG for warship repairs will be fit for purpose.  When buying metal privately do the same: order metal where the spec includes words like ‘free-cutting’.    Ordinary mild-steels are intended for structural use and don’t machine particularly well – the surface tends to tear causing poor finish.  I prefer EN1A or EN1A-Pb to EN3, even though the latter is widely available and delightfully cheap.

It’s not that scrap must be avoided at all costs because experienced machinist can cope well with tricky stuff.   Learners are less well placed!  Starting out with a light hobby lathe and trying to machine metal found in a skip may cause severe trouble because newcomers don’t recognise the symptoms yet.   Better I feel to learn on machinable metal, because it makes it much easier to recognise later when a particular bit of scrap isn’t ideal.   When things don’t cut well in my workshop, there are 3 potential reasons:  the man, the machine, and the material.  Pays to eliminate the material as being the problem, cost permitting!

Experience with scrap varies wildly, many saying “what problem”, whilst others have a bad time, as I did.  I think much depends on the nature of our local industry.   Scrap from an area full of CNC shops will be fine, that from other manufacturing processes much less so, especially stainless and Aluminium off-cuts.   Brass generally machines well wherever it comes from.   DIY store metal is best avoided – expensive, and it doesn’t machine well in my experience.

In the good old days, industry was careless with scrap, and it could be obtained informally with beer and Woodbines. Or even just for the asking.   Much less common today: metal is expensive and almost entirely recycled.   Scrap tends to be guarded, and giving it away strictly forbidden by the accountant!

My local scrapyards used to welcome visitors and would happily sell metal for cash.   Not for at least 15 years: yards are protected by razor wire and visitors aren’t allowed past the receptionist.   They only buy metal and won’t sell it, and records are kept.   I believe the change is partly because the scrap metal trade used to be seriously criminal and was subjected to a serious crackdown.  Now it’s much more tightly supervised.  The other reason may be it’s more profitable to recycle on a grand-scale than it is to mess with Model Engineers looking for tiny bargains.

Still worth asking though, but don’t be offended if businesses aren’t interested.

Dave