blackleafforge Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 Hi guys, i was wondering where you get your steel from in the west country? Is it was a good idea to source locally ( I'm in Plymouth ) or use one of the national companies, and have you guys ever found any variation or quality issues in steel stock? many thanks Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Budd Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 I don't use a great deal of mild steel, but when I do buy it I (think) it is from ASD Metal Services in Exeter. I've also had some stuff from Parker Steel in Exeter. On occasion when I only need small amounts (and thus don't want to pay for the delivery charge), I get it added to a friendly fabricator near by and he cuts it into car-lengths for me :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Hi Andy, There are steel stockholders serving Plymouth area, some being more specialised towards tool steels than others. MacArthur Steel and Avon Steel are based in Plymouth, Austen Knapman are at Torquay and have regular deliveries to the area, there are also numerous small engineering and fabrication companies who will probably sell you small quantities reasonably priced. There are variations in quality, but a lot of that depends on the stockholders supplier, most will exchange or take back if you have a legitimate problem. Some will supply small quantities and charge for delivery, some will require you have an account or collect from them and pay on collection. You may also find a variation in price and what's on offer as they seek trade, and some give discounts on large quantity orders. Hope this helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tzonoqua Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Although I'm not in Devon I'm not far from the border, I've been using Avon steel lately, prices have been good and £10 delivery. Parkers has always been extortionately expensive everytime i've got a quote from them. I also hit up my local engineering firms when I need a small bit of this or that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Budd Posted October 4, 2014 Share Posted October 4, 2014 now Colleen mentions it, I think maybe I just had Parkers in my mind as a humerous price comparison. Like I say I don't buy much mild (one delivery every 2 - 3 years normally), so mostly I get small quantities from friendly smiths and fabricators locally who can add an odd couple of lengths to an order for me. I get more regular deliveries of tool steels, but that lot comes from a few stockholders in the Sheffield area due to the specialist nature of the grades asked for :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackleafforge Posted October 6, 2014 Author Share Posted October 6, 2014 thanks for the info, i will have a ring around and get some quotes. By the way i have found somewhere to work from now - a business park in Plymouth that will let me put up a small prefab building and i hope to start trading after Christmas. So thanks for answering all my stupid questions, there will probably be a lot more :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tzonoqua Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 Parkers does at least have a very handy website where you can see all the size options, and lengths, and weights- which is great if you are estimating how much a prospective project will weigh...or just need to see what sizes of profiles are available... then you can laugh at the prices and go somewhere else!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Evans Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 Twenty odd years ago when I set up my account with Parkersteel they were very competitive on pricing and their quality was superb. I still use them for their wide stock and next day delivery convenience and they sometimes are only a few pounds different. Dyfed steel seem to invariably do well on price but I don't know if they deliver to Plymouth...it will only take you a phone call to find out. If you are about to order a few bars it is well worth calling a few suppliers and do not necessarily take their first price as fixed, for some bizarre reason they always seem to quote their best price plus at least 10% to start with. Wastes everybody's time. Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 here most towns have a steel stockholders, my nearest is less than a mile, next is 9 miles and in the other direction about 12 miles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker72 Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Conibear Bros in Crediton for mild steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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