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Price of steel


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I cannot believe the price of steel these days. I bought two 20ft. lengths of 3/8 round (I'm making chain) and one 20ft. length of 1/4 x 3/4 flat bar and it cost $40 total.

Just a couple of years ago this would cost me half as much. What's driving up cost, is it transportation/fuel?

What are you seeing in your area?

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China is buying our scrap as fast as we can get it to the docks. Same reason cement went so high. China was buying 60% of our cement production for the 3 rivers dam, as well as other projects. Supply, and demand. They need steel for all of their projects.

I used to get 65 cents a pound for copper scrap. The last run I did for the company I work for, we got $3.20 a pound.

Their demand makes it great when we turn our scrap in $$, but it also makes the new material $$$$.

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It's not only steel. Coke from our steel works has jumped from $450.00 a ton to $700 a ton in the last couple of months.
Gas forges are starting to look like an option for our group, at least for small to medium work.
Four years ago a 50lb bag of coke was $12.00. Currently, it costs $35 for the same quantity. That's this week at least.
It wouldn't surprise me if it hit $40 a bag by the end of the year.

Cheers,
Rob Kenning
Secretary
Artist Blacksmiths Association South Australia

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HMMMMM,
you smiths in OZ need to contact your interior dept. and tell them you will clean up all of the charcoal, um I mean unsightly charred wood from the last big fire down there ;)


It's funny you should say that....I use charcoal out of my wood fired over to start the coke. Speaking of charcoal, we have a few charcoal chicken take away shops that are going away from bagged charcoal to electric because of the cost, currently $35 a 50lb bag. The chicken isn't going to taste the same. One story is that the farmers who used to supply it are getting leaned on by our green friends.
Pretty soon we'll be forging on a sunny day,with a magnifying glass and harsh language.

Cheers,
Rob Kenning
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I cannot believe the price of steel these days. I bought two 20ft. lengths of 3/8 round (I'm making chain) and one 20ft. length of 1/4 x 3/4 flat bar and it cost $40 total.

Just a couple of years ago this would cost me half as much. What's driving up cost, is it transportation/fuel?

What are you seeing in your area?


Here in Tucson, yesterday I bought 6 - 1/2" solid HRRS it was $10.79 for 20ft. Which works out to be .81 cents per pound. CS tubing is running about $1.25 per pound. In January this year the same HRRS was $8.26 for 20ft. I remember 10 years ago steel was .28 to .35 cents per pound and had not changed much in the years prior to that. Then the Chinese came in and started to buy up auto salvage yards, hole lock stock and barrel and drove up the price of scrap through the roof. I really hate to buy stuff from China and support the Red Army but anymore sometimes I have no choice.
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Here in Tucson, yesterday I bought 6 - 1/2" solid HRRS it was $10.79 for 20ft. Which works out to be .81 cents per pound. CS tubing is running about $1.25 per pound. In January this year the same HRRS was $8.26 for 20ft. I remember 10 years ago steel was .28 to .35 cents per pound and had not changed much in the years prior to that. Then the Chinese came in and started to buy up auto salvage yards, hole lock stock and barrel and drove up the price of scrap through the roof. I really hate to buy stuff from China and support the Red Army but anymore sometimes I have no choice.


The joys of a global economy. :(
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Here in Tucson, yesterday I bought 6 - 1/2" solid HRRS it was $10.79 for 20ft. Which works out to be .81 cents per pound. CS tubing is running about $1.25 per pound. In January this year the same HRRS was $8.26 for 20ft. I remember 10 years ago steel was .28 to .35 cents per pound and had not changed much in the years prior to that. Then the Chinese came in and started to buy up auto salvage yards, hole lock stock and barrel and drove up the price of scrap through the roof. I really hate to buy stuff from China and support the Red Army but anymore sometimes I have no choice.


Hey Harold: I may be slow but I finally recognized who you are.

Right now China's loaned out GVT so much money we have NO leverage bargaining.

You should buy a stick of 1/2" hrrs. here.

Frosty the Lucky.
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