Stock cutting at the steel mill...

[Jmercier]

So i'm essentially out of stock of any sort in my garage. I've found a mill with quite good prices an hour and a half from me, but almost everything they sell is in 12 foot lengths. They have a rediculously high cutting fee that i want to avoid... but I dont have access to a cutting torch that i could bring with me to do my own cuts in the parking lot. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to reasonably cut stock and avoid the cutting fees. I'm planning on going down there this next weekend to stock up on stock, particularly stuff like 3/8"x1" bar and the like for tongs ( I was recomended that size for tongs, anyone have a better recomendation?)

1/4" square stuff i can shear with a hand shear easy enough, but anything larger and i'm at a loss unless i bring a saw and spend all day cutting it by hand. Heck, if I had a portable generator, I'd toss my metal cutting bandsaw in my truck >_

[Ed Thomas]

Some points to ponder on steel supply:

1) Check and see what they will charge to deliver. For a long time, I assumed the fee would be outrageous for Dillon Supply to come all the way out to my place and didn't even ask. But they do it routinely for some ridiculously low "fuel fee" only. They assume delivery when you order.

2) If you are getting 12' lengths then you are almost certainly buying cold-rolled steel. Although that is usually a more reliable low-carbon grade than hot-rolled, it is also a good deal more expensive. Since you seem to have a limited budget, check to see if you can get hot-rolled in the more typical 20' lengths and have them delivered.

3) When I used to take my pickup to buy steel, I took a Milwaukee Porta-band and extension cord with me. Steel suppliers do exactly that -- supply steel. They aren't interested in wasting time cutting it to lengths for the customer so they establish an exorbitant price per cut to discourage you from asking them. However, if you are only getting a few pieces and you fumble with your own saw and look pathetic enough, the guy doing the loading will very often take pity on you and just cut the 20' lengths in half fast enough to not get caught by the supervisor. At least that's what I heard.

4) 20' lengths cut in half fit diagonally in an 8' pickup bed.

5) The portaband is so unbelievably handy that you will never regret buying one if you can afford it. I got a used one for something like $125 quite a few years ago and haven't had a lick of problems with it yet. Simple and durable and as useful a power tool as money can buy.

Thoughts on Tongs:

1) The stock dimensions are a function of the style and size of the tongs you intend to make. Without a sample, we can't tell you the best size or shape.

2) "Classic" tongs, that is, tongs made with simple jaws such as recently featured in "Hammers Blow", are most efficiently made with square bar. Typical tongs would normally be made with 3/4" square, or sometimes 5/8" square for smaller sizes.

[Pault17]

Being very much the noobie here, I have fallen in love with my 4.5 inch grinder with really thing cutting discs. I just picked up about 200 lbs of steel from my father in law (80-year old manure spreader buried in the woods and managed to cut everything, including 8 feet of 2-inch axles, into managable short sections. used up 5 discs, but did not take long. eye-wear and ear-wear are a must and a dust mask doesn't hurt (prevent most of the nasty black boogers). You can also pack along a power inverter that you can tap into your car/truck electrical system, if there is no local power supply

I have to try out a portable band saw. sounds much quieter

[LarryM]

I'm with pault17.

4 1/2 grinder will do alot of cutting. The inverters that for sale at auto parts or department stores work very well. They are easy to use just plug them into cigerette lighter socket. If you use a pickup to haul you can also build two hook like frames to hang in bed stack pockets. And haul longer length of material.

Be Safe.
LarryM

[Blacksmith Jim]

I've found my local scrap yard to be a bit forgetful when having material cut. I'd say I'm about 50 / 50 as to being charged a cutting fee. I just get stuff in 4' so it can fit in my trunk :P

[johnny99]

Just bend it double with a nice gentle radius. then it will be about five and a half feet long by two feet wide.

[IronPuppet]

I've cut stock with a vice and a big chisel and hammer. Clamp the stock where you want the cut and lay the chisel along side the surface of the vice and give it a good whack. Don't try cutting the whole 1" surface at once, but rather start cutting at an angle. Wear safety gear. 3 or 4 good whacks will cut through with a sharp chisel. Faster and cheaper than a grinder, but brute force is a tricky thing to wield and you could hurt yourself so don't try it if you are unsure of your aim with a hammer. I use to cut the heads off bolts the same way when taking apart car and truck suspensions. when all else failed, the chisel never let me down. Helps to use heavy gloves, like welding gloves, to help stop vibration from the chisel getting to your hand. When I was doing a lot of this sort of cutting I would make a handle for the chisel, I would get a solid rubber ball and drill a hole through it small enough to make a tight fit on the chisel and this would cut the vibrations too.

Christopher

[Marc]

Luckily, the steel places near me don't charge for cutting in half. One has a chop saw and the other an Ironworker shear. But when I was getting stuff from the scrap yards (back in the good ol' days when they sold to hackers like me) I used a cordless reciprocating saw. There aren't too many electric outlets in the yard :-) You can get cordless angle grinders now, too. I've got a vise mount that slides in my receiver hitch to make the cutting easier.

[John B]

Why does nobody appear to use bench shears anymore, I have one mounted on a plate which I place on the floor and park a wheel on and then just shear off the lengths you want, plenty of shears should cut 1/2" by 1 1/2" also will cut round stock an alternative is to use bolt croppers. No electric needed and little noise, a long tube for a handle makes easy work

[ThomasPowers]

Last time I picked up a load of 1" WI that was longer than my truck I drove over it and tied it up to the front and rear bumper---helps to know what the underside iof your truck looks like.

I've also seen a "third hand" that fits in a hitch receiver that will hold stock even with the roof of the pickup.

For cutting I have a 3' hacksaw that speeds up hand cutting a lot---its a bandsawblade mounted in a *good* bow saw frame (I like the old sandvik frames). The bandsaw piece is cut just a bit smaller than the bowsaw sawblade to get a bit more tension on it.

One trick is to use a wrest: it's a hefty handle with a nice square sided gap on the side at the using end that just fits the size stock you want to shear. Put the stock in a good vise and engage the wrest and torque it right off. Many I see have different sizes on different sides---good for up to 1/2 sq stock I know. Pre notching with a chisel helps for thicker stuff.

Finally if you are really stocking up one of those $20 truck rentals might be called for.

BTW have you tried trading smithwork for cutting fees?

[Nomad]

I use a $15 pawn shop circular saw with cut off wheels I can get for $5-7 at the big box stores. The saw is pretty much disposible and cutts pretty fast. Of course you need power, but I think it would be faster than tha band saw.....
Nomad

[bruce wilcock]

we have a simple shear that we made ,using a slots cut with a angle grinder in a heavy spring and a thick blade like a chisel with a flat wide edge that fits in a box section holder welded on ,the shear is welded onto a 6x6 1ins plate ,to use it thread the bar through the slot that fits best drop in the chisel and hit it with the striking hammer,i used to carry it around to cut shoe iron.

[Donnie]

No power.....Score with chisel, break in half.....another option, large bolt cutters you may be suprised what you can cut into with them.

[Jmercier]

Does scoring with a chisel actually work for larger sized stock? I'm looking at getting a whole bunch of 3/8"x1" bar and 1/4"x3/4" bar as well as some 1/2" square and round.

I guess another option would be to throw my single burner venturi forge, a 20lb propane tank, my 75lb "anvil" and a hot cutter in the front of my truck and hot cut everything in the parkinglot?

[skunkriv]

They used to cut RR track with a chisel and sledge. I used to have a piece that had been cut this way but it got away from me somewhere over the years.

If I was hauling 12' lengths around here I would just tape em together, throw a spare tire across the front end and tape a red flag on the back. Legal here in Iowa.

[Glenn]

Better to tie one end down to the truck somewhere, otherwise it is considered loose. Blowing out of your truck is one thing, but the accident behind you on the road is something you don't want to happen.

[waianvil]

I just buy the 20 ft piece of steel and do not have it cut.because i figure i,m going to use it sometime on a different job. my truck I use a ladder rack and I fasten two pices of 4'' pvc glue together one cap off then on the other end I have a screw in plug which makes it 20 ft slide the steel and screw the plug on and drive away.