Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

McMaster Carr has a good website, they sell small quantities of various
alloys of steel, reasonable prices.

http://www.mcmaster.com

Richard



Rick Cook wrote:

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

Buy drill rod. It should be available in your area - if not it is a common
mail order item.

"Rick Cook" wrote in message
...
Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 20:10:21 GMT, the renowned Rick Cook
wrote:

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

KBC Tools sells this stuff in flat or round.

http://www.kbctools.com/usa/main.cfm

Toolroom Accessories-Flat Stock
or
Toolroom Accessories-Drill Rod

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com

Spehro Pefhany wrote:

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 20:10:21 GMT, the renowned Rick Cook
wrote:

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

KBC Tools sells this stuff in flat or round.

http://www.kbctools.com/usa/main.cfm

Toolroom Accessories-Flat Stock
or
Toolroom Accessories-Drill Rod

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com

Thanks folks.
I've been ordering the stuff from MSC and Texas Knifemakers' Supply, but I was
wondering if anyone knew of a local source in the Phoenix area that won't laugh
when you want to buy a piece of flat stock a foot or so long.

--RC

Try Capital metal South of I-10 on 48th St.

Joel. phx

Quick qwestDex search:
Capital Metals Co
5150 S 48 St
Phoenix, AZ 85040
(602) 454-1500

"Rick Cook" wrote in message
...
Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

Joel Corwith wrote:
Try Capital metal South of I-10 on 48th St.

Joel. phx

Quick qwestDex search:
Capital Metals Co
5150 S 48 St
Phoenix, AZ 85040
(602) 454-1500

"Rick Cook" wrote in message
...

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.


I'll second Capitol Metals. They have a good collection of steel and
aluminum cut to convenient sizes. It's expensive though. If you can tell
what you are looking at/holding, you can go root around in the warehouse
in the scrap bins and stuff is a good bit cheaper for funky sized bits
rather than 24x24 or 10' long stuff. I deal with them quite a bit since
they are in walking distance of my job.

Davis Metals on Washington has better prices but you have to recognize
everthing there, as far as I can tell.


Bob

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 20:10:21 GMT, Rick Cook
wrote:

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

I'm not a knifemaker myself, but have you tried OCS Steel? I hear
it makes really good knives, and it's available cheap at almost any
auto dismantling yard you can find...

(OCS = Old Chevy Spring - A hunk of an automotive leaf spring.)

Reduce - Reuse - Recycle... ;-)

-- Bruce --
--
Bruce L. Bergman, Woodland Hills (Los Angeles) CA - Desktop
Electrician for Westend Electric - CA726700
5737 Kanan Rd. #359, Agoura CA 91301 (818) 889-9545
Spamtrapped address: Remove the python and the invalid, and use a net.

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 20:10:21 GMT, Rick Cook
wrote:

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

What dimensions do you want? Ill be going by Reliable Tool this week.
They have bins of the stuff. $4 a pound. Pay the exact total and
the shipping and Ill pick you up what you need.

Email me with your snail mail addy and the sizes. Most of them tend to
be .25x 3/8 x 2-3" long, or 3/8" by 1/2" x however long. No heat
treating needed, but you will need a decent grinder. Mostly used HSS
or Cobalt lathe bits. Hell..Ive got about 150 lbs of stuff at home
I can dig out.all shapes and sizes..but its probably rusty.

Gunner

"In my humble opinion, the petty carping levied against Bush by
the Democrats proves again, it is better to have your eye plucked
out by an eagle than to be nibbled to death by ducks." - Norman
Liebmann

"Bruce L. Bergman" wrote:

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 20:10:21 GMT, Rick Cook
wrote:

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

--RC

I'm not a knifemaker myself, but have you tried OCS Steel? I hear
it makes really good knives, and it's available cheap at almost any
auto dismantling yard you can find...

(OCS = Old Chevy Spring - A hunk of an automotive leaf spring.)

Reduce - Reuse - Recycle... ;-)

-- Bruce --
--
Bruce L. Bergman, Woodland Hills (Los Angeles) CA - Desktop
Electrician for Westend Electric - CA726700
5737 Kanan Rd. #359, Agoura CA 91301 (818) 889-9545
Spamtrapped address: Remove the python and the invalid, and use a net.

I've used leaf springs for some projects, but what I'm interested in is small
stuff for small blades. Strip, small bar, drill rod --that kind of thing.
That way I don't have to do a much cutting out before I get to the shaping.

--RC

"Rick Cook" wrote in message
...
Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool
steel in the Phoenix area.

You should try visiting tool steel suppliers, as opposed to "steel
suppliers" (go and actually visit, maybe with doughnuts in hand). Here,
there are places like Uddeholm, Crucible, etc.

Ask if they sell off-cuts. I would be specific about what you want. W1 or O1
or whatever. If you talk the talk, they'll be more likely to help you out.

HTH.

Regards,

Robin

Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool steel in the Phoenix area.

I'm making small carving tools, knives, etc. by hand so I can use pieces
that would normally be scrap and cutoffs. However I'm willing to pay a
reasonable amount for the material. Ideally I'd like to get some key
stock because it takes less work to form.

The type of tool steel doesn't particularly matter as long as it's
something I can heat treat at home.

Go to an auto wrecker or spring shop and get a few coil and leaf
springs. They are quite good steel. I have made numerous tools for
both metal and wood work from OCS (Old Chevy Spring), heat treated them
at home using typical old blacksmith techniques and been well satisfied
with the results. For example:

On coil springs, I cut of one or so rings and heat and
straighten (hammer and anvil). Heat to "cherry red" and bury in ashes
to anneal. Saw/machine/grind/file to required shape. Heat to cherry
red and quench in oil. Clean to bare metal and gently heat to a brown
(hard) or purple (not quite so hard but tougher) and quench again.

After he broke his third Snap-on cold chisel, I made one out of
truck-size coil spring for my mechanic son-in-law. This was several
years ago. He says it may soon need to be sharpened.

"Ted Edwards" wrote in message
...
Do any of you Arizona types know where I can get very small quantities
of tool steel in the Phoenix area.


Living in Sydney, Australia, (as I do) I can't help with local suppliers, but,
(if you're looking for flatter - thinner stock):

Don't forget saw blades. My appetite for high carbon steel is well-fed by
salvaging broken power hacksaw blades and cold cut-off saw blades.

Heck - the hard-back hacksaw blades are cheap enough to buy brand new!
They're (from memory) about 1.5mm (wassat? about 60 thou?) thick, an
inch-and-a-bit wide and 12" long, and are very nice steel.

The cold cut-off saw blades cost way too much to buy just for breaking up,
(about AUD$80 IIRC) but fortunately (!) they are easy to break, so I have a
few for recycling. They are about 400mm dia and 3mm thick, and very good
steel. Hard as blazes. (Brittle, too, but that's easy to fix).

Thanks for the coil spring idea. Thick I'll try that for thicker stock.

--
Jeff

A.Gent wrote:

Don't forget saw blades. My appetite for high carbon steel is well-fed by
salvaging broken power hacksaw blades and cold cut-off saw blades.

I'll add old circular saw blades. These have been kicking around our
place for years. Nowadays I'm using carbide tipped circular saw blades
for all my woodwork. A couple years ago I saw a magazine article on
cabinet scrapers and decided I'd like to try one. I cut a piece about
4" square out of an blade with my plasma cutter, rough dressed the edges
on the bench grinder and finished it up with diamond hones. I made a
burring tool from a piece of drill rod and now have a good scraper.

Ted