Are we talking about 1” solid stock? Or black pipe?
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Just got my first lathe, and can’t find metal stock to practice!
- Thread starter Smi_tty
- Start date
Are we talking about 1” solid stock? Or black pipe?
Removed my bad humor. Yes, check around to confirm prices & availability.
Like Janger said, a 10 foot length of cold rolled or hot rolled from a steel supplier like Federal is pretty cheap. Even 1.5" diameter. I prefer cold rolled because there is no mill scale on the outside of it but it can have inconsistant surface hardness that makes it hard to get a smooth surface finish on a lathe. I have found that you will pay about the same amount for a 2 foot length of steel at Metal Supermarket as you will pay for a 10 or 12 foot length of the same material at Federal. In Edmonton I buy from General Steel.
Automotive shops have front axles in their scrap bin, also don't overlook shock absorbers, just extend the shock, it may take some muscle, then cut through the outer tubing into the rod that will give you a nice piece of good material, maybe 1/2 inch diameter. Be careful no cut into the body of the shock that will be full of oil. Heavy equipment and hydraulic equipment repair shops will also have a scrap bin full of shafts and good material. Have fun. Grant in Peachland B.C.
Brian H
Super User
You have a nice neat set up. If only I could keep my shop that clean...but alas, I always seem to have 10 projects on the go and they seem to spill over into one another...LOL
Tom Kitta
Ultra Member
If you are in Calgary swing by Federal metals and get 10ft of 1inch. or 10ft of 1.250 round. Its just construction steel but its cheap. It is a bit gummy and hard to shine. Soft. But cheap. With size of 1.25 you can do a lot of projects.
I only have large cutoffs, like 4" stuff at min mostly.
Also if you don't mind the mess and use HSS you can turn some thicker rebar and make yourself some screw drivers or other neat tools with cool looking handles.
I only have large cutoffs, like 4" stuff at min mostly.
Also if you don't mind the mess and use HSS you can turn some thicker rebar and make yourself some screw drivers or other neat tools with cool looking handles.
Kelly McLaughlin
Well-Known Member
Nice machine! I don't think I've ever seen a Myford that new before : )
Yeah, i mounted the cross slide caliper on it. Also, that is a jefferson power hacksaw i just finished restoring. It had been sitting at our shop forever, and never got used, so I rebuilt it, and use it in conjunction with the lathe setup. olsd school, works like a dream.
In regards to the lathe, I pulled all the assemblies apart and went to town cleaning everything, oiled it, and put it back together. Its been a lot of work, but everything from the power hacksaw, to the myford are now paying their dividends. I built the table for the lathe as well.
In regards to the shop being clean, I spend a lot of time keeping it that way, as I have a ton of other projects on the go. Its the only way I can be efficient with my time.
In regards to the lathe, I pulled all the assemblies apart and went to town cleaning everything, oiled it, and put it back together. Its been a lot of work, but everything from the power hacksaw, to the myford are now paying their dividends. I built the table for the lathe as well.
In regards to the shop being clean, I spend a lot of time keeping it that way, as I have a ton of other projects on the go. Its the only way I can be efficient with my time.
Marc Moreau
Marc Moreau
Wow nice and clean
Nice lathe & shop. This Youtube channel is really good, lots of scraping, fitting, restoring. And he has a real thing for Myfords.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD1jVjhwma9Ehj8BQqDMPHw/videos
ps - don't take this the wrong way but please don't leave your chuck key in like this. Not even for a photo op. All it takes is inadvertent lapse with power on & bad things happen.
What kind of projects do you have in mind?
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD1jVjhwma9Ehj8BQqDMPHw/videos
ps - don't take this the wrong way but please don't leave your chuck key in like this. Not even for a photo op. All it takes is inadvertent lapse with power on & bad things happen.
What kind of projects do you have in mind?
Attachments
I put the key in it just for the photo, but i will follow your advice and start making it a habit.
I’m an autobody technician, and build custom cars for a living. I will be using this for various parts on all our builds, along with other shop stuff.
Right now I am trying to outfit the rest of the unit with dodads. Height gauge, collecting cutoffs, learning how to use the unit, ect.
If you can find some 12L it’s really nice to work with.
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What diameter John?
I just use OLM as qualitative reference even though FX is going wrong way. 1" dia 12L14 is 10.34 usd/ft.
https://www.onlinemetals.com/en/buy/cold-roll-steel-round-bar-12l14
I think regular hot roll is about 7/ft & 1018 CRS 9-ish by comparison. (Longer lengths = lower /ft cost of course) Does that sound about right?
MetalSupermarket carries 12L14 in certain diameters, no idea what they charge. If someone gets a quote I'm curious.
I just use OLM as qualitative reference even though FX is going wrong way. 1" dia 12L14 is 10.34 usd/ft.
https://www.onlinemetals.com/en/buy/cold-roll-steel-round-bar-12l14
I think regular hot roll is about 7/ft & 1018 CRS 9-ish by comparison. (Longer lengths = lower /ft cost of course) Does that sound about right?
MetalSupermarket carries 12L14 in certain diameters, no idea what they charge. If someone gets a quote I'm curious.