The price of steel

[Richard_W]

At work we are having a difficult time getting steel. You have to wait weeks for some of the things we use.

Richard W.

[Glenn Brooks]

Recently priced some 2” cutoffs of 10” thick wall pipe for steel tires to sweat on old cast iron wheels. $225 per each 2” rem. Outrageous cost. My guess is steel prices for some of this stuff will stay elevated for months to years until the supply gets exhausted and replaced with lower cost materials.

[tornitore45]

I had good finds on E-bay Amazon and now McMaster sells shorter pieces than use to do and are competitive.

[JackF]

Just a thought; here in the Boise area there is a lot of irrigation for the farms. One of the machine shops I buy shorts from said another source for shafts is pump repair shops. They will sell the damaged motor shafts. I haven't tried that yet but will when needed.

[LIALLEGHENY]

Until we as a country start mining the raw materials on our own soil again, the prices will remain up. We import much of the ore needed for steel and aluminum production. Shipping costs have also gone through the roof, which is partially to blame for the steel increases. Prices have started to drop, but have quite a ways to go.

Nyle

[SteveM]

I had a supply of metal before I moved. Inherited more from my dad.

When I moved, I brought it all with me - well over 500 lbs.

Wife thought I was crazy until I pulled out a piece of brass and said "If I bring this to the scrap yard, they'll give me $4.50 for it. If I order it, it's $60".

I have a square of copper plate, maybe 1/8" thick and about 2 feet on a side. Onlinemetal's cheapest price for copper like this is about $500 per square foot.

Steve

[Bill Shields]

giggle...

I am just finishing a 4' x 8' piece of 1/4" brass and a 4' x 8' piece of 0.062 copper that I have had for 45+ years. (yes feet)...

They fell off of a truck somewhere east of here (i can see the Atlantic ocean from my roof....) and found their way into my shop -> since nobody else wanted it and it was too expensive to return to the warehouse....

at the time I last moved (1987) , I asked myself - 'is it worth it to ship from the middle east to Delaware?' ....probably going to cost me an extra $50 in extra weight in the container.

[liveaboard]

Until we as a country start mining the raw materials on our own soil again, the prices will remain up. We import much of the ore needed for steel and aluminum production. Shipping costs have also gone through the roof, which is partially to blame for the steel increases. Prices have started to drop, but have quite a ways to go.

Nyle

I think you have that backwards;
The US (and other wealthy countries) buy things (like steel) from abroad because it's cheaper.
Some years ago, an import tariff was applied to imports of metal for the express purpose of making it more expensive, so that US industry could compete.
This is not partisan, both parties agree on this.

[LIALLEGHENY]

Correct, we do buy steel from other countries because it's cheaper, and we did impose import tarrifs, but much of the steel used in the U.S. , especially that used by the Military or Government has to be DFARS compliant. In simple terms this means it has to be produced in the U.S. or by one of our Allies. The EPA has imposed so many restrictions on the mining and steel production in the U.S. that it is cheaper to bring in the ore, and/or ingots from countries like China, S. Korea, where we inturn process it here in our steel mills, thus getting around the DFARS issue as it is "produced" here.
Yes a partisan issue....not to be talked about here.

I was taken back, when in 2006 it came out that we had to import the main beams for the Freedom Tower because we no longer had the capability in the U.S. to produce them. Very sad.

Nyle

[NP317]

Imagine mining all the extensive garbage dump sites around the USA.
Likely a huge source for metals of all types.

I plan to invest in the first company that really approaches this task.
Food for thought.
RussN

[liveaboard]

Whatever the wholesale price, what everyone seems to complain about is the big retail markups when buying small pieces.
The wholesale price is still only about a buck a pound for black hot rolled.

Clever alloys and processes cost a lot more of course. But they should follow the base price more or less.

Steel is heavy, companies that sell it are usually local and either deliver, or you have to go collect it.
Tiny little bits that can be sent via consumer good postage will of course, have higher markups.

[Inspector]

Until we as a country start mining the raw materials on our own soil again, the prices will remain up. We import much of the ore needed for steel and aluminum production. Shipping costs have also gone through the roof, which is partially to blame for the steel increases. Prices have started to drop, but have quite a ways to go.

Nyle

Just a little correction for you. There is no bauxite (aluminium ore) in the USA or Canada to mine so it has to be imported. As it requires a huge mount of electricity to refine into metal it goes to places with cheap power like Kitimat in Western Canada that has lots of hydroelectric power. The aluminium then makes its way to companies like ALCOA to be alloyed. All that transportation around the world makes it expensive and North America dependant on other countries.

Pete