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FIRST TIME WORKING WITH METAL?
NEVER PURCHASED METAL FROM A SUPPLIER BEFORE?
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How we sell metal
WE KNOW IT CAN BE A LITTLE INTIMIDATING COMING INTO A METAL SUPPLIER FOR THE 1ST TIME!

THIS FAQ WILL HELP YOU UNDERSTAND HOW METAL IS SOLD & AT WHAT MINIMUM LENGTHS THEY COME

WE ALSO HAVE PROVIDED SOME LINKS TO SITES THAT GIVE SPECIFIC INFORMATION ON
STANDARD SIZES AND VARIOUS METAL GRADES


HOW WE SELL METAL
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WE ONLY SELL MATERIAL - WE DO NOT FABRICATE OR INSTALL ANY PROJECTS

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  • ​WE SELL OUR PRIME MATERIALS IN FULL OR HALF PIECES​

    • ​IF THE MATERIAL IS NOT ALREADY CUT, YOU WILL BE REQUIRED TO PAY FOR THE CUTTING NEEDED TO MAKE IT INTO THE HALF PIECE

    • EXAMPLE - 3" x 3" x .120" STEEL TUBE - 20' COULD BE SOLD AS (2) 10' PIECES 

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  • IN THE CASE OF SHEET MATERIAL - THE HALF IS ON THE LONG EDGE​​​

    • EXAMPLE - A 48"x 96" SHEET OF STEEL COULD BE SOLD AS A (2) 48" x 48" PIECES​

      • IN THE CASE OF THIS SHEET EXAMPLE, YOU WOULD NEED TO PAY AN ADDITIONAL $20 FOR 1 SHEAR CUT.​

    • A HALF PIECE IS 1/2 THE COST OF A FULL PIECE.

    • WE DO NOT CUT SHEETS IN HALF ALONG THE SHORT EDGE

    • WE CAN'T CUT A 48" x 96" SHEET INTO (2) 24" X 96" PIECES

    • IF YOU NEED THIS KIND OF CUT, YOU WILL BE EXPECTED TO PAY FOR THE WHOLE SHEET

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  • UNFORTUNATELY, WE CAN'T GIVE ADVICE ON HOW TO BUILD OR FABRICATE YOUR PROJECT
  • THE GOOD NEWS IS THERE ARE A NUMBER OF WEBSITES THAT CAN GIVE YOU GOOD INFORMATION ON WHAT TYPES OF METALS ARE OUT THERE AND WHAT THEIR FUNCTIONS ARE
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​SOME GOOD WEBSITES TO FIND METALS INFORMATION & CALCULATIONS​
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Websites

METALS EDUCATION
Steel University



 

Metl Std Sizes
STANDARD SIZES & LENGTHS IN METAL​
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GENERALLY, WHEN YOU BUY METAL TUBES, FLAT BARS, ANGLES, CHANNELS, & I-BEAMS THE SHIPPED
LENGTHS ARE IN 20 FT FROM THE MILL DEPENDING ON THE MATERIAL BEING PURCHASED​
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  • STEEL TUBE IS GENERALLY SOLD IN 20 FT LENGTHS - OCCASIONALLY 24 FT & 40 FT OR LONGER
  • THE DIMENSIONAL SIZE OF TUBE STEEL IS MEASURED FROM THE OUTSIDE EDGE TO THE OUTSIDE EDGE AND THE THICKNESS GROWS TO THE INSIDE​​​
    • EXAMPLE - 2"x 2" x 1/4" THICK TUBE HAS AN OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF 2" x 2" AND AN INSIDE DIAMETER OF 1-1/2"​​
      • 1/4" WALL THICKNESS + 1-1/2" OPEN SPACE + 1/4" WALL THICKNESS = 2"​​
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  • STEEL PIPE IS GENERALLY SOLD EITHER IN 21 FT OR 24 FT LENGTHS. THE DIMENSIONAL SIZE IS MEASURED FROM THE INSIDE DIAMETER AND THE WALL THICKNESS IS MEASURED IN "SCHEDULE" - SCH 40 BEING THE MOST COMMON. THE SCHEDULE THICKNESS IN PIPE IS DETERMINED BY THE PIPE BURSTING PRESSURE.

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  • EXAMPLE - 2" SCH 40 PIPE HAS AN ACTUAL OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF 2-3/8" AND A THEORETICAL INSIDE DIAMETER OF 1.939" OR ABOUT 1-15/16" & IS APPROXIMATELY .218" OR 7/32" THICK
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  • CHANNELS & I-BEAMS HAVE A LOT OF DIFFERENT DIMENSIONS THAT MAKE UP THEIR SIZE. THE INDUSTRY CALLS OUT THESE MATERIALS IN TERMS OF DEPTH IN INCHES & POUNDS PER FOOT TO SAVE TIME.

  • CHANNELS AND I-BEAMS ARE GENERALLY ORDERED IN 20' LENGTHS IN STOCK; HOWEVER, WE CAN ORDER THEM UP TO 60' IF REQUIRED.​​​​

    • EXAMPLE - CHANNEL​ - A PIECE HAS A DEPTH OF 4" - A FLANGE WIDTH OF 1.580" - AND A WEB THICKNESS OF .180" - THIS IS SIMPLIFIED TO - (4 x 5.4#)

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  • EXAMPLE - I-BEAM - A PIECE HAS A DEPTH OF 6" - A FLANGE WIDTH OF 4" - AND A WEB THICKNESS OF .230" - 

    • ​THIS IS SIMPLIFIED TO - (6 x 12.0#)​

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  • ​ANGLE IS GENERALLY ORDERED IN 20' LENGTHS IN STOCK, HOWEVER, WE CAN ORDER THEM IN 40' AS NEEDED.​

  • ​ANGLE IS SOLD BOTH IN EQUAL OR UNEQUAL WALL LENGTHS. ANGLE IS MEASURED FROM THE OUTSIDE EDGE TO THE ANGLE POINT.  THE THICKNESS OF THE MATERIAL IS MEASURED IN INCHES.

    • EXAMPLE - 1 LEG MEASURES 5" - 1 LEG MEASURES 3-1/2" - THICKNESS IS 1/4"​

    • 5" x 3-1/2" x 1/4"​

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  • FLAT BARS, SQUARE BARS, AND ROUND BARS ARE SOLD IN HOT-ROLLED STEEL IN 20' LENGTHS. MOST OTHER METALS INCLUDING COLD ROLL STEEL, 6061 ALUMINUM, STAINLESS STEEL, COPPER, & BRASS ARE GENERALLY SOLD IN 12' LENGTHS.  YOU MAY FIND SOME LARGER DIAMETER HOT-ROLL ROUND BARS SOLD IN 12' OR SHORTER LENGTH

  • YOU WILL SOMETIMES HEAR FLAT BARS CALLED 'STRIPS' OR 'STRAPS'

  • WHEN ORDERING FLAT BARS IT SHOULD BE REQUESTED AS THE THICKNESS OF THE METAL AND THEN THE WIDTH.

    • EXAMPLE - 5/8" THICK x 1-1/2" WIDE

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  • WHEN ORDERING SQUARE BAR OR ROUND BAR, THE DIAMETER OR SIDE LENGTH IS ALL

    • EXAMPLE - 7/8" ROUND BAR OR 1/4" SQUARE BAR​

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  • HEX BAR IS CALLED OUT BY THE DIAMETER ACROSS THE FACE OF TWO OPPOSITE FLAT SIDES.

    • EXAMPLE - 5/16" HEX BAR​

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