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source for M2 steel.......

I can also suggest Speedy Metals and Metal Supermarkets (there may be one of these near you).

Ken
 
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Good to have sources for M2 and other alloys. Thanks for the info. Curious- what are you going to make, odie?
 
Yard sales and flea markets are also a good place to look although you probably won’t find the dimension you are looking for. They already have handles and are usually really cheap. I have a drawer of extra tools to repurpose as other things if I want to play around with a different grind on something.
 
Odie, due to method of manufacture, round rods are less expensive that square pieces. You might consider getting some rods from mscdirect.com or a similar place, and grinding the business end into the shape you want. "Drill rod" is also less expensive than M2. I'm not smart enough to know the pros/cons of the different types of steel, but I was just barely smart enough to make a few usable tools out of O-1 steel.
 
Fred Belknap said:
Don't keep us in suspense??????
Click to expand...
John Torchick said:
Good to have sources for M2 and other alloys. Thanks for the info. Curious- what are you going to make, odie?
Click to expand...

Nothing special......I have been using these Sorby 1/2" square scrapers for initial roughing purposes. Over the years, I've gone through a half dozen of them, and I thought I might save a little money to make some of my own.....

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/sorby-extra-heavy-duty-scraper-1-2-round-nose

-----odie-----
 
Good idea. Might try to make one from the HSS bars I got recently. One can never have too many turning tools.
 
I don’t have a knowledge of all the various steels mentioned above. Does anyone know if you have to retemper the above after initial shaping in order to obtain proper hardness?
 
M2 is probably the most common high speed steel (HSS). All material sold as M2 sold is not the same, but "legitimate" M2 should meet an industrial standard. The following table shows composition of M2 (a quick Googling yielded this chart). Some of the critical (and more expensive) materials have acceptable percentage ranges depending on the desired properties and use of the M2. If a manufacturer wants to be the low price leader they have latitude in skewing the percentages to the low end purely as a price saving. When you buy "no name" M2 you won't know for sure if it even meets any standard or suits your intended use.

Carbon 0.78 - 1.05
Chromium 3.75 - 4.5
Iron Balance
Manganese 0.15 - 0.4
Molybdenum 4.5 - 5.5
Phosphorus 0.03 max
Silicon 0.2 - 0.45
Sulphur 0.03 max
Tungsten 5.5 - 6.75
Vanadium 1.75 - 2.2

I suggest buying only name brand M2. Avoid eBay, HF, low price online sellers, etc, etc. The name brand material will be priced accordingly, still shouldn't be a problem beating Sorby's prices. McMaster should be a good source, they usually don't list manufacturer's names, but will tell you if you call and ask.

Name brand M2 will have the manufacturer's name etched on it and maybe something indicating their special formulation. Once you know the brand name being sold you can go to the manufacturer's website to determine which of their products is best for your use. Some formulations could be designed for impact resistance (not important for turning), others could be formulated to keep a sharp edge.
 
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