Iron Rod - Page 2

Thanks again for all the information guys it is really helpful! Basically I could use iron or steel of any grade, was just trying to be as cost efficient as possible and assumed that iron was cheaper than steel. Again I know next to nothing about the metal business so who knows if I am correct

if you were to (heaven forbid) google "iron vs steel" (don't worry, this is a freebie), you will quickly see that "Iron is an actual pure metal" and that "Steel is an alloy made by combining iron and another element, usually carbon". There are also many other characteristics involving anything from "spring steel" to "cold rolled" to "hard tempered". That is, if you had the time, and didn't expect others should educate you on the matter of "your project", whatever that may be(you weren't very generous with that information). If you were to also explore the matter farther, you might also discover that different irons and steels had endless applications, from locomotive wheels, (please don't ask us to explain the way they are tempered from within and from without) to fence wire, to 5/8" rods, whether they be rough as rebar(you might want to google that too), or as smooth as a (google is your friend). If oilfield sucker rods would suit you, please note, they are not easily welded by a novice (if that was your purpose) as they are mostly magnetized. You really haven't left much for anyone to go by, but lots of people have tried to help. I almost know how you feel, IF you felt the way i did many times, knowing what i needed and what i wished to do, only not knowing where to find the (keyword here: specific)materials i was hoping to find, then the last question i wished to hear was "what do you need it for?".

Originally Posted by IronRod

Thanks again for all the information guys it is really helpful! Basically I could use iron or steel of any grade, was just trying to be as cost efficient as possible and assumed that iron was cheaper than steel. Again I know next to nothing about the metal business so who knows if I am correct

iron price vs steel price only depends where you get it i'd think. actually in my opinion, and it could be disputed, not sure there, but iron, as far as i know is a much harder, much denser, much more difficult to redefine/reshape metal than is plain steel

I had the understanding of how steel was made which was why I assumed iron was cheaper. My previous google search of "is steel cheaper than iron" and vice versa yielded no resulted therefore I went back the my basic understanding of the two metals and made my assumption about the prices. Just because a person is able to google something does not mean they will analyze the data in a correct fashion, which is why I came to this forum seeking people with more knowledge on the matter than I. Excluding the condescending tone of your message the information was very helpful so thank you.