Is Shipping Always So Much?

S

Shepard man

Joined
Aug 22, 2012
Messages
61
Hey all,

I've been a member for a while but recently got into kydex sheath/holster making for a couple of knives/pistols, which led to wanting to dabble in leather, and then I saw some awesome vids on YT about knife making.

Since I already have several of the hand tools, I decided to take a shot at making a Canadian Jump Knife.

I've looked locally but couldn't find anyone who sold 01 tool steel. After looking through the stickies and finding some of the larger online vendors, shipping is as much as the steel. I know that steel isn't light or small but is around $20 about the cheapest I'll find?

If so, I'll pay to play, I just want to get the most bang for my buck.

TL;DR

Is shipping always so much when ordering knife making parts?
 
Alpha knife supply will ship the cheapest that I know of.
Otherwise it usually is better to order several bars from a place to cut down on shipping.
 
depending on the length you need, you could ask them to saw it it smaller so it fits into a USPS flat rate box?
 
HSC /// said:
depending on the length you need, you could ask them to saw it it smaller so it fits into a USPS flat rate box?
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Well, since I'm just starting, I was just going to order a bar of O1 .25 x 1.5 x 18 and the cheapest option was the USPS Flat Rate but at almost $19.

I was going to shape the blade, ht, and temper first but now I'm going to figure out which wood and pins and all of that good stuff and order everything together.

It's just a little off-putting because I swore to my wife this wouldn't be another expensive hobby, lol.

Thank you for your advice!
 
Shepard man said:
Well, since I'm just starting, I was just going to order a bar of O1 .25 x 1.5 x 18 and the cheapest option was the USPS Flat Rate but at almost $19.
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I thought Alpha had really strange measurements until I got a shipment from them and found all the steel to fit into a large flat rate box. Alpha really is a good deal on price and shipping.

Are you going to be forging? If you aren't forging .25 is really thick stock to start with! Try .125 to start with for stock removal.
 
It's the length of bars that makes shipping expensive. The first piece is over $20, but by the 5th piece you might only be at $35. So when ordering bars over 13" long, it pays to order more.
 
Kevin McGovern said:
Check McMaster Carr. I just got some O1 from there. Nice stuff.
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I'll check them out for sure. Thank you!

12345678910 said:
If you're really from Texas, try Texas Knifemakers Supply
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I looked them up last week. Besides being about 40 minutes away, they have some terrible reviews. Thanks for the recommendation though!

J. Hoffman said:
I thought Alpha had really strange measurements until I got a shipment from them and found all the steel to fit into a large flat rate box. Alpha really is a good deal on price and shipping.

Are you going to be forging? If you aren't forging .25 is really thick stock to start with! Try .125 to start with for stock removal.
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I appreciate another vote for Alpha and I will consider going with a thinner stock to start with. Thanks again!

kuraki said:
It's the length of bars that makes shipping expensive. The first piece is over $20, but by the 5th piece you might only be at $35. So when ordering bars over 13" long, it pays to order more.
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That is great information to have. Thanks for sharing!
 
I ship alot of steel and when it comes to usps it's almost allways cheaper to stuff it in a flat rate box. Funny thing about usps is as long as it's not some crazy funky shape or huge box thy just charge by weight. But in your case a bar that size would be cheaper to just pop in the mail and ship. I did rough math and shipping 2lbs from Washingtion to utah(don't know where you live) would cost you just under $9. If you added a 2nd bar it would be just over $11. But the reasion thy use large flat rate boxes is becaus thy are standard size and thy are free. It takes time to package and if you have a lot to ship it takes even more time to figure out the cheepest way to ship everyone's single order.

This is one reasion to order a few bars (4-5) and some other stuff. Makes most efficient use of your shipping money. Also thy are not making anything off your shipping money I believe thy charge what it costs them.

I would caution you in telling your wife that this is a cheep hobby. It can be if you stick to the hacksaw and file. But if you fall in love with this craft it can get very expensive quite quickly.
 
JTknives said:
I ship alot of steel and when it comes to usps it's almost allways cheaper to stuff it in a flat rate box. Funny thing about usps is as long as it's not some crazy funky shape or huge box thy just charge by weight. But in your case a bar that size would be cheaper to just pop in the mail and ship. I did rough math and shipping 2lbs from Washingtion to utah(don't know where you live) would cost you just under $9. If you added a 2nd bar it would be just over $11. But the reasion thy use large flat rate boxes is becaus thy are standard size and thy are free. It takes time to package and if you have a lot to ship it takes even more time to figure out the cheepest way to ship everyone's single order.

This is one reasion to order a few bars (4-5) and some other stuff. Makes most efficient use of your shipping money. Also thy are not making anything off your shipping money I believe thy charge what it costs them.

I would caution you in telling your wife that this is a cheep hobby. It can be if you stick to the hacksaw and file. But if you fall in love with this craft it can get very expensive quite quickly.
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I believe you about how expensive this hobby can get. That is one of the main reasons why I want to use my hand tools as much as possible.

Thanks also for sharing the tip about buying in volume, it is greatly appreciated!
 
Please email me, I may have a deal for you on some O-1 if you are in my area. I am also 30 minuets or so from TKS
 
On Alpha Knife Supply - they've always had good shipping rates... and still do if you purchase steel in 12" range - there shipping is around $9-$10, even up to 8 or 9 bars of steel because it all fits in flat rate box. "IF" you order the 2 ft length range of steel, the shipping jumps to the $20 range, doesn't matter if you've got 1 bar or 10 bars, it's all the same price range because of using flat rate boxes.
 
SBuzek said:
Please email me, I may have a deal for you on some O-1 if you are in my area. I am also 30 minuets or so from TKS
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SBuzek SBuzek I clicked your profile and didn't see a way to message or email you.

ETA: I'm emailing you through your website.

Ken H> said:
On Alpha Knife Supply - they've always had good shipping rates... and still do if you purchase steel in 12" range - there shipping is around $9-$10, even up to 8 or 9 bars of steel because it all fits in flat rate box. "IF" you order the 2 ft length range of steel, the shipping jumps to the $20 range, doesn't matter if you've got 1 bar or 10 bars, it's all the same price range because of using flat rate boxes.
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I'll be sure to check out the 12" sections at Alpha. Thank you kindly!

Kevin McGovern said:
The biggest I can get shipped in a flat rate box ( in my case, from AKS) is 2"x14.5"
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That's also good to know. Thanks for the info!

kuraki said:
The flat rate board game box is longer. 23.5
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I think that's the size that kept getting offered to me. Thank you!
 
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Aks may ship in the game board box, but just more money? Cutting 14" inches off their 23.5" piece gives me one 9" chef and one smaller blade and keeps cost down. Works for me anyway.
 
Kevin McGovern said:
Aks may ship in the game board box, but just more money? Cutting 14" inches off their 23.5" piece gives me one 9" chef and one smaller blade and keeps cost down. Works for me anyway.
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Your method sounds great and I always enjoy saving money.

I also have enjoyed lurking and reading your posts, they're quite helpful!

Cheers!
 
check and see if you have a Graingers, KBC tool etc. near you. You can walk in and buy O1 and usally A2
 
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