Metal Guides
Straight answers about buying, cutting, and shipping metal in Canada, written by the sales team that cuts it.
Start with your question
Buying answers
Where to buy, what it costs, and how ordering by the inch works.
Material guides
6061 or 6063, 304 or 316: what each grade is for, with real prices.
How-to
Cutting, welding, drilling, and finishing, the way we'd do it at the shop.
Shipping & trust
How metal moves across Canada, what MTRs are, and what ±1/8″ means.
Halifax & local
The counter, free pickup, and buying metal in Atlantic Canada.
Latest guides
Angle vs channel vs tube: which profile for your frame or bracket?
Square or rectangle tube for frames that can twist: benches, gates, carts. Angle for edges, lips, and bolt-on brackets. Channel where you want a flat back for mounting. Tube resists twist about 100 times better than same-size angle; open profiles...
Can you weld 6061 aluminum? Filler, prep, and when to pick 5356
Yes, 6061 welds well with TIG or MIG. The heat erases the T6 temper beside the weld, dropping strength from about 45 ksi to 24-27 ksi, so design for the welded number. Run 4043 filler for general work and 5356...
Stainless steel buying guide: grades, finishes, and shapes
Buy 304 unless the part lives near salt or pool chemicals, then it's 316. 304 is the 18-8 workhorse; 316 adds molybdenum for coastal duty. Both come as bar, sheet, pipe, angle, and tube, cut free to ±1/8″, with 2B...
How do you cut metal at home? The right saw and blade for each material
Four tools cover most home metal cutting: a hacksaw, an angle grinder with thin cut-off discs, a circular saw with a ferrous-rated carbide blade, and a miter saw with a negative-hook blade for aluminum only. Keep three teeth in the...
What is O1 tool steel? A guide for knife makers and die makers
O1 is an oil-hardening tool steel: buy it soft, shape it, quench it in warm oil, and temper to 58-63 HRC. It forgives first-timers, which is why most first knives start with it. We stock O1 drill rod from 1/8″...
What metal should you use for your project?
Three questions pick it: indoors or out, machined or bolted together, and does weight matter. Indoors and painted, carbon steel wins on price. Outdoors, 304 or 316 stainless and 6061 aluminum skip the paint. Machined parts want C360 brass or...
360 vs 260 brass: which should you buy?
Machining it on a lathe, mill, or drill press? Buy C360: the lead makes chips break clean and threads cut true. Bending, spinning, or deep-drawing thin stock? That's C260 cartridge brass. Our rack is C360 in flat, round, hex, and...
Where to buy metal in Halifax and Dartmouth
Most metal in the Halifax area sells out of Burnside Industrial Park in Dartmouth, and the job decides the counter. We cut steel, stainless, and aluminum to length at 85 Gloria McCluskey Ave, free pickup or walk in. Metal Supermarkets...
Aluminum buying guide: alloys, tempers, and shapes
Buy 6061-T6 unless your project says otherwise; it covers brackets, frames, and machined parts. Sheet you'll bend wants 5052-H32, anodized trim wants 6063-T5, and 3003 covers budget patch panels. We stock no 2024 or 7075. Here's the full decision, with...
What is a mill test report (MTR), and can you get one on a small order?
An MTR is the certificate the mill issues for a heat of metal: measured chemistry, mechanical results, and the spec it was made to. And yes, you can get one here on request at any order size, a single 12″...
How does metal shipping work across Canada?
Metal ships fine by courier when it's cut smart. We ship pieces up to 96″ anywhere in Canada, pieces under 48″ ride the best parcel rates, and rates quote live at checkout for your postal code. Pickup in Dartmouth is...
How much does metal cost in Canada? (July 2026 prices)
Most 12″ pieces of common stock run about $5-30 CAD as of July 2026: $5.30 for a 1/8″ steel round, $5.30 for a 1/4″ aluminum round, $26.11 for a 304 stainless flat. The metal, the alloy, and the cross-section set...
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Each guide covers the grades we stock, what they're good for, and what they cost. Or skip the reading and go straight to the shelf.