The bar specialists
These stockholders make engineering, alloy or tool steel bar their main line. Miles are straight-line from Manchester Piccadilly to the nearest stock site.
| Stockholder | Stock sites | Miles | Forms | Services and approvals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Peak Steels | Glossop SK13 | 10 | bar | cut to size, small orders |
| Barrett Engineering Steel | Bolton BL4 | 8 | bar | cut to size |
| Barrett Steel | Bradford BD4 (head office) | bar, sections, plate, sheet, tube | cut to size, profiling | |
| Swiss Steel UK | Tividale B69 | 67 | bar | cut to size |
| West Yorkshire Steel | Wetherby LS22 | 47 | bar, plate, flat | cut to size |
| Parkside Steel | Annesley NG15 | 49 | bar | cut to size, small orders, ISO 9001 |
Others that list alloy and engineering steel bar
9 more verified stockholders list engineering or alloy steel bar alongside other metals. Several are aerospace houses that hold alloy steel to aerospace specifications.
| Stockholder | Stock sites | Miles | Forms | Services and approvals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Metal Services | Minworth B76, Belfast BT3 | 68 | bar, sheet, plate | cut to size |
| Dynamic Metals | Leighton Buzzard LU7, Sheffield S9 | 34 | bar, sheet, plate, tube, forgings | cut to size, small orders, ISO 9001, AS9100, AS9120 |
| Maher | Sheffield S9 | 33 | bar | cut to size, ISO 9001, AS9100 |
| Metal Supermarkets | Trafford Park M17 | 4 | bar, sheet, plate, tube | cut to size, small orders |
| NeoNickel | Blackburn BB1, Kingswinford DY6, Milton Keynes MK7 | 19 | plate, sheet, bar, pipe, fittings | cut to size, profiling, ISO 9001, AS9100, AS9120 |
| Righton Blackburns | Golborne WA3, Kingswinford DY6 | 15 | bar, sheet, plate, tube, extrusions | cut to size, AS9100, AS9120 |
| Smiths Metal Centres | Walkden M28, Biggleswade SG18, Aldridge WS9, Enfield EN3 | 8 | bar, sheet, plate, tube, extrusions | cut to size, profiling |
| thyssenkrupp Materials UK | Preston PR5, Cradley Heath B64, Darton S75, Milton Keynes MK8 and 3 more | 24 | plate, sheet, bar, extrusions, coil | cut to size, profiling |
| voestalpine High Performance Metals UK | Oldbury B69 | 68 | bar, plate | cut to size |
EN grades and what they are called now
UK shops still order by the old EN numbers. Drawings and certificates use BS 970 or European names. These are the nearest equivalents, and they are close, not identical. The number in brackets is the European material number (Werkstoffnummer) that German and other continental drawings use.
| Old EN name | BS 970 | Nearest European grade | Nearest AISI/SAE | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EN1A | 230M07 | 11SMn30 (1.0715) | 1213, 1215 | Free-cutting mild steel for high-volume turned parts |
| EN3B | 070M20 | C22 (1.0402) | 1020 | Bright mild steel, general purpose |
| EN8 | 080M40 | C40 (1.0511), or C45 (1.0503) | 1040, 1045 | Medium-carbon steel for shafts, pins and studs |
| EN16 | 605M36 | None close | None close | Manganese-molybdenum steel for higher-strength shafts and axles |
| EN19 | 709M40 | 42CrMo4 (1.7225) | 4140 | Chromium-molybdenum alloy steel, usually supplied as EN19T |
| EN24 | 817M40 | 34CrNiMo6 (1.6582) | 4340 | Nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloy steel for highly stressed parts, usually EN24T |
| EN36 | 655M13 | 15NiCr13 (1.5752) | 3310 | Nickel-chromium case-hardening steel for gears and cams |
EN16 has no close European or American equivalent. It is a manganese-molybdenum steel with no chromium, and the grades sometimes offered in its place, such as 4135, are chromium-molybdenum steels. Treat that as a material change and get it approved before the bar is cut.
High Peak Steels lists EN8, EN9, EN14A, EN19, EN24 and EN26 as through-hardening grades and EN34, EN36 and EN39B as case-hardening grades.
The material grade equivalents table covers these and the other common engineering metals: tool steels, stainless, aluminium, copper alloys and cast iron. Bar size limits are on the bright bar tolerances page.
How to choose a bar stockholder
- If you need a standard grade cut to length, ring a bar specialist first. They hold the range of diameters and saw to length.
- If you need the condition as well as the grade, say so. EN19 and EN24 are usually wanted in the T condition, and annealed bar is a different order.
- If the bar needs turning, grinding or heat treatment, ask the stockholder to quote it. It is often cheaper than roughing it yourself.
- If the part is aerospace, buy alloy steel from a stockholder that states AS9120 and order to the aerospace specification, not the EN number.
- Ask for an EN 10204 3.1 certificate and the country of melt. The certificates and traceability guide covers what to specify.
- Get two quotes in the same week. Import quotas are set by quarter and prices can move as a quota runs down. The UK Steel Quota Tracker shows the live balance.
What checking the bar stockholders turned up
- A mill outlet that holds stock. Swiss Steel UK was on the research list as a mill sales office. Its own site shows a stockholding warehouse with processing at Tividale, Oldbury.
- A division with its own address. The engineering steels division of Smiths Metal Centres trades as TSM Steel from Aldridge and holds carbon and alloy bar.
- A stockholder in a different town. West Yorkshire Steel is in Wetherby, not Leeds.
The full list of 49 verified stockholders across all metals is on the UK metal stockholders directory. Depots near Manchester are on the North West page.