Finding materials

[Chuck in E. TN]

Materials cost is constantly going up. Scrap yards are increasingly becoming unfriendly places for the hobby machinist. I am soon retiring, and have a question for the members.
What common scrap sources do you have for materials like stainless, cast iron, free machining steel, brass or aluminum?  I don’t mean cutoffs from the local machine shop, there aren’t many local machine shops left. I mean what can I look for in finding cast iron for engine cylinders? What has stainless steel big enough for a flywheel? For example: There is a heavy Equipment repair shop down the road from me, and another that I pass on the way to work (for a few more months). What might they have to scrap/throw away that I could use?
My favorite sources? I never turn away an inkjet printer, they have nice shafting, gears, and some sheet metal. I have gotten several treadmills from Freecycle that had good heavy motors and controllers.

Chuck in E. TN
 

[sparky961]

There's some nice cast iron in small engine crankshafts, often available for free when they stop working.  I've found the machined/ground parts often to be very hard but the counterweights machine nicely after paring off scrap with a bandsaw.  There's usually a bunch of aluminum to be had here that can be melted down and turned into something new.  I'm sure that some of the hardware could be of use as well.

For brass, check out second hand stores and yard sales.  Sometimes you can find a heavy section of a candle stick or some ugly statue someone got as a gift and kept in a cupboard for years before donating it.  Other times you can just collect up a few smaller items, melt them, and cast into stock for machining other parts.  A tip I picked up a few years back on a casting forum is that pennies of some years (Canadian ones, anyway) are copper plated zinc - so you can add these at the end of your melt to replace zinc that has burned off in the process.

In the grand scheme of things some of these ideas might cost more than purchasing what you need at a metal supplier, but it's much more fun!

-Sparky

[Chuck in E. TN]

I agree with the fun part, Sparky.  I have turned Freecycle mowers into aluminum pucks for future casting forrays. Still have to build a furnace for that.
I did make a piston or two from the cranks, but havent found cast iron big enough to make a cylinder from. Most Cylinders in the engines I want to make are 1.5" to 2" in dia.
 
Chuck in E. TN