Anybody know a good place to get steel plate between DC and Princeton NJ?

[dough-re-mi]

I am making a road trip from DC to Princeton NJ in about a month, and wondered if anybody could recommend a place to get steel plate. I picked a place at random in Trenton NJ and received a quote 2 days after asking, for $90 for16x16 half inch plate; that seemed a little high.

thanks

[McCoy]

I got my plate from Metal Supermarkets at their location in Albany. They have a location in Baltimore, which fits your criteria:

7120 Golden Ring Road
(410) 918-0199
[email protected]

The location in Albany quoted me the following on 16x16" plates:

.25" - $23.63
.375" - $46.00

At the location I accidentally said half-inch instead of quarter-inch and I think they said the price was something like $75, so it's a little better than $90. I'm not sure if the prices in Baltimore would be the same. I was very pleased with the quality. The photo is of the plate after I wiped it down with paper towels and vigorously scrubbed it with soap and water. If you use hot water and wipe it down with a towel afterwards, the moisture evaporates off quickly. I've only had the plate develop small spots of rust which rubbed off easily, and I think were caused by carelessly handling it with wet hands and not drying it off afterwards. So long as you keep it dry, things seem okay, but then again I've only had mine for about a month.

[dough-re-mi]

That's a nice piece of steel.

After checking a lot of places, I decided to go to Maryland Metals in Hagerstown MD, an hour from where I live and not on the route in my NJ trip in a few weeks. They quoted me about $49.00 (my notes are at work) for two pieces of half inch steel, each 8 x 16 inches. It's 5 dollars less for a single piece of 16 x 16. I decided to go with the first place that gave me a quote less than $50.

I will use them side by side in my oven so they are easier put in and take out. I should pick them up next week.  My wife laughs at me sort of that I am taking time off from work to drive an hour to pick up a crazy thing that is not otherwise easily available. She likes the pizzas though.

The place said they shear-cut the steel, the edges will be sharp and the pieces should sit together nicely. I'll wear gloves and use a file to smooth the edges; the guy said they would be very sharp from the shear cut.

[McCoy]

I do get small cuts on my hand from the edges of my steel. I don't really care, and I'm not sure I have a file in my toolbox, so I've never done anything about it, but it's certainly a hazard. As for going to crazy lengths for pizza - I didn't mention the fact that when I got my steel in Albany, I took a bus from Manhattan there and back. It took a whole day! All of my roommates and my girlfriend think I'm a little unhinged too.

I wish I'd known about that place in Hagerstown. I'm from the Annapolis area and occasionally make trips back to Maryland to see my parents and friends who still live there. I would've been happy to pick up a thicker plate at that price, although lugging even the quarter-inch plate from Manhattan through the subway to my apartment in Brooklyn got to be a bit much.