saw stock in house or get it pre-cut

[thelonegunmen]

We have an old Do-all automatic saw very vintage model but still works fairly well, the accuracy is just not their, we have rebuilt it and also had Do-all work on it, still it is just worn out. We are looking at buying a new saw and the question was asked is it more cost effective to saw in house or just get pre-cut. I was hoping to get a little feedback on what everyone else does.
Thanks

[Jcip]

Buy a saw, our local steel house charges $3-$5 per cut , even 3/8 x 1 stock . I'm a start up so buy a saw and give me your old one.

Jim C

[Fryer05]

It really depends how much sawing you need. I've been in business for 6 years and do small production 25 to 500pcs. I mostly use Aluminum (85%) rest plastic and stainless. I'm out growing my small horizantal saw. I've used diffrent material houses. A good one and not bad service is Speedy Metals in WI. I also use Metal Exspress in Charolette NC for sizes around hand size. My major aluminum source Yarde does great when I buy a few hundred pounds or more.
I'll be purchasing a larger saw myself i 'm just out of floor space till I exspand.

[davek11]

Unless you are really bad at something, it is always better to do your work in house. A new (or good used) saw is not a very big expense. You give up control of your work whenever you outsource.

[topgun1800]

In house, it is always cheaper to be able cut one more piece in case one gets scrapped and machine it while it is still set up.

[cadman]

It really depends on the job. You should have a saw and you should carry some stock. When performing the cutting yourself you need to add your overhead in wages, saw blades etc.. It is always nice to be able to cut an extra piece in case you mess up a part. When requiring a lot of saw cuts, most times your supplier will be able to cut the material cheaper and better than you can.