# I Wish They Sold 7075 Local To Me



## darkzero (Aug 11, 2020)

Turned down some wheel spacers for a friend today to match the hubs on the rotors. He's doing a brake conversion using Wilwood calipers on a Nissan Figaro. Never heard of a Figaro? Well that's cause they never sold em here in the US. Was imported from Japan. 1.0L 4 cyl turbo non intercooled. Poor little engine, might not survive long here in hot SoCal if driven a lot.

Anyways, I don't get to work with 7075 much. Well I'm assuming the spacers were made of 7075. Not that I need the properties of 7075 over 6061 but everytime I machine it I'm happy that it's so easy to break chips. If they sold it locally I'd probably buy it much more just cause it machines nicer. I'm assuming it costs more than 6061 though.








The chips I made weren't anything to write home about & could have been a lot better. I was only taking 20 tho cuts & I just have a little lathe. But it was much better to get this then them hard to manage stringers that I often get with 6061. It's hard for me to break chips with 6061. I have to run my lathe on max feed rate & take heavy cuts. But that does me no good for finish cuts. These pics would have looked like chaos & cringey if they were 6061.  







Compared to the stringers I just emptied out from my work lamps heatsinks.


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## Nogoingback (Aug 11, 2020)

Those long chips make nice tinsel for trees at Christmas...


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## ahazi (Aug 11, 2020)

I was looking at buying some surplus 7075 from eBay for the mill and the lathe to play around.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Aluminum-P...p-Fortal-T651-7075-Quality-Plate/143617738680

Pricing including delivery is very attractive (they have smaller batches too) but I was not sure about the 7075. I would love to get some pro and con opinions.

Ariel


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## Aukai (Aug 11, 2020)

I should look into that... 
That's a lot of offset from the engineered mounting surface Is that making up for wheel off set/back space?


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## darkzero (Aug 11, 2020)

Oh, he's not running 2 spacers on each wheel. That's just how he dropped them off & how they'll go back to him (easier to carry).


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## RandyWilson (Aug 11, 2020)

That's still a lot of spacer.


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## ttabbal (Aug 11, 2020)

I bought a box of that 7075 from ebay. They have some good size chunks and if you ask for a particular size, he'll try to help you out. I used it for my lathe plinth and it worked well. I agree on the machining properties, it's really great to work with. I've never tried to source it locally from the usual places, so I have no idea how price compares for new material.


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## pontiac428 (Aug 11, 2020)

@darkzero, is there really no 7075 AL for sale in L.A.?  That's like saying there's no good tacos in L.A., hard to believe!


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## Nogoingback (Aug 11, 2020)

Online Metals is in LA and they sell 7075.


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## ahazi (Aug 11, 2020)

7075 is at least 3x the price of 6061 at https://www.onlinemetals.com and McMaster. The eBay renments/surplus looks like a bargain if the sizes are useful.

My question is about any negatives to using 7075. My understanding is that it is not as corrosion resistant as 6061. It seems to be easier to machine and as strong as many steels for certain applications. Reading the charts and comparisons is almost useless. I am looking for more hands on experience both positive and negative and in particular in a hobby shop.


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## Suzuki4evr (Aug 11, 2020)

Sorry guys, I take it that these are aluminium grades? What is the difference in properties? I don't work with aluminium that much or should I say I work more with other types of steel and don't know the difference between adam from steve when it comes to aluminium.


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## darkzero (Aug 11, 2020)

pontiac428 said:


> @darkzero, is there really no 7075 AL for sale in L.A.?  That's like saying there's no good tacos in L.A., hard to believe!



There are. I guess I'm just cheap & spoiled. I get most of my metal from Industrial Metal Supply, 20 min drive. They carry 1ft pre cuts in most of the common metals in round bar like 6061, 1018, 303, 304, brass. They have flat bar precuts too. Copper only comes in 3ft lengths, I forget about the bronze. They carry a lot of other grades of metals but have to buy them in 3ft, 6ft, & longer lengths like the copper. Lots of other things too like plate, tubing, ornamental, brackets, supplies, too much to list.

You can get something cut but they charge for that. There are times when I need a large diameter piece of metal but don't need a long length. They do have some precuts for that and sometimes I can find what I need in the remnant bins (drops) for less cost. So if I needed a 5" dia piece of steel or alumn, that gets quite expensive even if I buy just a 1ft bar. I tend to only buy what I need & I also don't have room to store 3ft lengths.

For other stuff I buy from McMaster cause it'll arrive the next day. Acetal I buy from my local MSC. I avoid ordering metals online if I can, shipping is expensive these days. I know I can find 7075 near me but not in short lengths "off the shelf". Not worth it to me unless I need to make something that actually needs to be 7075.

I realize not everyone has places like IMS near them & have no choice but to order online. I'm lucky to have them near me & couldn't be happier that it's easy for me to get what I need. Again, I'm spoiled.


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## Aukai (Aug 11, 2020)

Extremely,


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## Nogoingback (Aug 11, 2020)

Suzuki4evr said:


> Sorry guys, I take it that these are aluminium grades? What is the difference in properties? I don't work with aluminium that much or should I say I work more with other types of steel and don't know the difference between adam from steve when it comes to aluminium.




6061 is versatile and used for all sorts of applications, heat treatable and can be welded, and is inexpensive.  Very common and 
easy to obtain.  
7075 is used in high strength applications, and is often used in aerospace.  More expensive than 6061, naturally.  It also
can be heat treated.  I've turned some of it on the lathe and I like it better than 6061.


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## Nogoingback (Aug 11, 2020)

ahazi said:


> 7075 is at least 3x the price of 6061 at https://www.onlinemetals.com and McMaster. The eBay renments/surplus looks like a bargain if the sizes are useful.
> 
> My question is about any negatives to using 7075. My understanding is that it is not as corrosion resistant as 6061. It seems to be easier to machine and as strong as many steels for certain applications. Reading the charts and comparisons is almost useless. I am looking for more hands on experience both positive and negative and in particular in a hobby shop.




I can't imagine a negative if you just plan on machining some, other than cost.  I'm not a welder, but I understand it's difficult to weld.
In a hobby environment I can't imagine corrosion resistance would be a factor unless you plan on using it in a corrosive environment.
There's no reason not to give it a try.


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## mikey (Aug 12, 2020)

Nogoingback said:


> 6061 is versatile and used for all sorts of applications, heat treatable and can be welded, and is inexpensive.  Very common and
> easy to obtain.
> 7075 is used in high strength applications, and is often used in aerospace.  More expensive than 6061, naturally.  It also
> can be heat treated.  I've turned some of it on the lathe and I like it better than 6061.



Also machines more like mild steel than most aluminum alloys. Very light, strong and threads nicely. When I need moderate strength light weight and corrosion resistance I use 7075. Very good stuff.


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