What kind of steel for ornamental iron work?

For 1 inch I would use the 11ga hot rolled. For 1/2 I would use solid.

The thin walled tubing is for the junk they sell at Home Depot etc.

The thin stuff looks like it would be found on a trailer somewhere.

16ga is too small, 14ga is ok for non load bearing posts, use the .120 wall for posts that are anchored and need to resist side loads. The P&O gurantees a nice surface finish with no surface rust. The mill finish can be jsut as nice but if your supplier doesn't treat it well, it may have some surface rust spots.

1" square solid bar is almost exactly 50% more resistant to bend> I'd like to build porch railings as a first ornamental iron project. King

If it were my mother-in-law and I thought I could get away with it, I might look into something in a higher gauge.

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Nope, I would go with 28 ga. as a "maximum" if my mother-inlaw had any chance of leaning on it.

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If you go with 1" square tubing and have some scraps of 3/4' steel pipe around, you might see if you can drive pieces about 10" long into the bottom ends of the posts if you're gonna be setting them into holes in stone or concrete.

That'll extend the life of those posts quite a bit should they start rusting where they go into the holes.

BTW, I still prefer poured lead for securing iron posts into holes in masonry. I've never had much luck keeping railings from wiggling when I've used Rockite or similar "expanding cements" to set them in and the randkids swing on 'em. When lead is used, you can peen it down with a hammer and punch to close it up if it ever does get a little loose. Plus, melting and pouring lead yourself has a nice retro feel to it.

HTH,

Jeff

^^^^ Isn't 9 inch pipe a little large for ornamental work? ;o)

Tim

-- "I've got more trophies than Wayne Gretsky and the Pope combined!" - Homer Simpson Website @

Traditional pipe, handrail, and post setting was done with molten sulphur, not lead. The new expansive set grouts have pretty much replaced it.

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Jeff,

Aren't you in Mass.? I understood they will make you hire a state licensed lead abatement contractor if you have lead solder in your rain gutters.

All the railings at my schools (which had _all_ been flamecut off for steel for the war effort) were set in lead.

This was in the UK

Mark Rand RTFM