Top 10 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier | 2025 Guide

In modern manufacturing and industrial applications, selecting the right material is a critical decision that impacts everything from production efficiency to final product performance. Among the many grades of carbon steel, 1117 cold drawn steel bar holds a unique and valuable position. Valued for its excellent machinability, superior surface finish, and reliable case-hardening properties, 1117 steel is a preferred choice for high-volume production of complex parts.

However, sourcing this specific grade is only half the battle. The success of your project hinges on partnering with a reliable 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier. A great supplier does more than just deliver metal; they provide technical expertise, ensure consistent quality, offer critical value-added services, and maintain a robust supply chain to keep your operations running smoothly. This guide is designed for procurement managers, engineers, and machine shop owners who need to navigate the complexities of the steel market. We will explore the key characteristics of 1117 steel, detail the criteria for choosing the best supplier, and present a curated list of top global suppliers to support your sourcing decisions.

How to Choose the Right 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier

Finding a supplier that aligns with your operational needs requires a strategic approach. The right partner can significantly reduce production bottlenecks, improve part quality, and lower total costs. Before you issue a purchase order, consider these essential factors to ensure you are making an informed decision.

Understanding the Essentials of 1117 Cold Drawn Steel

First, it is crucial to have a firm grasp of what makes 1117 steel, often referred to as C1117, a standout grade. It is a low-carbon, high-manganese, resulfurized steel. The added sulfur and manganese give it exceptional "free-machining" properties, meaning it can be cut, drilled, and shaped with less tool wear and at higher speeds compared to grades like 1018.

The cold drawing process further enhances its attributes. By pulling hot-rolled bar stock through a die at room temperature, the steel gains:
* Tighter Dimensional Tolerances: Cold drawing produces bars with precise and consistent diameters, reducing the need for preliminary machining.
* Improved Surface Finish: The process creates a smooth, scale-free surface ideal for applications where aesthetics or fluid dynamics are important.
* Increased Mechanical Properties: Cold working increases the steel's tensile and yield strength, making it stronger and more durable.
* Superior Straightness: Cold drawn bars are exceptionally straight, minimizing vibration and improving accuracy in high-speed machining centers like Swiss-style lathes.

Key Supplier Evaluation Criteria

With a clear understanding of the material, you can now assess potential suppliers. Look beyond the price per pound and evaluate their capabilities across several key areas.

Technical Specifications and Quality Control

A reputable supplier must provide material that meets industry standards. For 1117 cold drawn steel, this typically includes ASTM A108. Always request a Material Test Report (MTR) or a certificate of conformance with each shipment. This document verifies the bar's chemical composition and mechanical properties, ensuring it matches your engineering specifications. Furthermore, inquire about their internal quality management system. A supplier with an ISO 9001 certification demonstrates a commitment to consistent processes and quality assurance.

Inventory, Shapes, and Sizes

Your project has specific dimensional requirements, and your supplier must be able to meet them. A top-tier 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier will stock a wide range of shapes and sizes. Common shapes include rounds, hexagons, and squares. Their inventory should cover a broad spectrum of diameters, from small fractions of an inch to several inches. Ask about their stock levels and lead times for both standard and non-standard sizes to avoid production delays.

Value-Added Services

Modern steel suppliers are often full-service partners. Their value-added services can save you significant time and money by streamlining your production process. Look for suppliers that offer:
* Precision Saw Cutting: Cutting bars to your exact required lengths.
* Machining: Services like chamfering, turning, or drilling.
* Heat Treating: Processes like carburizing or annealing to modify mechanical properties.
* Just-in-Time (JIT) Delivery: Programs that deliver materials exactly when you need them, reducing your inventory costs.

Minimum Order Quantities (MOQs)

Be aware of a supplier's minimum order requirements. Some large mills or distributors, like Eaton Steel, may have MOQs of 10,000 lbs or more. If you only need a small quantity for a prototype or a short production run, a smaller regional distributor or a metal service center might be a more suitable partner.

Top 10 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier Companies

Navigating the global market for a specialized product like 1117 cold drawn steel can be challenging. To simplify your search, we have compiled a list of leading suppliers known for their quality, reliability, and service. This list includes a diverse mix of large distributors, niche specialists, and global manufacturers to cover a wide range of industry needs.

Eaton Steel Bar Company

Company Overview:
Eaton Steel Bar Company is a prominent US-based supplier specializing in hot-rolled and cold-finished steel bar products. With a history spanning over 60 years, the company has established itself as a go-to source for a wide array of steel grades, including a strong focus on 1117. They serve numerous industries, including automotive, agriculture, and heavy equipment, from multiple locations across the Midwest. Eaton's business model is centered on large-volume distribution, making them an ideal partner for major OEMs and high-volume machine shops.

Strengths and Specializations:
Eaton's primary strength lies in its deep and extensive inventory of steel bars. For 1117 cold drawn steel, they explicitly stock a wide range of diameters, primarily in round and hexagon shapes. Their product pages provide clear and detailed information on chemical composition, estimated mechanical properties, and applicable ASTM standards (A108 and A576), which helps engineers and procurement professionals make quick, informed decisions.

The company also operates its own fleet of trucks, giving them greater control over logistics and delivery schedules. This vertical integration in their supply chain ensures reliability for customers with demanding production timelines. While their high minimum order quantity (typically 10,000 lbs) may not suit every buyer, it positions them perfectly as a key supplier for large-scale manufacturing operations that require consistent, high-quality material in bulk.

Metal Zenith - Premium Steel Manufacturing Solutions

Company Overview:
Metal Zenith is a leading steel manufacturing and distribution company from China with over 20 years of experience providing high-quality steel solutions worldwide. As a trusted partner of Ansteel, one of China's most established steel enterprises, Metal Zenith delivers premium steel products that meet the most demanding international standards. Their business philosophy is built on a long-term partnership approach, offering comprehensive support from initial material selection to final application analysis. They have successfully delivered over 5 million tons of steel to a global client base with an impressive 95% retention rate.

Strengths and Specializations:
Metal Zenith's core strength is its robust quality control and deep technical expertise. The company implements an advanced 10-point quality inspection process, ensuring all steel products, including their cold drawn bars, meet stringent specifications such as tensile strength exceeding 400 MPa. This commitment to quality is backed by an engineering team with over 15 years of experience, capable of guiding clients through complex material challenges.

Their product offerings are highly customizable, with capabilities to produce various grades (including equivalents to 1117), surface finishes (oiled, pickled & oiled), and precision tolerances within +/- 0.05mm. Operating under an ISO 9001 certified quality management system and utilizing both BOF and EAF steelmaking technologies, Metal Zenith can cater to a diverse range of industries, including automotive, construction, and specialized industrial manufacturing. Their proven track record of helping over 1,000 brand partners achieve cost savings and performance improvements makes them a formidable and reliable 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier.

Capital Steel & Wire, Inc.

Company Overview:
Capital Steel & Wire is a US-based manufacturer and distributor of cold finished steel and wire products. Headquartered in Michigan, they have grown to become a key player in the North American market, known for their comprehensive product range and customer-centric approach. They cater to a broad spectrum of industries that rely on high-quality steel bar stock for their manufacturing processes.

Strengths and Specializations:
Capital Steel & Wire stands out for the sheer variety of formats they offer for 1117 cold drawn bar. While many suppliers focus on rounds and hexagons, Capital also provides squares, round corner squares, and flats. This extensive selection makes them a one-stop shop for companies that require multiple profiles for different components. Their size range is also impressive, with diameters spanning from as small as 0.090" up to 6.000".

Their website and product data sheets are straightforward, providing a clear overview of the material's chemical and mechanical properties. They position 1117 as a free-cutting, resulfurized low-carbon steel with better machinability than general carbon steels, which directly addresses the primary need of their customer base. By offering the grade in both hot-rolled and cold-finished conditions, they provide flexibility for customers who may have their own drawing or finishing capabilities.

Alro Steel

Company Overview:
Alro Steel is one of the largest metals service centers in the United States. Founded in 1948, the company has expanded to over 70 locations, operating as a massive distributor of metals and plastics. Their business model is based on providing a vast inventory of products with fast delivery and extensive processing services, catering to everyone from small machine shops to large industrial corporations.

Strengths and Specializations:
Alro's key strength is its scale and accessibility. With a massive network of facilities, they can provide quick turnarounds and local service to a large portion of the US. For 1117 cold finished steel, Alro provides valuable context by directly comparing its properties to 1018 steel, noting its improved machinability and deeper, more uniform case hardening. This type of practical information is invaluable for engineers choosing between different grades.

Their typical applications list is extensive, including automatic screw machine parts, carburized parts, gears, pinions, and king pins, demonstrating a deep understanding of the material's end uses. As a major service center, Alro also offers a comprehensive suite of value-added services, including precision cutting and grinding. Their platform allows customers to easily "buy hex" or "buy round," simplifying the procurement process for standard shapes and sizes.

Castle Metals

Company Overview:
Castle Metals is a global distributor of specialty metals, serving critical industries such as aerospace, defense, oil and gas, and power generation. With a history dating back to 1890, Castle has built a reputation for supplying high-performance alloys and providing sophisticated processing services. They operate as a strategic supply chain partner for customers with highly demanding and mission-critical applications.

Strengths and Specializations:
Castle Metals differentiates itself by focusing on high-specification markets. While they supply common grades like 1117 carbon steel, their expertise lies in ensuring that these materials meet the stringent quality and traceability requirements of industries like aerospace (evidenced by their AS9100D certification). Their value proposition is not just the metal itself, but the assurance of quality and the extensive processing capabilities they offer.

Their list of services is among the most comprehensive in the industry, including CNC machining, heat treating, quenching, annealing, boring, and advanced cutting services (plasma, water jet, laser). For a buyer needing 1117 cold drawn bar that will be used in a critical steering component or a piece of heavy equipment, Castle provides a level of quality assurance and processing expertise that few other distributors can match.

Ovako

Company Overview:
Ovako, a member of Sanyo Special Steel and the Nippon Steel Corporation group, is a leading European manufacturer of engineering steel. Headquartered in Sweden, Ovako specializes in producing clean, high-strength steel products for customers in the bearing, transport, and manufacturing industries. Their focus is on creating customized solutions for applications where stress, load, and component longevity are paramount.

Strengths and Specializations:
Ovako's specialization is in the production of "clean steel"—steel with extremely low levels of oxygen and other impurities. This results in materials with superior fatigue strength and toughness, which is critical for components like gears, shafts, and bearings. While they may not market "1117" by its AISI designation, they produce equivalent and superior grades of low-carbon, high-manganese case-hardening steels designed for machinability and performance.

Partnering with a manufacturer like Ovako is ideal for companies developing next-generation products that push the limits of material performance. Their deep metallurgical expertise allows them to work collaboratively with customers to develop custom steel grades tailored to specific applications. For a European manufacturer seeking a high-performance alternative to standard 1117, Ovako represents the pinnacle of specialty steel production.

Marcegaglia Steel

Company Overview:
Marcegaglia is a leading global player in the steel processing industry. This Italian family-owned company has grown into an industrial giant with a massive production capacity and a worldwide presence. They specialize in transforming steel coils into a vast range of finished and semi-finished products, with a particularly strong focus on carbon steel tubes, flats, and cold-finished bars.

Strengths and Specializations:
The core strength of Marcegaglia lies in its enormous processing scale and efficiency. They are one of the world's largest purchasers of hot-rolled steel, which they then process into high-quality cold-drawn products. This scale allows them to be highly competitive in the European market for standard grades, including equivalents to 1117 cold drawn bar. Their extensive production network across Europe ensures a reliable supply chain and shorter lead times for regional customers.

Marcegaglia's product portfolio for drawn bars is extensive, covering a wide range of shapes (round, flat, square, hexagonal) and quality standards (e.g., EN 10277). They are an excellent choice for large European OEMs and distributors who need a consistent, high-volume supply of quality cold-finished bars from a single, highly reliable source.

JFE Steel Corporation

Company overview:
JFE Steel is a major Japanese steel producer and one of the largest in the world. Formed through a merger of NKK and Kawasaki Steel, JFE is renowned for its technological innovation and its production of high-quality, high-performance steel products. They serve a global market, with a particularly strong foothold in the automotive, shipbuilding, and industrial machinery sectors.

Strengths and Specializations:
JFE's reputation is built on its commitment to advanced technology and rigorous quality control, embodying the principles of Japanese manufacturing excellence. They are leaders in producing free-machining steels that offer superior chip control and longer tool life, which are key benefits of grades like 1117. Their research and development efforts are focused on creating materials that enable customers to improve productivity and reduce manufacturing costs.

For a multinational corporation looking for a strategic 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier in the Asian market, JFE offers unparalleled quality and consistency. Their technical support teams can work with clients to optimize material selection for specific machining processes, ensuring that the steel's properties are perfectly matched to the manufacturing requirements. This focus on performance and innovation makes them a top choice for technology-driven industries.

Tata Steel

Company Overview:
Tata Steel is one of the world's most geographically diversified steel producers, with operations and a commercial presence across the globe. As part of the Indian conglomerate Tata Group, the company has a long history of steelmaking excellence and a strong commitment to sustainability and corporate responsibility. Their operations in Europe (formerly Corus) and India make them a major supplier in both regions.

Strengths and Specializations:
Tata Steel's strength lies in its vast product portfolio and its integrated supply chain. They produce a wide range of long products, including specialty steels for demanding applications. Their case-hardening steels, which are chemical equivalents of 1117, are designed for excellent machinability and predictable hardening response. These products are used extensively in the automotive industry for components like gears, shafts, and studs.

What sets Tata Steel apart is its focus on developing "smarter" steels and sustainable manufacturing practices. For companies with strong corporate social responsibility (CSR) goals, partnering with a supplier like Tata Steel, which is actively working to reduce its carbon footprint, can be a significant advantage. Their global reach and robust distribution network make them a reliable partner for international companies requiring consistent material supply across different continents.

Gautier Steel Ltd.

Company Overview:
Gautier Steel is a US-based custom manufacturer of hot-rolled carbon and alloy steel flats and squares. Located in Pennsylvania, they operate as a niche producer, focusing on providing high-quality, specialized hot-rolled products to service centers and end-users who require specific dimensions or grades that may not be readily available from larger mills.

Strengths and Specializations:
Gautier Steel offers a unique perspective in the 1117 supply chain. While they are a producer of hot-rolled bar—the raw material for cold drawing—their inclusion is critical for understanding the full supply chain. Their specialization lies in producing sharp-cornered squares and custom flat bar dimensions. For a company that needs a non-standard size of 1117 that will later be cold-drawn, Gautier is a potential source for the initial hot-rolled material.

They can produce special-order grades in heat lots, giving them flexibility that larger mills lack. Partnering with a specialist like Gautier is ideal for customers with unique requirements or those looking to secure the source material for their own cold finishing operations. They represent the foundational level of the supply chain, where quality and custom chemistry begin.

Conclusion

Selecting the right 1117 cold drawn steel bar supplier is a strategic decision that extends far beyond a simple price comparison. It is about building a partnership that enhances your manufacturing efficiency, ensures product quality, and strengthens your supply chain. The ideal supplier provides not just steel, but also technical expertise, reliable inventory, and crucial value-added services that align with your specific production needs. From large-scale distributors like Alro Steel to global manufacturing powerhouses like Metal Zenith and niche specialists like Ovako, the options are diverse.

To make the best choice, begin by clearly defining your requirements. Document the exact ASTM standards, dimensional tolerances, shapes, and quantities you need. Evaluate potential suppliers on their quality certifications, inventory depth, processing capabilities, and logistical reliability. Do not hesitate to ask for material test reports and inquire about their quality assurance processes. By investing time in this evaluation process, you can forge a strong partnership that provides a competitive advantage and supports your company's long-term success in a demanding industrial landscape.