Hi, Amongst our large and well experienced membership here on YF I wonder if there is anyone who can tell me where to get more of this material shown in the photos below. I have spent a lot of time online and on the phone without getting anyone who can tell me the answer to this question. I need about 150m 3 to start with and it can be 2 or 2.5mm thick.
That's an unusual pattern, but isn't that regular diamond plate? If so , try diamondplatedotcom or just google.
"... but isn't that regular diamond plate?" Uh, there's a reason they call diamond plate "diamond plate", the pattern appears diamond shaped. The stuff shown is (appears to be) aluminum "tread plate" which comes in a somewhat limited variety of patterns, the most common being "diamond" and "5-bar." There are mills which roll plate with a different patterns if desired. As I stated, this appears to be one of those non-standard patterns which may have been custom ordered.
Hi, It is not Diamond plate that has been re stamped as Diamond plate is actually thicker where the bars are it would be impossible to press it and remove those. I have asked about getting it made in China I don't want 1000 Tons so it ain't going to happen that way for me. It is weird that no one not even an ex Project Manager from the yard where this boat in the pics was built can tell me or anyone else who has asked where it comes from even though there have been a number of boats from that yard with this type of plate material.
"It is not Diamond plate that has been re stamped as Diamond plate is actually thicker where the bars are it would be impossible to press it and remove those." I didn't mean someone takes diamond plate and re-stamps it, I mean there are mills that roll aluminum plate to produce tread plate with the desired pattern. The material shown may have been custom rolled for another project and what you see on the boat may be surplus from that project. It might be worth contacting a large metals supplier, depending on the size of the sheets you want, the price may not be all that scary, especially now. It is a very simple pattern so the die costs won't be astronomical.
Might want to check with Rigidized Metals in Buffalo, NY. They've helped out for some quilted stainless panels we've needed in the past, as well as other materials. That pattern looks similar to a fairly common pattern in freight elevator type environments, and I know they supply a lot of materials for them as well. *edit* A link would be handy, right? http://www.rigidized.com/
Look very carefully for a tiny die mark or stamp on one of the plates. The marks usually look like tiny cattle brands.The shops that manufacture have become very skilled at hiding their mark but nevertheless getting it on there is a point of pride for many. Sometimes even along an edge. If you can find the mark I should be able to tell you who made it.
Is this originally a UK build? I've seen this pattern before although I don't remember who the manufacturer was, but I'm sure that it was a local UK product.
Good Luck Kiwi I came across some of this plate on a large Kusch yacht a few years ago It is very easy to look after and plate still looks fantastic on a yacht that is nearly 20 years old. , the down side is with that pattern is that it can be very slippery in one direction when it's wet/oily. Like you I tried find a source of this plate I spent many hours researching and even visited a couple of specialist stainless steel stockholders who obviously had good contacts and knowledge but I was never able to find anything. Likewise previous crew had also searched in vain The conclusion from the stockholders to was it was either a custom production or from an eastern European supplier possibly military!. It looks like a secret Mr K took to the grave Please let us know if you find anything.
i have a close friend that is Pres of "Franklin Stainless Steel" in Port Washington NY Look them up and if they can help you I will connect the two of you.
'Getting The Low-Katie On Skid Plate;. . .' 'Have been doing some custom fabricating for years and presently use as a resource, the pages of eBay.com. They have a forum for 'Must Have This Crave Immediately', that uses pictures, too. So you put your text about the plate, together with some pix up on that page, with your e-m addy,. . .then wait for somebody amongst their global user-base to get back to you. Usually you'll hear from somebody after a day or two. Also useful with tools, electronics that are obsolete and other. Got a lot of input about ferro-cement hulls from there, as well as electronics for parts that would have been thought of only as salvage previously.'