Buying cable in bulk!

[HappyHippyDad]

Does anyone here buy cable in bulk? Toolstation prices are pretty good, 100m of 1mm T&E £30.48 but is there anywhere that I could buy say 1000m or maybe more at a lower price than that?

Just seems to make sense to buy in bulk, unless of course they change the colours!! :smiley2:

 

[D Skelton]

I just use my wholesaler for cable, we do tend to buy commonly used cables such as T+E, singles, data etc. in bulk and other commonly used cables such as SWA, SY, tails etc. on the drum when we need them instead of cut to length, about a month ago we got 1000m of 1mm 3 core in for £195+VAT (£19.50 per drum).

£30 for 100m of 1mm seems very steep to me.

 

[i=p/u]

32+vat for 1.5 . Buy more , get more

 

[amlu]

buy more pay cheaper, £37 cash a 1.5 t+e 100m roll in screwfix or £34 tlc.

 

[LeeH]

For the types I use the most, SY, CY, YY etc I find UK cables to be cheaper then the wholesales.

 

[SPARTYKUS]

Hi mate

only small fry me so don't keep that kind of stock.

That said in the above example, you might save £80 gross on the 1.0mm T+E example. I expect I would get through it in a year, so on the face of it its a wise move, not going to make 80 quid on £240 investment elsewhere

 

[Octopus]

I guess its all about how much you use. I only buy more than 1 reel at a time when I'm starting a rewire

 

[HappyHippyDad]

Thanks guys, Even though I'm only a small sole trader it just seemed to make sense. I've got a great big shed with plenty of storage space, and if you can get it for around the price that DSelton says then I think its worth it.

I guess I'll just ask around at the wholesalers.

 

[Badged01]

Just dont give the pikeys your address .... you wont be able to replace it in your shed quick enough!

 

[Octopus]

I'd be keeping my eyes open towards the end of the month when wholesalers often need to shift stock!

 

[Guitarist]

Thanks guys, Even though I'm only a small sole trader it just seemed to make sense. I've got a great big shed with plenty of storage space, and if you can get it for around the price that DSelton says then I think its worth it.

I guess I'll just ask around at the wholesalers.

Don't forget that the price of copper can go down as well as up, and this will impact cable costs. Personally, I wouldn't keep 1000m of anything just to have it in stock.

 

[7029 dave]

Hi, looked at the company order list the other week, 50meter roll of 25mm brown and blue £77 (eek)

 

[hasel5]

i live next door to a load of pikeys and don't even lock my garage. As they say don't mess in your own backyard

 

[Marvo]

Cable is bread and butter for the suppliers and their mark-up is generally quite low. Often they'll sell cable at cost plus 10 or 15% so you'll probably won't get much discount for bulk. We occasionally purchase large quantities for an installation (over 100 rolls) and we might get 5% better prices if we haggle.

The problem with stockpiling it, apart from tying up your cash-flow, is that you assume responsibility for the security and also if the copper price changes then you could score but you could also actually lose a considerable amount.

 

[overskilled]

I usually just buy a reel of whatever I need, work is too tight at the moment to justify having too much stock on hand, frequently I'll just order what I need from Screwfix and pick it up next day and just tack on a collection fee / factor it into the labour rate.
Though doing more local jobs I've started keeping some sockets, back boxes etc in stock...