Glossary

Flat bar

A solid rectangular cross-section steel bar, sized as width x thickness (e.g. 50x6 mm). Used for hinge plates, brackets, and traditional pickets.

Flat bar is solid rectangular steel, sized as width x thickness. Common gate-trade sizes are 25x3, 25x6, 40x6, 50x6, 65x10, and 75x10 mm. Heavier flat bar (100x12, 125x16) shows up as base plates and bracket plates.

Flat bar is the go-to for hinge plates, lockbox housings, footplate bases, and traditional steel-picket fence pickets. It welds well, drills well, and you can cut it with a chop saw or a plasma cutter.

Not to be confused with strip steel (thinner, supplied in coil) or merchant bar (the broader category that includes flats, rounds, and squares).

Related terms

Square bar (solid bar)A solid square-cross-section steel bar (e.g. 12x12, 16x16, 20x20 mm). Used for traditional pickets, balustrade balusters, and decorative work.
PlateFlat steel sheet thicker than 5 mm, supplied in standard widths and lengths. Used for footplates, hinge plates, gussets, and reinforcement.
Equal angle (EA / angle iron)A steel L-section with both legs the same width. Sized as leg x leg x thickness (e.g. 50x50x5 mm). Used for brackets, ledgers, and stiffeners.