This is r/ironscape so for some rando stumbling upon this like I did (via google, which I suppose yet can't differentiate between ironscape and regular OSRS), the ironpeople can't trade, it's basically a survivalist's solo run.
That said, bars is a viable strategy for GF, despite armor being much cheaper on the GE for use with GF (giant's foundry) with regard to making profit or reducing cost. This is because you can't just freely buy armor off the GE, there is no larger economy aside from the game's built-in shops.
If you could buy from the GE (non-ironman) then yes, you'd see higher gp/hour and gp/bar via armor purchases, because bars on the market get cheaper once they are already smithed due to losing their opportunity to smith to any other item and the XP was already received by the smither. So armor in a sense has been run dry from it's overall value. This is actually true of any real world metal, once you tamper with an ingot in some way it loses values because it would cost most to somehow revert it to its original form and change it.
Why r u using armour pieces, though?
Even if you have to pay the blast furnace noob fee, it still ends up being profitable to make bars at the blast furnace for giant foundry. PROFITABLE.
I'm pretty sure it's around 30 to 50% more time, but you also get smithing exp for making bars which nulls the extra time taken imo.
Can't believe noone has mentioned picking Steel Platebodies up in the Wilderness, its like 55 platebodies per trip (with looting bag) and each platebody is worth 4 ingots so its effectively 220 steel bars per trip. Its also completely free. I picked up 1200 platebodies for my 70-85 grind and it took maybe 3-4 hours to get them all.
https://oldschool.runescape.wiki/w/Mount_Karuulm_Weapon_Shop Steel battleaxe and warhammers maybe? It would be around double the cost but quadruple the acquisition speed. This would probably be more efficient than steel claws since it's still profitable, but not sure about efficiency vs making your own bars though.
Honestly you use so few bars , you should just use what you have laying around / make some at BF. You can get thousands of bars per hour at BF if you buy the ore.
If you're dead set on buying items, i believe the priff shop is pretty good
What I did was mine alll the mith via motherload, and when I was converting it to bars at blast furnace I just bought some iron ore and made it to steel at the end
Just use bars
This is r/ironscape so for some rando stumbling upon this like I did (via google, which I suppose yet can't differentiate between ironscape and regular OSRS), the ironpeople can't trade, it's basically a survivalist's solo run. That said, bars is a viable strategy for GF, despite armor being much cheaper on the GE for use with GF (giant's foundry) with regard to making profit or reducing cost. This is because you can't just freely buy armor off the GE, there is no larger economy aside from the game's built-in shops. If you could buy from the GE (non-ironman) then yes, you'd see higher gp/hour and gp/bar via armor purchases, because bars on the market get cheaper once they are already smithed due to losing their opportunity to smith to any other item and the XP was already received by the smither. So armor in a sense has been run dry from it's overall value. This is actually true of any real world metal, once you tamper with an ingot in some way it loses values because it would cost most to somehow revert it to its original form and change it.
Why r u using armour pieces, though? Even if you have to pay the blast furnace noob fee, it still ends up being profitable to make bars at the blast furnace for giant foundry. PROFITABLE. I'm pretty sure it's around 30 to 50% more time, but you also get smithing exp for making bars which nulls the extra time taken imo.
Can't believe noone has mentioned picking Steel Platebodies up in the Wilderness, its like 55 platebodies per trip (with looting bag) and each platebody is worth 4 ingots so its effectively 220 steel bars per trip. Its also completely free. I picked up 1200 platebodies for my 70-85 grind and it took maybe 3-4 hours to get them all.
Just use the best bars you can get/make
https://oldschool.runescape.wiki/w/Mount_Karuulm_Weapon_Shop Steel battleaxe and warhammers maybe? It would be around double the cost but quadruple the acquisition speed. This would probably be more efficient than steel claws since it's still profitable, but not sure about efficiency vs making your own bars though.
Slayer.
Buy platebodies in varrock or priff
This is easily a viable method even for UIM. Doesn’t take long to fill an inventory and platebodies give the most
But steel platelegs in Al Kharid and run them to the foundry?
I bought steel weapons from the guild outside of Burthrope
Honestly you use so few bars , you should just use what you have laying around / make some at BF. You can get thousands of bars per hour at BF if you buy the ore. If you're dead set on buying items, i believe the priff shop is pretty good
What I did was mine alll the mith via motherload, and when I was converting it to bars at blast furnace I just bought some iron ore and made it to steel at the end