There is Warner in Latrobe PA. They actually sell HSS insert tooling but i believe they also have tool blanks.
As for MSC you only buy from them when you have no choice. They seem to run a scam common with industrial suppliers where you get a 75% multiplier if you open an account with them. If you have to buy from them buy from their discounted "sales" catalogs or web specials.
As for other suppliers you can try Travers, McMaster-Carr, DXP, and a whole bunch of other national or semi national suppliers. Looking for local suppliers isn't a bad idea either as you can still find mom & pop shops supplying the machining industry.
Your next stop ought to be the established Chinese importers which hopefully have audited what they import for quality. As mentioned earlier Chinese quality is all over the place, so you either need to experiment with potential suppliers ir trust somebody that has done the experimentation for you.
As for that price of a $1 each for a lot of 50 that sounds like wholesale prices from one of the business to business sites. The problem here though is what do you do with a lot if 50. I can find lots of stuff at good prices on these wholesale sites but who needs 5 identical welders or a shipping container full of bench grinders. Not to mention are the hassles with importing all of that junk. You would almost certainly be better off taking that $50+ dollars and spending it on a variety of tools from MSC.
There is one last option and that is Chinese retailers that can sell in small quantities. You still have the issue if recognizing the quality brand names and then waiting weeks for shipment. You can however use the experiences of others to go this route in selecting vendors and manufactures.
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One comment here though, HSS steel even at MSC's retail rates is a bargain. This is probably the last place id try to save money by going cheap. HSS tool blanks basically last forever in a home shop and frankly it doesn't cost much to stock a couple of blanks for the special cutter jam we sometimes need to get out of. Your question actually has me wondering how many blanks do you think you need? Initially i don't see a need for much more than 5 blanks. In any event i just think it is a big mistake to cut corners here especially when HSS will be some of the cheapest tooling you will ever buy.
Some other points. Don't buy new!!!!! For my home shop i have bought very little in the way of new HSS blanks! Most of what i have on hand at the moment came from auctions, a good portion from Cabin Fever. It isn't uncommon to score a box of HSS for 10-20 dollars! Often you get top grade HSS and generally HSS with lots of life still in it. A side benefit is that they are often pre-ground to usable forms. In the end getting HSS for pennies on the dollar works out well.
Another point here is somewhat dependent upon your machinery and the materials you work with, but going to smaller cross sectional area, that is smaller than 3/8 x 3/8 can save you money. How well this works out depends upon your ability to keep the HSS steel close to tool post for max support. In the end though the steel is cheaper. Another side benefit is that small diameter tooling is easier to sharpen.
I'd like to get some 3/8" x 3/8" HSS tooling blanks. The US-made ones from MSC are pretty expensive. I've found some Chinese blanks for what seems to be a too-good-to-be-true price of ~$1@ for a lot of 50. Does anyone have experience with Chinese tool steel? What other options are there for tooling blanks that won't break the bank?
