What are some good sources of metals used for small parts when making them up like Staples on old Winchesters and Savages. Tool steel , # 8 hard bolts ,old gun parts now not used and scrap ...... Any other sources ?
Are tool steels and #8 bolts recommended for such items ?

Annealed drill rod is available in a verity of sizes. It is machinable as is and strong enough for most parts, easily heat treatable if needed. For firing pins, Fatigue Proof steel from Brownells is ideal. A little harder to machine but makes a good firing pin without heat treatment. Grade 8 bolts are very difficult to machine since they are already heat treated.

I have purchased from speedymetals.com and from onlinemetals.com. Both are a bit higher than large quantity sources, but they sell cut to length and various shapes and deliver promptly.

Bill Jacobs

Sounds like drill rod would work. There was gunsmith here , Kennedy , who was great for utilizing things like old baby buggy springs and stuff you would normally discard out of hand . I used a grade 8 bolt for a 99 Savage spindle carrier screw and it was hard to machine to a smooth correct od. The tool seemed to never be sharp enough.
One point that I've not been able to determine is how well certain steels are blueable.

I've used chrome vanadium for a Star Super B firing pin - seems to be holding up okay.

Drill rod comes in three different types- - - -air hardening, oil hardening, and water hardening. Depending on the application, different stages of "Hard" vs "Tough" are required, so once the metal is heated red hot after machining and air-cooled or quenched, a second operation is needed to temper the metal and reduce the brittleness somewhat. That usually involves polishing away any hardening scale and re-heating to a specific color, like "straw" for instance. Making a v-shaped leaf spring for a muzzleloader hammer is a good example of shaping, hardening and tempering, and all the steps have to be done correctly. For parts that only need to be surface-hardened, I use "Kasenit".

If I was buying steel that needed heat treated, I would try to buy specific steel.

My experience is from knife making and may be a bit more crtitcal.

But, knowing the exact steel makes choosing the treatment easy.
And the outcomes very predictable.

Ironically, there are almost no "knife steels".
I'm aware of one developed for knives, and one for razors.
Otherwise, the steels used are bearings, springs, saw blades, tool steel, die steel...
But knowing the steel allows choosing the treatment that gives you the desired results.

A spring can be a good tough use, easily sharpened knife.
Or, one that holds an edge better but would chip or break easily.
But, it can't be all 3 at the same time.

For jobs that you want to get the part into the gun and back in service quickly 4140HT is a good steel, HT means that it is already mildly hardened. Not so much that it is not machinable but enough to make parts with the necessary hardness and wear resistance. Oil hardening drill rod is another steel which can be quickly hardened and tempered with an acetylene torch, parts made with it and drawn back to a straw color for toughness and a blue where more resliance are needed make very serviceable parts.
Probably use those two steels along with A-2 and S-7 for most parts making in the gun shop.