Cutting Aluminum Sheet By Hand

Using a cold chisel 1.

Cutting aluminum sheet by hand.

To cut the sheets of metal rathe. How to cut aluminum sheet metal hand tools. Align the snips with the line you want to cut with the upper blade of the tin snips touching the sheet metal. This weakens the aluminium and creates a fracture line.

Clamp the sheet metal in place on your work table to hold it in place while you work. Place the fracture line over the edge of a table and bend the overhang slightly downwards. Tin snips are primarily used for cutting thin sheet metal like tin aluminum brass and thin gauge stainless steel. Open the cutters as wide as you can at the start of each stroke and make long smooth strokes.

Sheet aluminium can be cut without the need for a guillotine or tin snips which tend to deform the metal. Fit your chisel into your honing guide a tool. With the aid of a straight edge and a sharp knife score both sides of the aluminium sheet. Cnc router aluminum sheet work is different than cnc routers cutting aluminum plate.

Long straight cuts are easier to make with large tin snips. Make long strokes for long straight cuts. And you can use the same technique anytime you need a straight cut on aluminum or other light gauge sheet metal even steel. There s a world of difference for a cnc router cutting thin aluminum sheet vs a cnc router cutting thicker aluminum plate.

Use a measuring tape to determine the width of your. Lift the cutoff strip and roll it to the side to prevent it from binding on the tin snips handle. Sharpen your chisel to a 60 to 70 degree bevel using a honing guide. The thicker the material and the greater the depth of cut the more important it is to follow these tips.

Clamp or hold a straightedge or square along the cutting marks and score a line with the tip of a sharp utility knife blade. Then bend the sheet back and forth a few times to snap it. 20 100 cutting aluminum sheet metal with a hammer and chisel is relatively straight forward line.