Cutting aluminium

[Chris152]

My lad wants to practice tig welding aluminium shapes. The plan is to cut squares in aluminium sheet (about 1mm) to make up cubes. The squares will need to be cut accurately and flat, so I'm wondering what the best method for cutting might be. (Snips/ our small shear results in a bendy mess.) There's a laser cutting business nearby, no idea what they'd charge, but would prefer to keep costs down. I thought maybe a woodworking bandsaw, not sure how much cleanup there'd be and I'd need to buy one (it'd have other uses).

Any thoughts/ suggestions?

Thanks, Chris

 

[Screwdriver]

1mm? Use a craft knife. Several straight cuts, snap off over an edge.

 

[Maker]

He must already be pretty good to be doing 1mm ally!

 

[sg66]

Circular saw with txt blade will cut that no problem

 

[addjunkie]

Ive used a decent wood cutting bandsaw for sheet up to breeze block size billet, works quite well. But for practice Ive used a cheap bench shear, but keeping the blade tight. It bends the sheet but is easily flattened

 

[Morrisman]

Circular saw with a sharp HSS blade, running along a guide strip. Perfect straight cut.

 

[Rrunnach]

See if a metal shop has a 25mm punch and die and have them punch out square blanks.

Will be difficult trying to put cubes together with the rapid heat input, if me, I’d make up to L’s, tack together, then infill to complete the cube.

 

[BrokenBiker]

 

[tom2207]

find someone local with a guillotine soon run off a few squares for you ,,, may even have some stuff laying behind the guillotine they will sell you for humble money ,,, handy to be on good terms with the local fab guys may get a selection of thickness too ,, win win

 

[BrokenBiker]

im sure you can buy dice kits on ebay pretty cheap...not sure if ali is available but i know ive seen mild, stainless and titanium (not as cheap, obviously) but there were all 3mm-ish thickness

 

[Pete.]

Practicing making cubes by TIG welding outside corners in 1mm ally is like learning to cook by making souffle. Try as you might you're gonna end up in a soggy mess.

 

[julianf]

I have a fancy Swiss made saw for alloy - a varga va-1

Essentially, its just a rotating blade, probably with a negative rake, in an enclosure.

You could achieve the same on a table saw with something like a laminate blade.




If you get really stuck, i could probably hack some up for you, but all my stock is anodized.

 

[Kram]

Plasma is perhaps ideal if you use a cutting guide and dont mind some edge cleanup.

Makita do a few of metal cutting saws, they spin at a much more sensible rate for cutting metals.

CS002G - Metal Cutter XGT®

Product

www.makitauk.com

DCS553 - Metal Circular Saw LXT®

Product

www.makitauk.com

The above are the better ones, Then theres the poverty spec brushed motor type

DCS552 - Metal Circular Saw LXT®

Product

www.makitauk.com

 

[chunkytfg]

Plasma is perhaps ideal if you use a cutting guide and dont mind some edge cleanup.

Makita do a few of metal cutting saws, they spin at a much more sensible rate for cutting metals.

CS002G - Metal Cutter XGT®

Product

www.makitauk.com

DCS553 - Metal Circular Saw LXT®

Product

www.makitauk.com

The above are the better ones, Then theres the poverty spec brushed motor type

DCS552 - Metal Circular Saw LXT®

Product

www.makitauk.com

The DCs552 might be the poverty spec one but it's the one I have and its great. I've been using mine for a while now and it'll cut 50x50x3mm box Steel with no worries and chews through 5mm steel sheet with surprising ease. The metal scarf collection only gets maybe 50% of the chips but other than that I really cant fault it. On Ally it'll barely break a sweat!

If you're willing to get a bandsaw I cant see why you wouldnt be able to fit a metal cutting blade to it but you'd need to get one with the option to run it at a lower speed. this is fairly normal feature on bandsaws. You'll also need a blade to suit. Tuffsaws.co.uk is where I get my Bandsaw blades from(wood cutting blades though but even so...)

 

[anto44]

For cutting aluminium checker plate (normally 4 or 5mm thick) I use a circular saw with a fine tooth wood blade, gives perfect clean cuts and is really fast but the noise is really bad, it's not just loud it's a screeching irritating sound.

 

[DanZac]

the noise is really bad, it's not just loud it's a screeching irritating sound.

I've got one of those too, but she's gone out at the moment.

 

[chunkytfg]

For cutting aluminium checker plate (normally 4 or 5mm thick) I use a circular saw with a fine tooth wood blade, gives perfect clean cuts and is really fast but the noise is really bad, it's not just loud it's a screeching irritating sound.

It'll spinning too fast. The Metal cutting ones spin a bit slower

 

[Morrisman]

It'll spinning too fast. The Metal cutting ones spin a bit slower

Nope, I’ve done loads of checker plate decking with a bog standard HSS wood blade in a powersaw. You don’t even need fine teeth, courser teeth work okay.

Also tried carbide tipped blades, but the swarf comes off dead hot.

 

[Cobbler]

I cut aluminium chequer plate to fit the floor of a Landy pickup with a jigsaw & a wood blade, made a lot of noise, but cut it ok.

 

[chunkytfg]

Nope, I’ve done loads of checker plate decking with a bog standard HSS wood blade in a powersaw. You don’t even need fine teeth, courser teeth work okay.

Also tried carbide tipped blades, but the swarf comes off dead hot.

I wasnt trying to suggest it wouldnt work. I know it will. what I was talking about was the noise. Slower blade speed will reduce the screeching sound. Dont get me wrong though my proper Metal cutting saw still is loud as F but probably less so that a full speed normal circular saw with a wood blade.