Cutting Sheet Metal

[sweefu]

Hi,

I have made a couple of things using some sheet metal (Not too sure what it is, was given an off-cut) its less than 2mm thick. I've been using an angle grinder to cut but it's been a bit messy (slaggy edges) and seems like an unnecessarily large tool for such thin metal. What would be a good tool to use here? Cutting straight lines, or very gradual angles. Would a jigsaw with an appropriate blade be better?

Begin discussion!

Thanks.

[Risking]

Guillotine.......

If you don't have one just find a sheet metal shop and pay them to cut it for you.

By the time you stuff around with jigsaws/bandsaws and blades then actually cutting it an inch/30sec you could have just paid someone $5 per cut to do it.

Nibblers are good for curves and circles but take a steady hand to get good results

[scotty nm35]

For a small batch I would use a 125mm angle grinder with a 1mm kerf disk, then clean it up with a file or flap disk. Mark it properly and you should have no issues cutting a straight line.

[Bsa]

I agree with the angle grinder good for jobs outside a workshop but gillo if shop you get to easy

[warps]

Guillotine the best bet by far, but 1mm cutting disc on grinder will cut through 2mm sheet like a hot knife through butter. Just don't try to use it for grinding - plenty of body parts have been lost by fools using grinders in a way they were never intended.

Jig saws suck balls for cutting steel - don't even bother.

If you want to cut quickly, then oxy / plasma cutter will rip through 2mm steel, but you'll have a lot of clean up to do.

[MBS206]

For nice and neat, and depending on how long the cut needs to be, you could use a dremel.

[Mick_o]

DO NOT USE AN OXY on sheetmetal it will look like crap and the sheet will be deformed from the heat! 1mm inox cut off wheel on 5" or 4" grinder dont push hard on the grinder just let the wheel do the work as they are flexible and will twist and run off ya line i find if u just score the material slightly before u cut through u cant go wrong. Also if ya angles or bends arent sharp u can cut them with the inox wheels too cos they are flexible

[warps]

DO NOT USE AN OXY on sheetmetal it will look like crap and the sheet will be deformed from the heat! 1mm inox cut off wheel on 5" or 4" grinder dont push hard on the grinder just let the wheel do the work as they are flexible and will twist and run off ya line i find if u just score the material slightly before u cut through u cant go wrong. Also if ya angles or bends arent sharp u can cut them with the inox wheels too cos they are flexible

You kidding? I've cut 2mm (down to 1.6mm) with oxy plenty of times without any deformation / distortion. Just have to have the right flowrate / torch speed. There can be a lot of clean up to do though, as the slag bead gan get pretty messy. A good operator on an oxy can achieve some fantastic results. I agree the really thin stuff (1mm and less) is a different story, and I wouldn't recommend oxy unless you're just cutting it up for scrap. The plasma cutter takes care of thin metal pretty well though. Again, the end result can be messy, but less likely to distort from my experience.

[Deano 1]

I cut 2.5mm checker plate with a jig saw and a good metal jig saw blade, i think i paid 25bux for the one blade and i cut heaps with it, good thing with the jig saw is, you can set it up on a straight edge, like a lenght of straight rhs, messure the blade offset on the jig saw and clamp the rhs at each end, than just run the jig saw along your straight edge and bam! U got a straight cut!!!

Trust me it works fine on 2mm sheet i cut a heap of that too same blade, i got it from bunnings, it was in a red package and a american brand cant remeber the name.

[SNOQPY]

um tin snips

[ezy_09s]

My plasma cutter makes short work of it.

[sluttydriftpig]

Tin snips, Nibbler, grinder, jugsay, gilotine, oxy, plasma just depends how you want it to look, with a plasma and oxy you obviously have to take in acount the way its going to distort the flame but if you get a ofcut of RHS or angle and place it along the line you have marked out just lean the tip on it and cut it like you marking a line with a ruler? if u get what i mean? best of using a thin fibre pad and ginding it way easyer cheaper or use a gillotine

[sluttydriftpig]

Decent band saw even