Cutting Aluminum Sheet Metal Secrets

To cut the sheets of metal rathe.

Cutting aluminum sheet metal secrets.

To cut aluminum sheet metal fast and easily there is a unique way of using an olfa knife and a bending brake. This weakens the aluminium and creates a fracture line. With the aid of a straight edge and a sharp knife score both sides of the aluminium sheet. An air powered sheet metal nibbler or a nibbler head attached to a power drill can cut through galvanized corrugated aluminum sheet as well as flat sheet up to 16 gauge.

Noise sheet vibration and the finish edge quality are common draw backs of power shears. These tools move much faster than the hand powered version more about that later. Sheet aluminium can be cut without the need for a guillotine or tin snips which tend to deform the metal. They do not generate any where near the heat of an angle grinder so melting of the metal is not a general concern.

This method can reduce the number of strokes effectively and make very accurate long cuts only with a knife and bending brake.