Favorite metal cutter?

I have one of the Eastwood 8" bench shears (mine is from Woodward Fab - same machine) and it works very well. What sold me was shaving 1/16" off 16 gauge steel without leaving a burr. It can cut a radii if you're very careful, but best to take multiple swipes. They demo'd a throatless shear (Beverly style) went I visited Woodward Fab that worked great also. That one is better for free-forming shapes.

I also use a Woodward Fab (other generics out there) 4-ton 6" notcher which does a 90 deg. cut. I use it for shearing stock in addition to notching, is rated at a 6" cut in 16-gauge CRS.

Also use aviator snips, Adel sheet metal nibbler and some Tiawanese equivalents. Use some Malco 30 deg. notchers too. Have a Campbell Hausfeld air nibbler that makes a huge mess spitting out ~1/8" crescents of whatever you're cutting, but a very nice job.

For sheet stock I use a Tennsmith 37" wide stomp shear. It groans a bit if I'm cutting a 2' long piece of 16-gauge, but it'll do it. Biggest problem is my weight; I'm between 165 - 170 and don't get as much on the pedal with a hop as a 200 pounder!

I have one of the HF 3-in-one 30" machines and would recommend not trying to shear 16-gauge on it. 18 gauge would be a real challenge also. On the plus side, in the shear model the eccentric cranks/links on the sides are in compression so you might be successful, but you'll probably flex something and bend the metal instead of shearing it. I tried the press brake on a 16-gauge piece of stock 12" wide and broke the casting on one of the side cranks/links (shaped like a comma). In the brake model, the side links are in tension and put a lot of strain on the attaching area to the moving shear bar/brake. Maybe they've beefed them up, but if they rate the machine at 20-gauge CRS at 30", I'd probably only go 22-gauge.

Of course for crude cutting there's always a plasma cutter or stick welder. I've rough cut sheet metal with an 1/8" rod in a buzz box at 120 A, just obliterates the sheet metal at the stick; purposeful burn through. Then grind/sand the edge to a line.

Bruce
 
I use my trusty old die grinder with an abrasive disk and have cut quite a bit of 16 ga. stainless steel with it. Very noisy and a lot of stink, but
it works well. Another thought would be a plasma torch.
 
+1 on the plasma rig, the plasma cutter is really nice for cutting ANYTHING that conducts electricity.
there is only light dross removal necessary after the cut.

a shear is very nice tool to have too, but i don't have the space for a substantial shear, so i go without.

my next choice would be an angle grinder and a cutoff wheel

my 4th choice, a die grinder with a cutoff wheel

lastly, the O2-C2H2 torch will cut it, but a lot of cleanup work is necessary.


don't be afraid to use a sacrificial straightedge to guide you when using an abrasive wheel in a hand held grinder. ;)
i use this method often,
simply clamp a piece of angle iron, or other substantial thickness metal, to the material to be cut at the desired distance from the end.
the cut will be made on the waste side of the angle iron, using a long leg of the angle iron vertically to guide the abrasive wheel and cut squarely.
at first you run your abrasive wheel against the vertical leg back and forth across the cut to create a small channel to make the wheel follow easier.
then, if the cut is correct, start at one end and cut across the angle iron guide until the piece is rendered.
you'll need some minimal clean up of the opposing face of the cut.

i hope the information is helpful to someone :)
 
The plasma cutter will consume a lot of air, so longer cuts may be a challenge for a smaller compressor.
I would like to add, it is just my opinion, but buy quality name brand cut off wheels. All wheels will blow up if you go out of alignment enough, it is just my feeling the cheaper ones have less tolerance for it. The shards of a wheel will bury deep into a person, an ER visit is not good. I guess proper PPE is also a good idea. Sorry for preaching.
 
The plasma cutter will consume a lot of air, so longer cuts may be a challenge for a smaller compressor.
I would like to add, it is just my opinion, but buy quality name brand cut off wheels. All wheels will blow up if you go out of alignment enough, it is just my feeling the cheaper ones have less tolerance for it. The shards of a wheel will bury deep into a person, an ER visit is not good. I guess proper PPE is also a good idea. Sorry for preaching.
 
How in the Sam Hill do I get multiple posts from 1 click?
 
I vote for plasma cutter - Straight lines are easy on flat plate - just use a cheap straight edge and run the torch down that edge. curves can be done with a thich cardboard template alos. Compressor air must be clean (no oil) and dry (limited water) so filter properly. Love my torch - is extremely accurate and clean cutting once you get the hang of it.
 
Ulma Doctor said:
+1 on the plasma rig, the plasma cutter is really nice for cutting ANYTHING that conducts electricity.
there is only light dross removal necessary after the cut.

a shear is very nice tool to have too, but i don't have the space for a substantial shear, so i go without.

my next choice would be an angle grinder and a cutoff wheel

my 4th choice, a die grinder with a cutoff wheel

lastly, the O2-C2H2 torch will cut it, but a lot of cleanup work is necessary.


don't be afraid to use a sacrificial straightedge to guide you when using an abrasive wheel in a hand held grinder. ;)
i use this method often,
simply clamp a piece of angle iron, or other substantial thickness metal, to the material to be cut at the desired distance from the end.
the cut will be made on the waste side of the angle iron, using a long leg of the angle iron vertically to guide the abrasive wheel and cut squarely.
at first you run your abrasive wheel against the vertical leg back and forth across the cut to create a small channel to make the wheel follow easier.
then, if the cut is correct, start at one end and cut across the angle iron guide until the piece is rendered.
you'll need some minimal clean up of the opposing face of the cut.

i hope the information is helpful to someone :)
Click to expand...
That's pretty much how I use my grinder, start with a drawn line, then I follow it the best I can going down the line, then even slower pull it back to the start, creating the channel you referred to, then sink it deep. Always just use hf, but a guy a ways up recommend the ones from airgas, forgot the name, but it's posted above this. My buddy who helps me the most isn't so gentle on them, but I've been working on that with him. But the noise and the mess suck, and it's rather slow.
 
So right now woodward has my vote, but I'm torn between the rotary and the manual 8". Anybody have experience with both?
 
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