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Cutting aluminum at home
- Thread starter JgS
- Start date
anotherdog
New Member
Depends what you are mounting on the aluminum. If you are covering the face with printed vinyl, those tiny scratches and burrs on the edge let the weather in and the vinyl soon begins to peel. A clean cut edge extends the signs life.
We use the shear on a steeltrak for cutting.
Then you have the nice sharp corners. We use a cheap chinese half inch radius cutter that works wonders.
or you can nibble it with your teeth.
We use the shear on a steeltrak for cutting.
Then you have the nice sharp corners. We use a cheap chinese half inch radius cutter that works wonders.
or you can nibble it with your teeth.
Gino
Premium Subscriber
For the exact same reason so many are trolling.... like you..... to poke fun of people with a business.
What surprises me the most is how rudeness gets confused with total honesty. If most of the supposed newbies would search a little and do some of their own homework, they wouldn't have to ask such foolish questions..... I'm at home and want to cut some super thin aluminum for some free signs. How and where do I begin ??
That is not a question. It's more like a 3rd grader at a college dorm party wanting to have some of your beer. At first, it's cute, but it gets old real fast.
What is so wrong with pointing these newbies in the right direction and letting them find some things out on their own ?? Does a little sarcasm come along with it ?? Yep, but not as stoopid sounding as your remarks about seasoned veterans and other professionals in this membership.
This place is a wealth of information, but it continuously seems like first grade is being repeated week after week after week. No one ever graduates. They all stay back and learn one lesson at a time, but at their own pace. No one keeps up with the class. No one learns from anyone else. No one cares, cause we make it too frickin' easy to not learn. Just come here, ask a dumb questin and someone will answer you. It might not be a good sound answer, but the newbies don't care..... they don't know any better. They gotta start somewhere, so making mistakes is a natural phenomenon with them. It's agreed by the others like yourself, that they need time to learn. Good, while they're learning and screwing up the industry, you still wanna know why some professionals and good shops cop an attitude while they hurt the trade. I'd rather know why you think it's alright for someone with no talent, no clue to fonts, color, common sense, ability, tools, time put in learning a trade and no idea of what they are doing should get equal consideration as the person honestly trying to better themselves ??
- You are my question. If you were a Mother or Father bird, would you push your fledgling out before they developed flying feathers ??
- Would you try to run an automobile before you put oil or gasoline in it ??
- Would you serve supper in a metal container before opening it up, pouring the contents into a pot and heating the soup ?? Do you even know how to turn the stove on... or what temperature to set it to ??
Seriously, why do you and many others insist on putting the cart before the horse ?? There are certain fundamental basics everyone has to learn in life and in business, but how to cut a piece of aluminum isn't one of them for someone who wants to give away free signs...... cut me a frickin' break.
Mosh
New Member
I started with nothing! I guess my point is don't half a$$ do stuff. Shearing it is the best method. Cutting it at home will only give pour results.
Another way is I put it in my brake and score it, like has been mentioned, it leaves a sharp edge. Cutting it with a saw leaves a sharp edge. Snips will cut it, but look like crap.
SO THE BEST METHOD IS TO SHEAR IT!!!!
I don't have a CNC, anyone have a way I can computer route 100 signs over the weekend, I don't have a fancy CNC!!!!! DUH!!!!
Gino
Premium Subscriber
Ha, you're a funny one. :Big Laugh
It wasn't directed towards you at all. You might've started it, but indirectly. My post was directed towards the many people who always say; lay off or ya have to start somewhere. Questions like yours are constantly asked and it seems like the same questions are answered daily. Almost no one does their homework, because we've made it too easy to not learn and just imitate.
The problem with that is.... newbies are many times answered by other newbies, who don't know the correct answers either, but most newbies will always take the easy way out. Therefore, you don't learn a thing.
So, let me ask you this...... if you're not near the shop to cut your aluminum out, how can you do the lettering for it.... not being at your shop ??If you planned enough in advance to cut your vinyl out on your shop plotter, why didn't you take the 5 minutes it would've taken to cut the aluminum panels out with your shop tools ??
AzGene
New Member
You are quite the horses @ss aren't you.
skyhigh
New Member
I just made a sign for a new automobile service station. The 2 owners (friends) had many years experience working as mechanics at a local dealership....basically a couple grease monkeys with no business experience, thrusting themselves into the world of entrepreneur'ship.
Could you even imagine them pulling you car onto a set of "ramps" to change the oil? Even they were smart enough to buy a "Lift" and stock their toolbox with all the necessary tools.
Why is it, you feel this profession requires no "start-up" costs??? Being able to cut "sheet stock" is one of the bare necessities in this trade. If you have to ask what tools to use and how to do it, then perhaps this craft is too complicated for you
Marlene
New Member
this was a simple question, how did it turn into such a hate fest?
that statement is such a jerk thing to say. the guy knows how to cut aluminum and said so in his first post. what he was asking was is there a way to cut it by hand. nothing wrong with asking that and there also is nothing wrong with sending materials out to be cut. you do not need to own every piece of equipment on th planet. what you do need to know is how things are done which is what the OP said when he said he didn't have time to send it out to be cut. it was pretty clear he knows how it is done. all he wanted was to know is can it be done by hand for this one time.
skyhigh
New Member
He did???
Besides Marlene......my post was directed to "Chip", who feels a great business plan is to "start off with nothing" and see how it goes. Take that to the bank, and watch them laugh you out of the building (oh wait....he's not going to the bank).
How do you feel, knowing you are part of a craft that requires no "start up" costs Marlene? So easy a caveman can do it?? Anyone can do what you do??? Get off your high horse, and realize his comments are an insult to YOUR trade.
Marlene
New Member
this is true Sky, not every can afford every tool. yes there are start up costs. the OP did know how to cut aluminum, he sends it out. so do I. going to tell me I don't know how to cut aluminum because we don't have a shear? I don't cut aluminum daily so why we would we invest in an expensive tool that would sit dormat for weeks at a time? we have a small brake but not a huge one, that does that mean I don't know how to bend aluminum? I do have a panel saw, why? because I use that all the time. would I cut aluminum with it? no as it won't give you a good clean cut like a shear will so see, I don't own one but know how it works and I think the OP did too as he send it out. what he wanted to know was could he cut it by hand.
Techman
New Member
IT doesn't matter who,, someone will get flogged. Someone will always feel offended especially when they are wrong. Some just post along feeling like an authority and no one else has anything valid to say. Some post away without really knowing what they were talking about. Some simply don't know what they don't know.
IE: The other day some posted about mill finish novelty grade aluminum used for street signs and vinyl failure. They did not know about a specification demanding a specific material used for street signs..
Noobs get bashed. Old timers get bashed. This guy got it for not knowing how to cut thin materials. Some of old timers saw that and wonder why in the world anyone would waste the time and go to the expense to cut .040 aluminum? Especially using a saw?
There is always someone who thinks they know more than the other guy/girl.
Right or wrong a bash will appear no matter what. Pro or noobs get equal measures of bashing. That is the way it is.
IE: The other day some posted about mill finish novelty grade aluminum used for street signs and vinyl failure. They did not know about a specification demanding a specific material used for street signs..
Noobs get bashed. Old timers get bashed. This guy got it for not knowing how to cut thin materials. Some of old timers saw that and wonder why in the world anyone would waste the time and go to the expense to cut .040 aluminum? Especially using a saw?
There is always someone who thinks they know more than the other guy/girl.
Right or wrong a bash will appear no matter what. Pro or noobs get equal measures of bashing. That is the way it is.