Best Tools To Cut Sheet Metal

For most applications it is necessary to file and clean up the edges left by a snip.

Best tools to cut sheet metal.

Aviation snip is a term applied to the higher end form of this sheet metal cutting tool which comes in 3 basic varieties allowing for straight left hand curved and right hand curved cuts. To cut straight lines use an electric saw. The best tool to cut sheet metal is an electric nibbler tool it cuts corrugated iron sheet metal and even metal car panels easily. You can cut mild steel up to about 3 8 in.

With the right tool and a few simple techniques you can make almost any cut with ease. Cut metal with your circular saw. Jigsaws and metal cutting band saws are more work but can make most cuts in light to medium sheet metal. Start by taping both sides of the sheet metal directly over the line you want to cut and clamp the metal to a work station so it doesn t move.

Standing at around 11 inches long these knipex hand nibblers take the hard work out of cutting sheet metal. They work on iron copper or aluminum sheets that are up to 1 2 mm thick. We ll recommend a pair of tin snips that will get you through 90 percent of the jobs you ll run into. In our test it cut through rebar like a hot knife through butter.

And the most frequently used tool in this regard is the best quality electric nibblers. The method you choose to cut sheet metal depends on the thickness of the metal and the type of cut you plan to make. A handheld cutting tool fitted with a metal cut off wheel will easily cut through sheet. The tool nibbles its way through the sheet so it literally punches tiny pieces of metal one at a time at high speed leaving behind waste material in the form of tiny metal chips.

Knipex tools sheet metal nibblers. Somehow this way of cutting protects the edges from corrosion. But we ll also indicate the best tin snips to use for each type of cut we show. They barely weigh a pound and allow for really tight radiuses to be cut.

Thick using a ferrous metal cutting blade. A tool like a nibbler is fast and easy to maneuver around to cut circles corners and angles in sheet metal work with out jamming like electric shears or tin snips would. Electric nibblers can be used both as an electronic tool and a stand alone air tool. Power slicing is one advanced and effective way to cut items from sheet metal.

Hot metal chips will fly.