Jump to content
 

Cutting Nickel Silver or Brass Sheet - Guilotine?


Bucoops
 Share

Recommended Posts

  • RMweb Gold

Good afternoon, I want to be able to neartly cut Nickel Silver or Brass sheet for things like carriage floors, roofs (then rolled) etc. - but how can I do it neatly? I have some 0.022" NS I am hoping to use as a floor for a coach for example.

 

I am hoping there's a suitable guilotine or similar? But can anyone suggest a specific one as I don't want to pay £hundreds but equally I want one that is up to the job.

 

Thank you :)

Link to post
Share on other sites

Use a scrawker and a metal ruler , pull the scrawker through the metal until you get a witness line (a mark ) on the otherside , then bend and snap the metal off.

Tin snips like above are ok for small pieces, as they cut ,the metal will buckle and or distort.

Edited by micklner
  • Like 2
  • Agree 3
  • Informative/Useful 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Gold
3 minutes ago, micklner said:

Use a scrawker and a metal ruler , pull thescrawker through the metal until you get a witness line (a mark ) on the otherside , then bend and snap the metal off.

Tin snips like above are ok for small pieces, as they cut ,the metal will buckle and or distort.

 

That was my concern with snips, thinking back far too long when I last used some I seem to recall one side curling up extensively but couldn't remember if the other did or did not.

 

 

  • Agree 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Gold

Ok, I've ordered one of these to try - https://olfacutters.co.uk/index.php?route=product/search&search=Olfa PC-S Plastic Cutter

 

It says for plastic rather than metal but I won't be using it much.

 

I will probably find some tin snips at some point too for less accurate or more curved work. I do have a piercing saw but being left handed and cack handed I break blades continuously :(

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Bucoops said:

 

That was my concern with snips, thinking back far too long when I last used some I seem to recall one side curling up extensively but couldn't remember if the other did or did not.

 

 

If you are putting it through rollers, that will replace any curling. 

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Gold
1 hour ago, Brassey said:

If you are putting it through rollers, that will replace any curling. 

 

Very true, but flat coach floors I'd hope not to have to :) I'll see how I get on with the olfa thing I've ordered.

 

I just remembered, I have scored through before, using a needle file. I seem to recall it took several days for my hand to recover from that!

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • Administrators
4 hours ago, Bucoops said:

Ok, I've ordered one of these to try - https://olfacutters.co.uk/index.php?route=product/search&search=Olfa PC-S Plastic Cutter

 

It says for plastic rather than metal but I won't be using it much.

 

I will probably find some tin snips at some point too for less accurate or more curved work. I do have a piercing saw but being left handed and cack handed I break blades continuously :(

 

I have used the Olfa for years for metal cutting. I rarely use snips. 

  • Like 1
  • Agree 1
  • Informative/Useful 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, Bucoops said:

 

Very true, but flat coach floors I'd hope not to have to :) I'll see how I get on with the olfa thing I've ordered.

 

I just remembered, I have scored through before, using a needle file. I seem to recall it took several days for my hand to recover from that!

You can also use the scrawker for relieving etched lines in kits before folding. Make sure you do not cut through too far !.

 

Good article here re Coach roofs etc

 

https://www.scalefour.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5766

  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

In these gauges a pair of kitchen scissors cope well. Buy a new pair for the kitchen first though. Slightly thicker sheet can be cut on a band saw by firmly taping the sheet to a piece of sacrificial hardboard. I once had a large guillotine, condemned under H&S, from the school art room. I found it OK with thicker sheet but the thinner stuff tended to crease and fold rather than cut cleanly.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, doilum said:

In these gauges a pair of kitchen scissors cope well. Buy a new pair for the kitchen first though. Slightly thicker sheet can be cut on a band saw by firmly taping the sheet to a piece of sacrificial hardboard. I once had a large guillotine, condemned under H&S, from the school art room. I found it OK with thicker sheet but the thinner stuff tended to crease and fold rather than cut cleanly.

Sorry I dont agree re scissors., the metal will always buckle.

 

A condemed Gillotine with blunt blades?  sounds very dangerous !!

  • Agree 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, micklner said:

Sorry I dont agree re scissors., the metal will always buckle.

 

A condemed Gillotine with blunt blades?  sounds very dangerous !!

I am fortunate in having / had most of the alternative kit mentioned. Just being honest about what I actually do.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Rob Pulham said:

I used to use a scrawker but then I bought one of these from Warco

 

mini-formit-universal-sheet-metal-machin

 

Warco Mini Formit

 

They have gone up a little (I paid £179 for mine)

 

A very nice piece of kit I must admit, but it's minimum rolling diameter of 29mm is too large for most 4mm boilers sadly.

 

I agree with Micklner. Brass or nickel sheet is best cut with a scrawker and metal straight edge. Thin 10 thou sheet can also be cut with a scalpel and new blade along a straight edge, several passes being made before bending to break off the part. Tinsnips always buckle parts of the material, and the notion that rolling it will eliminate buckles is pretty false. You will usually have ripples remaining.

Edited by pete55
spelling!
  • Agree 2
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, pete55 said:

 

A very nice piece of kit I must admit, but it's minimum rolling diameter of 29mm is too large for most 4mm boilers sadly.

 

I agree with Micklner. Brass or nickel sheet is best cut with a scrawker and metal straight edge. Thin 10 thou sheet can also be cut with a scalpel and new blade along a straight edge, several passes being made before bending to break off the part. Tinsnips always buckle parts of the material, and the notion that rolling it will eliminate buckles is pretty false. You will usually have ripples remaining.

Hi Pete,

 

I must confess that I have a set of GW Models rollers so I have never used it for rolling anything. I use it purely as a Guillotine a job it does very well.

  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

I have an old second hand guilotine, that I aquired as part of a job lot. It has an edge so the cuts remain square relative to the previous cut. Despite having a  metric scale on its right hand side I have found it impossible to accurately cut to a specific size. That said, it's fine for chassis spacers providing you use the single cut for all the spacers on a chassis. On the other hand screwkers can produce fairly accurate first time cuts. However, if thicker metal is being cut the depth of the cut will  produce a "v" shape and this will need to be taken into account. Finally my screwker is  made from an old heavy duty hacksaw blade ground to the required shape.   

  • Informative/Useful 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Gold
1 hour ago, Phil Parker said:

What are you doing with it? I've cut loads of metal and plastic with mine. You might make a coil of metal, but nothing that needs gloves. Several gentle passes is the key. 

 

Swarf is the word I meant not shards. I think I did it too lightly to begin with, it was very fine pieces coming off. It cut very neatly though :)

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...