Cutting Thin Sheet Metal Straight

These photo steps show that it can be done using a utility knife.

Cutting thin sheet metal straight.

Nice tight blade contact. There are many different types of tin snips but for cutting sheet metal you only need to work with three basic types. Choose a blade with 20 to 24 tpi teeth per inch for thin metal 10 to 18 tpi for medium thickness metal and about 8. Here are a few tips for cutting metal with a recip saw.

Set your saw to straight rather than oscillating if there s a choice. How to cut sheet metal method 1 of 4. If you use metal shears to cut thin sheet metal such as duct metal it curls and can be difficult to flaten properly. The illustrations are for a small bracket but i have cut 3 foot long pieces using this method.

Longer blade was nice for long straight cuts 148 see all buying options. Right and left cutting snips are used for making curved cuts while straight cutting snips make straight cuts. Long straight cuts are easier to make with large tin snips. Simply line up your chisel along the line you are going to cut and strike the back of it with a hammer.

Make long strokes for long straight cuts. Using a chisel and hammer is the most basic form of cutting sheet metal. Choose between red blue or yellow snips based on the cut direction. Extend blade life by keeping the saw s speed slow.

Worked well to cut thin steel. Open the cutters as wide as you can at the start of each stroke and make long smooth strokes. Right cutting left cutting and straight cutting snips. Wax your saw blade before cutting sheet metal.

Making detailed cuts with. Lift the cutoff strip and roll it to the side to prevent it from binding on the tin snips handle.