Best way to cut 0.050" 4130

[BillL]

Originally Posted by digidocs

What are your preferred methods for cutting brackets out of 4130 0.050" plate?Thanks for the help,
David

What part are you trying to make?

[BillL]

Originally Posted by digidocs

I'm building some push-pull control cable brackets.

OK, not sure what shape they are, but assume you they are one piece. Because of the difficulty of making 4130 parts I usually make a cardboard template, then an aluminum piece to get the bending correct, then make the steel piece. At least for the first part. The aluminum piece becomes the prototype. I use a Bosch 1587AVS jig saw, variable speed. I have a box full of others that would not cut metal. The blade has a roller down near the material to provide back stiffness and the blade orbits slightly. It has to be held firmly or else. I suppose a band saw would work too, but curves don't come easy, regardless, so I use carbide burrs for finishing to the scribe lines and/or sand/file for finishing. Either dremel or air-powered die grinder. Round files are good, just take a little longer. What ever works for the radius at the time. Even good sand paper on a dowel. Take care with the 1/2" dia burrs, they spit out some nasty shards, get caught in eyebrows etc. 4130 so they are sharp and strong. I use a face shield, cover my head to keep out of hair, long sleeves, tighten my collar and use a vacuum if possible. Depending on the amount of material being removed. Don't brush off skin with your hand. The vise (al jaws make a nice bend), or HF bending brake works ok for bending leaving a gap for a proper radius.

Drill with lubrication for cutting and cooling. A good step drill but should work, but don't remember using one. Again, secure the work.

Good luck with your part. They are usually more difficult in the mind than hand.

[JonJay]

If you have the budget, or can find a good used belt sander, like this:

http://www.baldor.com/brands/baldor-...s/belt-sanders

These are a must for shaping steel. You need a minimum 48" belt, 72" is better. The long belts reduce the heating of the part. Shorter belts recirculate the hot spent material as do normal grinding wheels and disk sanders.

Of course , your don't "need" one of these for an RV project, but they spoil you quick anytime you want to shape aluminum or steel.

[Charles in SC]

You can send the pieces to me and I will cut them for you.

[josiahdewitt]

Very little info found searching for the F-10104 Rudder Cable Links brought me here. I decided against getting 4130 .050 steel plate and most likely butchering it into links. You asked the best way to cut 4130 - a waterjet. I made a few CAD step files which you can use to order this from your favorite online service. https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5628281 I got mine made for less than a hundred bucks. Considering the material, shipping and time to ultimately fabricate a sub-standard part this just seemed reasonable to me. I hope someone finds this helpful and saves just a little time and effort.

[scsmith]

For all kinds of brackets and things, like bell cranks, control horns, mounting brackets, I make a drawing and take the material down to our local water-jet cutting place. For very little money, they cut out all the parts you want, pretty accurate, neat and tidy. Holes located and everything. I usually dimension the holes about 0.020" undersize on the water jet, so can do the final drilling to correct diameter.

A batch of brackets that would take me two hours to cut out with a hack saw or band saw, and have to grind/sand the edges to shape, locate and drill holes, etc, instead costs about $35.

The price scales with the thickness of material, and the length of the cuts. I've had them cut me bell crank mount brackets from 1" aluminum, down to steel parts that are 0.050" thick, and just about anything in between.

[Mike S]

Use caution cutting steel on the same machine you have already cut alum on.

This is especially true for cutting tools that generate sparks.

[Vern]

Swag makes a small metal adapter table that converts a hand held band saw which is available for a little over a hundred bucks into a small metal cutting band saw. Perfect for making small parts

Regarding bench grinders, never grind aluminum and steel or iron on the same wheel. That mixture makes a powerful explosive used to weld railroad tracks called thermite

[rocketman1988]

I recommend sendcutsend.com. We had them cut stainless door hinge covers for our -10 from stainless. Quick, inexpensive, and they have a simple online design tool if you do not have a CAD file...

[jrs14855]

For straight edges most any jump shear will cut .050. A high dollar shear such as Pexto will cut .063.
Built from scratch EAB the only thing I routinely "farm out" is aluminum welding