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How to cut a panel?

R

reconaviator

Member
Whats the best way of going about cutting my new panel. Will local machine shops be able to do it if you lay it out for them? How about tos for cutting it myself. Any advice would be awsome. Would like to prevent sending it off to a avionics shop.

Thanks
Scott
 
I used careful measuring coupled with a drill press, flycutter, Dremel tool, hand files , uni-bit....yep that's about all it takes.

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panel

Make a drawing of what you want and send the panel to Bill at Up North Aviation: http://www.upnorthaviation.com/about.html
He'll work with you and send you a full scale drawing of the panel. If everything is in order, he'll cut it and send it back to you. Super easy! Bill is great to work with and his workmanship is excellent.
I'd be glad to send you a photo of what he did for me.
 
reconaviator said:
Would like to prevent sending it off to a avionics shop.
Click to expand...

There's really nothing mysterious about cutting a panel if you have already built most of the rest of the airplane - its just aluminum! Measure carefully and make sure that everything will fit. Once you have it laid out, square holes can be cut with a drill in the corners and a jig saw or cutting wheel for the lines - then finished with files. Round holes can be done with a fly cutter, or better yet - a hole punch. Many folks have instrument hole punches, and are happy to loan them (they aren't used very often). Small holes for switches and breakers are easily done with a unibit.

Good luck!

Paul
 
What Paul has said is spot on. Once you built the airframe up to the point of the panel it should be an easy task.
 
A hardware store hole saw, chucked in a slow turning drill with Boelube, is good for a few round holes before it gets too dull.
 
I made a CAD drawing of the instrument panel including the cut-outs and gave that and the raw instrument panel to a local machine shop with a laser cutting machine. Next day and $50 later I had a perfectly cut instrument panel.
 
Done a few panels, the only specialist "tool" used is Avery Instrument Hole cutter which we can hire over here. It does make correct size holes and get the correct screw holes easily.

If you are up to CAD and can guarantee there will be no more changes then send it off, but it's one more thing to add to the list of "Did you build this plane? Really? All you?" exceptions "Well, except the X, y, and Instrument Panel" ;)
 
I didn't build my RV-8 but I did cut my new panel. It was all done with a fly cutter (slow RPMs on the drill press), a unibit for all the switches, breakers, and idiot lights, and a die grinder for the big rectangles.

If you do your layout in reverse on the back side of the panel, you can hide the occasional slip of a tool. If you are nervous, take some scraps and try out the various cut types.

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Yes, the two round holes are deliberately not aligned.
 
Panel cutting not hard ...

For the rectangular holes I used the HF oscillating cutter (knockoff Fein Multitool) .... it made cutting precise rectangular openings and square corners really easy. For the 2 1/2" round holes I used both a hole saw and a panel punch. Panel punch is better.
 
cut the big holes first
square holes are not very hard
check your hole spacing​

OK, poetry was not my strong suit. But Cutting your own panel is not difficult and does not require expensive tools ...

 
It's really not too hard - it's just aluminum. I used a fly-cutter for the round hole for the MGL backup EFIS and a cut-off wheel for the rest. Biggest part is just to measure carefully and keep straight lines. Cut it slightly undersize and then sneak up on it with a file.

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In addition to all the good suggestions above, I want to throw out a couple additional tools to look at.

Copping saw and nibbler are two of the items I used in virtually all the non round holes I made when doing my panel------I think the most difficult hole was for the USB connections------just too small to work with most tools other than drilling a hole or two and then a flat file.

Go for it, you do have the ability to make your own panel.
 
All good advice, I just want to add that this was one of the most enjoyable parts of building.
I am on my second panel, and don't have the airworthiness certificate yet!
Actually, I made a mistake on the first one, got some better aluminum sheet and used the first for a template.
This is a fun project, a job you will be justifiably proud of, and always planning a mod to it, or designing it's replacement.
 
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