mcerd1
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posted on 25/5/16 at 12:23 PM |
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Alloy sheet - what grade ?
been searching through the old posts but I can't find the answer....
I need to make a few alloy panels to cover some of the awkward comers and around the tunnel on my dax (I'm thinking something in the 1 to 1.2mm
thickness range)
nothing structural, but something that will stand being kicked / lent on as I climb in & out of the thing, but also not so hard that it'll
crack every time I try and bend it.
also ideally with half decent corrosion resistance too...
my first guess would be 5083, but that's just a stab in the dark....
(I normally use 6082 T6 for everything, but that's for stuff that's 10 to 30mm thick! and I guess it could be a bit too hard form the sort
of shapes I'll need to form......)
cheers
-robert
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minitici
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posted on 25/5/16 at 04:01 PM |
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1050A H14 Aluminium alloy 'half hard' sheet.
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John Bonnett
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posted on 31/5/16 at 04:36 PM |
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quote: Originally posted by mcerd1
been searching through the old posts but I can't find the answer....
I need to make a few alloy panels to cover some of the awkward comers and around the tunnel on my dax (I'm thinking something in the 1 to 1.2mm
thickness range)
nothing structural, but something that will stand being kicked / lent on as I climb in & out of the thing, but also not so hard that it'll
crack every time I try and bend it.
also ideally with half decent corrosion resistance too...
my first guess would be 5083, but that's just a stab in the dark....
(I normally use 6082 T6 for everything, but that's for stuff that's 10 to 30mm thick! and I guess it could be a bit too hard form the sort
of shapes I'll need to form......)
cheers
-robert
Hi Robert,
If you can get it NS3 is quite tough but fairly easy to form and weld. I wouldn't go thinner than 1.2mm 18 gauge. Or as suggested 1050A ,pure
aluminium is another option. This is much more readily available, easy to form and weld. I used NS4 18 gauge for the floor panels on the Phoenix and
the trials car but no forming was involved.
I hope this helps but do drop me a PM if i can be of any further help.
rgds
John
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bi22le
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posted on 31/5/16 at 07:00 PM |
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Most grades you can get in 1/4 hard soft hard or full hard.
So I would be looking at the chemical and corrosion properties.
Track days ARE the best thing since sliced bread, until I get a supercharger that is!
Please read my ring story:
http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/forum/13/viewthread.php?tid=139152&page=1
Me doing a sub 56sec lap around Brands Indy. I need a geo set up! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHksfvIGB3I
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jps
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posted on 9/11/16 at 04:38 PM |
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Just adding a comment - as I found this thread when searching for information on the right alu for panelling myself...
I've just come back from a local metal supplier - I went in armed with the knowledge I had gained online about 1xxx, 2xxx, etc being different
alloys and the 'hardness' being a different factor (a number H4, H14, etc designating hardness). From looking a lot online the main
choices for LCB are either 1050 or 5251 - so I was expected to ask for one of those two grades...
Neither of the blokes in the office seemed to differentiate between the alloy and the hardness - telling me that 1050 was going to be 'soft and
would get dented' and that a 5xxx (or NS4 as they wanted to refer to it) was the right thing to go for - "the NS4 will be 'half
hard' "... Interestingly they also said 1.0 to 1.2 was a noticeable different in terms of workability...
Anyway - I trusted their judgement and have ordered some NS4/5xxx which I am assured will be half hard. £42 for a sheet with plastic on one side.
Also - although they happily talk about ordering an 8x4 sheet (2440mm x 1220) - it'll actually be 1500 x 2500 - apparently metric sheet sizes
are the norm for metal sheet (unlike wood!). Not a huge difference - but worth knowing if you're trying to work out how many sheets you need!)
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mcerd1
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posted on 9/11/16 at 10:42 PM |
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1050 will be plenty hard enough for me as its only for some silly bits in the footwells and so on - mostly bits you won't ever see.
I think the 1.5mm stuff I've ended up with is 1050 A14, but that's just a guess as it was a random half sheet, but for £20 I wasn't
going to argue
I have to say as an engineer who designs steel and alloy structures I often find the stock holders will try and fob me off with less than ideal grades
because that's what they have in stock, but don't always appreciate the difference it could make to the design
1.2mm vs 1.0mm is a +20% increase in thickness - so yes it will be noticeable
the stuff I've seen sold as NS4 has been "EN AW 5251" (ie. its proper international standard name) to H22 (or 'quarter
hard' )
I'm sure it'll be good for your car, but I believe it will be a little harder to work than 1050A H14.
(1050A H14 has a proof stress of 105MPa, but 5251 H22 is 165MPa - so harder to dent, but also harder to bend...)
Aalco give loads of info on the grades:
http://www.aalco.co.uk/literature/files/aalco-catalogue.pdf
quote: Also - although they happily talk about ordering an 8x4 sheet (2440mm x 1220) - it'll actually be 1500 x 2500 - apparently metric sheet
sizes are the norm for metal sheet (unlike wood!).
a lot of places do 2500x1250mm sheets too though
but your right the metal industry has been largely metric for more than 20 years now (except when it comes to the shape of some rolled and extruded
sections of course....)
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