Ok, I'm lazy someone can surely save me some research here!
What is the thinnest commonly available aluiminium, I know you can get 1.0mm or thereabouts fairly easily, but is there anything thinner available as large sheets - I'm hoping maybe 0.5mm may exist???

thinnest available is in the kitchen draw..

lowest ive ever got hold of is 0.8mm. it was from an offcut used to make composite sign.

Looking in the stockholders catalogue on my desk you can get 1050-H14 in 0.5, 0.6 and 0.8mm 2500 x 1250mm sheets

The LocUst used to use 0.5mm over the medite MDF, so that should be available.

Cheers

Chris

Aalco sell down to 0.5mm

http://www.aalco.co.uk/

length x width x thickness weight in kg
2000 x 1000 x 0.5 2.71
2500 x 1250 x 0.5 4.23
2000 x 1000 x 0.6 3.25
2500 x 1250 x 0.6 5.08
2000 x 1000 x 0.8 4.34
2500 x 1250 x 0.8 6.78
2000 x 1000 x 1.0 5.42
2500 x 1250 x 1.0 8.47
3000 x 1250 x 1.0 10.20
2000 x 1000 x 1.2 6.50
2500 x 1250 x 1.2 10.20
3000 x 1250 x 1.2 12.20
3000 x 1500 x 1.2 14.60
2000 x 1000 x 1.5 8.13
2500 x 1250 x 1.5 12.70
3000 x 1250 x 1.5 15.20
3000 x 1500 x 1.5 18.30


[Edited on 9/2/09 by iank]

aalco will show it as a size they do but i call them must be 40 times a day for stock and have tried in the past to get 0.5 but rarely have it on the shelf,
iv never actually got hold of it when needed, but iv been told it is available you just have to do alot of searching, sorry i couldnt help further, you might be better with 0.7/0.8 if you can cope with the extra thickness as it should be readily available

chris

I've used .5 before to make a box trailer, really nice to form round curves, perfect if its just a bulkhead panel. Zero weight bearing though, even a stone thrown up by a wheel will put a big dent in it and on the trailer the wind make the panels ripple.

IIRC the Apollo moon Lander’s pressure hull was only the thickness of 5 sheets of tin foil, apparently the astronauts had to be careful not to accidentally stab it with a pen

Thanx chaps!