Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello All Again.

I noticed in some of the posts you guys mentioned "ripping down" the alum. trim to a certian size. Excatly how does one go about that since it's aluminum.

If you use tin snips, it would leave an uneven edge.

Also, what is the optimum "thickness" for angle or "T" trim to be able to bend it around cuves (not sure how to spell RADI ?) 1/4", 1/8", 1/16", etc.

thanks,
Bob

Welcome Bob, as for ripping down aluminum I used my table saw with a tight fence and anti kick back feathers. Even with all that I still had a small amount of aluminum cuttings and they got tossed into my stomach yes ouch!

That was the first time that I was injured by my table saw or any other table saw.

After I cut it down I still had to sand/file the edge smooth. Believe me it is much easier to buy the right size in the first place.

As for the radius I used a piece of scrap plywood cut the correct radius into it and then slowly bent the annealed t moulding around it.
Dan

Roberto wrote:Hello All Again.

I noticed in some of the posts you guys mentioned "ripping down" the alum. trim to a certian size. Excatly how does one go about that since it's aluminum.

If you use tin snips, it would leave an uneven edge.

Also, what is the optimum "thickness" for angle or "T" trim to be able to bend it around cuves (not sure how to spell RADI ?) 1/4", 1/8", 1/16", etc.

thanks,
Bob

I used 1/16th and .050 thickness for angle and T moulding.

In ripping aluminum angle you can use a table saw with a zero clearance blade insert. Don't try it w/o the zero clearance insert. Any saw blade will cut the aluminum but I used a carbide tiped blade. (was the one on my table saw).

I've also used air shears (purchased from HF). They are a joy to use when triming the .040 sheet aluminum used on the sides.

For Aluminum trim I used 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/16 (if you can find it .050 works as well). The only ripping I did on the angle was at the small radius on the door. As I entered the area of the radius I trimmed the aluminum down to 1/4" so it would bend w/o kinking in the small radius. Works much better than leaving it at 1/2 inch. I used air shears to do this triming.

Edited:
Just read Dan's post. Yes, wear long sleeves a thick shirt and at least goggles if not a face shield. Dan's right. Buy the right size.
g

Another thought:
Buy the T moulding form a Teardrop supplier and it will be the soft aluminum you can bend w/o annealing. Mine worked great.

Tip: Buy all your aluminum at one time. The PVC tubing and shipping will eat you alive.

g

javascript:emoticon(':thinking:')
Thinking Could you please explain the " zero clearance blade insert" part.
I don't understand what that is.

- - - Bob

Roberto wrote:javascript:emoticon(':thinking:')
Thinking Could you please explain the " zero clearance blade insert" part.
I don't understand what that is.

- - - Bob

If you look at your table saw, most have a plate that the blade rises up through. This plate has a slit that is much wider than the saw blade itself. A zero clearance plate is just wide enough for the saw blade to clear. Without a zero clearance plate or insert, the narrow aluminum trim has a tendency to be "eaten" by the blade. That is it is drawn into the slit or space between the saw blade and the insert. With the zero clearance plate there is no slit for the aluminum trim to drop into.

Does that make any sense what so ever???

If, when the blade grabs the trim and pulls it into the slit (no zero clearance) it could also drag your hand (fingers) with it. Or sling it up into your face. Either way, Not good.

geron

Roberto wrote:javascript:emoticon(':thinking:')
Thinking Could you please explain the " zero clearance blade insert" part.
I don't understand what that is.

- - - Bob

...think of it like this...if you make a wooden insert to fit into the insert space on your table saw...then put in place with the saw blade all the way down and slowly crank the saw blade up (while running) so that the blade slowly cuts it way up thru the wooden insert untill it is fully raised, you now have a zero clearance blade insert...this helps keep the chips from flying back at you...a real necessity it cutting aluminum...a couple of feather boards are very handy to keep the Al from trying to jump up, also
madjack

Yeah, that's how to do it but I used the right thickness aluminum instead of wood. thickness needs to be such that the plate matches the table on your saw so every thing slides across it smoothly.

g

Uh ohh ..here I go again with another stupid question. Rather than ripping on a table saw, can you get better results using a router table and feeding the stock through a series of feather boards?

For some trim I also used a router table and made a tunnel shape fixture to run the aluminum through. Using a variable voltage with the voltage cut to 40V the 1/4" carbide cutter ran slow enough to cut clean without melting the metal and balling up in the cutter.

Roberto - You might consider using a band saw with a fence to rip aluminum extrusions and shapes. Smooth, precise and safe. Fred Live simply - that others may simply live......

Thanks to all.
Geron - Yes your explaination made 100% to me.

I have a table saw, band saw and a router. "Which to chose - - which to chose"

thanks again,
Bob

Just for grins...make sure on your aluminum that you file off any exposed edges or sand them, get rid of a sharp edge...this happened to me on a piece of sheared 1/8 aluminum diamond plate....only a few stitches showing on the top...but the muscle looked cool...45 stitches total.....at any rate...think ahead...Safety First...this was on a boat trailer accident...(2002)...and no one was hurt during the cutting or installation of the material...it all happened after the fact.....In this case I was a "Homer"....Doug

Doug, Nice zipper! And an even better warning. A picture is worth a thousand words. Gloves are a good idea also.

A picture is worth a thousand words...but in this case it was worth 1400$....something to think about....Doug