Aluminum Thickness

[Airspeed]

I am getting ready to skin my trailer and cant decide on aluminum thickness for the top. I am pretty sure I will use some thicker stuff for the sides because I want it to be as smooth and flat as possible but my top has a couple of fairly sharp radius. I dont know how difficult aluminum will be to bend around the front and rear curves,here is a pic of the tear. Thanks for any suggestions!
Aaron

[Airspeed]

Front, It is hard to get a side pic of my tear because I am building it in the foyer of my basement shop and I only have 16" on each side for construction, I dont even know for sure what the entire profole looks like yet! and I wont be able to see it until I cut out a post in front of the shop doors so I can pull it out of the shop. Will .04 aluminum bend around this radius or am I asking for a tough time? Thanks again! Aaron

[Phil & Ningning]

Mine is .032. I would have used .025 if could have gotten it. There is really no need to go thicker if it is all backed with wood.
Incidently, per Cubby plan, my roof is not backed with wood, just al on the spars. Even there, .032 seems plenty.

Phil

[Airspeed]

I am trying to imagine how easily it bends, does the .032 bend fairly easy? does it feel flimsy? I guess Im asking something so subjective that it is hard to answer but I have to travel about 100 mile to pick it up and may have to order some if it is not what I want. I just dont want to make two trips. Thanks again! Aaron

[sdtripper2]

Airspeed:

Aluminum sheet thickness?
For bend-ability yet strong and ease of use:
The short answer for many in the past would be .032 sides & .040" thick for roof for a sweet spot~


The long answer would be below:
************************************************************
Aluminum Sheets
Thread will explain how to cut 103" x what ever size sheet aluminum
http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=12863

Examples of grading and sourcing of Aluminum:

The 3003-H14, 5005 & 5052-H32 aluminum sheet grades comes in 48 or
60 wide, and 96 , 120 , or 144 long.
Most prefer to use .032"-.040" thick for the walls and top if possible.
In 4 foot sizes that is very easy to find. The 5' or 60" sizes your choices are slim.
It comes down to manipulation of thicker stock that is the issue.

If anyone finds sources for .032" or .040"in 60" x 120" sizing let us know please.

For the roof the .050" is about as thin as you are going to find.
.050" 60" x 120" any thicker like .063" and people complain its heavy & hard to work.

Aluminum Tutorial and grading:
http://www.ez.org/aluminum.htm

Three examples of Aluminum grades used for TD's:
3003 This is the most widely used of all aluminum alloys. It is essentially
commercially pure aluminum with the addition of manganese which
increases the strength some 20% over the 1100 grade. Thus, it has all the
excellent characteristics of 1100 with higher strength. It has excellent
corrosion resistance. It has excellent workability and it may be deep drawn
or spun, welded or brazed. It is non heat treatable. Applications: cooking
utensils. decorative trim, awnings, siding, storage tanks, chemical
equipment.

5005 This alloy is generally considered to be an
improved version of 3003. It has the same general mechanical properties
as 3003 but appears to stand up better in actual service. It is readily
workable. It can be deep drawn or spun, welded or brazed. It has excellent
corrosion resistance. It is non heat-treatable. It is well suited for anodizing
and has less tendency to streak or discolor. Applications same as 3003.

5052 This is the highest strength alloy of the more
common non heat-treatable grades. Fatigue strength is higher than most
aluminum alloys. In addition, this grade has particularly good resistance to
marine atmosphere and salt water corrosion. It has excellent workability. It
may be drawn or formed into intricate shapes and its slightly greater
strength in the annealed condition minimizes tearing that occurs in 1100
and 3003. Applications: Used in a wide variety of
applications from aircraft components to home appliances, marine and
transportation industry parts, heavy duty cooking utensils and equipment
for bulk processing of food.

Sourcing examples:
Detroit, Michigan:
Factory Steel & metal supply
http://www.factorysteel.com/
Chart to scope out and select your 3003-H14 stock from Factory Steel
http://tinyurl.com/yxgsrg
Note: (For Roof - They have .050" 60" x 120"
That is considered about as thin as your going to find to work with.)
***

Southern Aluminum Finishing * SAF *
Locations click:
(Touted by (Sonetpro) Get over 200lbs shipping is free)
http://www.saf.com/alumsheet.html
Chart to scope out and select your 5005 stock from * SAF *
http://tinyurl.com/yj4ppe
Note: (For Roof - They have .063" x 60 x 120"
That is considered heavy & hard to work. It is do-able though.)

Metal Supermarkets:
Store finder clicky
3003-H14 .040" 60" x144" *The sweet spot*
http://tinyurl.com/yk8xrw
5052-H32 .050 60" x144"
http://tinyurl.com/yk8xrw
***********************************************************

[Airspeed]

You say .032 for sides and the thicker .040 for the roof? am I reading that correctly? By the way ,thanks for all the info,I am sure the answer is right there but I curious about this before I go searching and learning to make sure I understand right away! Thank You Very Much!!!! Aaron

[asianflava]

I used .030 (I think) for the entire trailer. I used 5X10 flat sheets for the sides and 105in coil for the roof. I rented a U-haul truck for the sheets and drove about 110mi in my truck to pick up the coil.

[sdtripper2]

You say .032 for sides and the thicker .040 for the roof? am I reading that correctly? By the way ,thanks for all the info,I am sure the answer is right there but I curious about this before I go searching and learning to make sure I understand right away! Thank You Very Much!!!! Aaron

AAron:

The .32" & .40" is a ball park figure many here will advise on this thread.
Just note that many complain on the bending of anything thicker than 040"
for the roof. This sweet spot is an unofficial accumulated data point of many
threads and from many who have skun-da-skin so to speak.

Also know that sometimes shipping can be an issue but if you buy so many
bucks worth you can get free shipping, see > Southern Aluminum Finishing * SAF * ?

[Airspeed]

Thanks a ton! I checked out SAF and they opened a plant in Redding Ca. which is only an hour and a half from me and it looks like I can get all the aluminum I need (one- 5'X10' and two- 4'X10' ) for $300 FOB or have it delivered next day for $75 shipping,with the price of gas I may just pay them the $75 freight. Last time I drove to Redding in my pickup it cost me
about $50 in gas.
They also sell bronze anodized for about $20 more per sheet, I wonder how that would look?
Thanks again! I cant wait till the morning to order this up!! You saved me a bunch of stress! Aaron

[tonyj]

I used .032 for all of mine. It was thicker and stiffer than what I expected it would be. Lays pretty flat. You shouldn't have a problem on the front radius. The transition above your taillights might be a problem, although if it is a smoother radius than what the picture appears, you shouldn't have any problems there either.

My aluminum isn't bonded to the wood, just fastened by the trim.

[Airspeed]

Thanks, The radius above the tail lights is a little smoother than it looks but I have been thinking up ways of making a curved brake to prebend it at that point just in case. I may put a joint near that radius and use some thinner material there to get around it, I will know more when I get the material. Thanks again! Aaron

[Airspeed]

I was just checking out the SAF website and it will actually be cheaper to order 4 sheets instead of three since they wave the shipping at 100 lbs.
I will have the extra material to cover my battery and propane box that will sit on the tounge.
I cant believe how much stress has been lifted off my brain finding an outlet for these materials localy. Thanks again!
Aaron

[tonyj]

You could probably lightly anneal the area right at the curve to make the bend--just don't heat too much or you'll burn through.

Just my opinion, but I would avoid putting a joint in that area if you don't have to. You don't want anything to distract the view from the beautiful lines you've designed.

[madjack]

Aaron...we use .032 on everything...once you get over .040 it starts getting harder to bend...I think the annodized would be really "tuff" lookin'...not to mention the easier maintenance of the annodized over mill finish...when skinning the hatch...I would fasten the AL at the top, lay it in place and use a couple of straps and 2x4s to force the bottom radius(one 2x4 above and one below...
madjack

p.s. an Al handling warning...due to size of sheets, it is very easy to flex them while handling and put a crease in it...you will never get that crease out...also if using mill finish, try to get it with a protective plastic sheet on it...peel just enough of the sheet back to allow you to work on it...leave sheet on until all constuction is finished...mill finish AL is soft enough to scratch just from looking too hard at it..........MJ

[Sonetpro]

I was just checking out the SAF website and it will actually be cheaper to order 4 sheets instead of three since they wave the shipping at 100 lbs.
I will have the extra material to cover my battery and propane box that will sit on the tounge.
I cant believe how much stress has been lifted off my brain finding an outlet for these materials localy. Thanks again!

They also sell bronze anodized for about $20 more per sheet, I wonder how that would look?
Aaron

Aaron,
Check out their extrusions too. I ordered all of mine through them. They shipped them all in 16' to 18' lengths. (no seams)

All of my sheet was ordered clear anodized.

Bronze would look good but then trim would be a challenge. You can't anneal anodized trim.