Cutting Aluminum Sheets

[Ari]

Drew, by rail saw do you mean a track saw, with the rail?
Like this: https://www.busybeetools.com/product...CABEgIxkPD_BwE

[PRJ]

Ari I have that same Rototrim and I've cut aluminum with it no problem, if you don't mind tossing the cut off part. The cutter must stretch it or something because the cut off part is always wavy and pretty much useless. If you plan to cut small pieces off a larger piece you will have a lot of waste. I don't think it would be worth it for you. You might want to take a look at those shear cutters.

Hope that helps you...

[Ari]

Good to know, thank you, it does help a lot. Some real-world experience.
I'd be cutting 12" x 24" or 24" x 48" sheets down to 8x10 and 4x5 pieces.

I do have a Rotatrim coming in September, which will still see lots of use as a paper cutter.

[Ari]

I bit the bullet and bought this: https://www.kakaindustrial.ca/collec...shear-and-roll
I found a Canadian supplier of 24x48 aluminum sheets, and will have those cut down to 8x48 lengths. That way I can cut my own sizes whenever I need plates.
A friend also needs a steady supply of 8x10 plates, so we'll split the costs.
Including shipping and taxes, this will bring my costs down to $0.44 per 4x5 and $1.79 per 8x10 plate (USD).

[Tin Can]

Good choice!

Don't try the Rota-trim, save it for paper

[Ari]

I had a pretty serious 24-inch guillotine cutter, made by Xacto.
Size and price were right, but the guillotine introduced bending and uneven flatness after cutting.
For wet plate, shears are the way to go, and they should be big enough to cut your largest side in one chop.
I don't see myself going bigger than 8x10, so a 12" shear was the solution.

[Tin Can]

I have 2 guillotine, used only for film, since new

[Ari]

The shear/brake/roll machine is, well...awesome!

It cuts very clean and precisely. Once I have the machine set up for a certain size, it cuts easily and with perfect repeatability.
Got it going now on 8x10 plates, cutting 8 plates per minute.
Yes, this is how I now spend a Friday night.

For a small investment, it was worth getting perfectly flat, properly-sized plates.
The guillotine cutter left me with un-square plates that were also bent or otherwise deformed. Not easy to work with those.

[ghostcount]

Glad you took the press advice.

Make sure you clean the backside of the plate well prior to plunking it into your precious silver bath. Oil/grease with deleterious FOD tends to have legs when it comes in contact with plates. A clean image is what you should strive for.

[Ari]

Randy, I disassembled and cleaned the machine before using it. It came covered in grease.
The sheets I cut yesterday had nothing on them, but I will clean them just to be sure. Thanks