Best Way To Punch Holes In Sheet Metal

Simply sandwich the sheet metal between two pieces of wood and clamp everything down on a table or workbench.

Best way to punch holes in sheet metal.

Always use a clamp or three. This tends to equalize the sheet stretching of both halves. With some punches it s difficult to. Punching holes is an easy and effective method but one has to have a punch for every required diameter and shape and punches are expensive.

When hole shaving the machine uses the same die size but two different punch sizes for the same hole. This strategy also can mar the sheet though so it may not be practical if the punched part is cosmetic. For clean precise holes in thin sheet metal make a wood sandwich. Using a step drill bit.

We ll start by marking precisely where the punch hole will be in the metal. Special drill bits suitable for sheet metal exist but are difficult to find. Ares 10005 metal hole punch set 3 32 inch to 9 32 inch punches and dies included for aluminum brass and steel sheet metal and more 4 7 out of 5 stars 19 27 42 27. This punch is the best all around sheet metal punch we offer but it does still require some labor effort to punch holes.

Measure and mark your metal. It punches first with the smaller punch say 9 8 mm in diameter and then follows it with a larger postpunch like with a 10 mm diameter tool. Hole shaving is yet another way to minimize sheet distortion. Your first step should always be to locate the centers of all the holes you will need to make.

Twist drills are great for small diameter holes. The usually have a rake angle close to 90 and a point angle figure below also around 90 instead of the classic 118. Pneumatic metal hole punch if you need a quick way to make punches in metal close to the edge than a pneumatic punch flange tool is the quickest and easiest we offer. How to work with sheet metal.

Alternatively if a sheet has symmetrical hole patterns you may be able to punch half the sheet flip it over then punch the other half. Make a dimple dent to guide your punch or drill. The wooden bread layers of the sandwich keep the sheet metal flat and prevent the drill bit from wandering as it bores through the sheet metal.