Punching vents in aluminium sheet

[kdn17]

Has anyone any ideas as to how I can punch a row of small vent holes in a thin sheet of aluminium - similar to those in the bonnet sides of a Roadster but much smaller e.g. 3" long by about 1/2". I don't have a fly press but I do have a large engineering vice

[Dane_Rescueman]

Re: Punching vents in aluminium sheet

Hi Keith,
Another idea may be to cut a neat rectangle out of the panel in question and then bond, rivet or screw in one of the ready made panels from Car Builder Solutions. They start at around ?15. Have a look at their web site.

Happy new year!

[Dane_Rescueman]

Re: Punching vents in aluminium sheet

Sorry Keith I forgot to enter the web site!
It is:
www.nfauto.co.uk

Good luck.

[dogoncrazy]

Re: Punching vents in aluminium sheet

Hi Keith
Have a look at RS Components web site-Mechanical-Hand Tools-metal forming equipment you may find what you are looking for.Lots of punches etc in various sizes-Good luck and Happy New Year

[kdn17]

Re: Punching vents in aluminium sheet

Thanks guys. Car Builder Solutions is an interesting site and I've bookmarked it for the future. I am interested in the idea of a preformed panel that I can bolt on to my little project but sadly, their stuff is all full size. The search goes on!

[b_caswell]

Re: Punching vents in aluminium sheet

How it was done with the JC Midge was, you machine or carve a male and female block of the required profile or purchased their blocks.Then with the ally sheet laid on a plank or board you use a very sharp wide wood chisel to cut the slots first. Then the tricky bit is to clamp the female block in position of the first louvre and with a mallet dress the male block down onto the metal driving it into the female block,before moving on to the next one. I only ever did this as an experiment but you need quite soft ally sheet or you could try the tricky job of annealing it. Best of British

[amalgamated users from prior forum]

Re: Punching vents in aluminium sheet

Message originally posted by: Stuart Benson
another solution is to use a bolster chisel for this. sharpen the edge of the chisel to a fine point and place a block of wood underneath it. it is best to practice on a test piece first, but it is a budget alternative that works
nb
this was done punching through zintec to form a slot when cladding the floorplan of a berlinetta, it was a bit ragged, but i am heavy handed

worth a try!