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Metal Gauge Guide
Being new at this, I was just wondering if there is a rules of thumb or a handy table for what metal gauge to pick as a starting point for certain items. For instance, what would be a typical ga. be for a motorcycle tank in steel or in Alum alloy, what about fenders?
Thanks,
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Brian Holmes Whitby, Ontario, Canada |
#2
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Brian,
Most parts for cars and motorcycles are made of 19 gauge steel, it is hard to find so many use 18 ga instead, Measuring thickness of older auto sheet metal, you will find much of it was 20 ga. My advice would be 18 ga for all mc stuff and some car parts needing more strength. otherwise 20 gauge for cars. Ask for commercial steel, pickeled and oiled. That is hot rolled with the mill scale removed (pickled) and a light coating of oil applied to prevent corrosion. In Aluminum, 16 gauge is the normal choice, The most used alloy is 3003 H14. It foms nicely and in most cases will not need to be annealed, Often 5052 is a more available alloy It is more difficult to form and work hardens very quickly. It can be used but will not teach you much about metalshaping as the material is constantly working against you. Good luck and get started on some metalshaping. You will learn more by doing than you will by talking about it here. After a weekend of mistakes and experience, reading posts here and asking questions will be more meaningful. If possible, hook up with someone nearby to exchange ideas. Even another new person. working together you both learn more in a shorter time. Attending a meet is the best of all.
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Richard K Last edited by Richard K; 03-16-2011 at 06:38 AM. |
#3
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Here in the UK I order 1mm CR 4 steel there is no problem getting it and it is as close to 19g as I need. If I order 19G I can end up with .9mm or 1.2mm which is the same as 18g. I think it would be very hard work working in 18g for many parts, 20g is getting a little on the thin side.
Aluminium I use 16g for most parts, some bodies are made from 18g some race cars have 20g bodywork but I would not recommend trying to work in ally that thin especially if you are new to it. David
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Metalshaping DVD. www.metalshapingzone.com Metalshaping with hand tools on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGElSHzm0q8 All things are possible. |
#4
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Like has been stated, 19 gauge is hard to get around here. I have made 95% of my parts from 18 gauge, however, when it arrives and I mic it I find it can be anywhere from 17g to 19g in actual thickness. I have made floors from 16g, but everything else is 18g only because 19g isn't readily available.
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http://www.shawnmarsh.com - My metalshaping portfolio as I get started in the world of metal. |
#5
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Metal Gauge Guilde
Thanks guys! Very helpful. I am off to buy some 18 ga, commercial steel, pickeled and oiled.
I attended the Whitby, Ontario meet a few weeks ago and the guys talked me through a nice bowl. I think that was in 14 ga. which was likely a good material to start with but which would have made a very heavy bike tank. I put the bowl pictures in my photo album on-line here.
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Brian Holmes Whitby, Ontario, Canada |
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Brian,
You did well on the bowl. You show some artistic flair with the apples in the bowl. You will enjoy this craft.
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Richard K |
#7
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Quote:
I was at the Whitby gathering only on Sat. The sheetmetal you made your bowl (a nice looking one) out of was probably 18g. That is what most of us use for steel projects, automotive or otherwise. I have done some motorcycle projects in the past and I have made the gas tank top out of 18g steel sheet and the tunnel/bottom out of 16g steel sheet. I am building a gas tank out of aluminum currently, and the top of it is being made out of .063" 3003. I will probably use .080" for the tunnel/bottom.
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Derrol Salmon |
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Hi Brian,
As the the guys pointed out above, 18 or 20 guage CRS is what most of us use around here. 19 guage would be nice if we could find it, but I've even had suppliers around here give me a sympathetic smile, shake their head, and tell me there's no such thing as 19 guage CRS. I guess the word hasn't gotten out this far north yet! If you decide to try out some aluminum, I'd also suggest using 3003, but stick to the .063" thickness for a while before venturing into the thinner stuff like .050" or thinner. Things happen pretty fast when working aluminum, and the extra thickness won't make much noticable difference to you as far as workability goes, but it will leave some extra material thickness to recover with later if you make a mistake along the way. I've been playing with aluminum for a while now, and I still have to watch the thin stuff alot closer as I work to prevent making foil out of it. I'm glad to hear you had a good time with us last month Brian. That bowl turned out pretty nice! Ken ps - I attached a couple of your pictures of your bowl from the Whitby event. I'm pretty sure this was 18 guage CRS, as I would have noticed anything thicker when we were cutting the round blank with the tin snips. Those apples look tasty.
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Ken Has anybody seen that key I left in the chuck? See Ken's Metalshaping Gallery at: http://home.cogeco.ca/~kenb2/index.html Website updated June 2011 Last edited by kenb; 03-17-2011 at 12:47 AM. |
#9
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Ken/Derrol:
Thanks for the notes. Derrol, I took a look at your blog, very nice tank/cafe racer building! I'll take a mic to the bowl and get an idea of what the starting ga. was. I guess it just feels heavier and seems to be more ridged then I would expect a piece of M/C sheet metal work of the same size to be. Maybe that is just the 18 vs. 19 ga difference. The Whitby meet was great! Everyone was so helpful in pointing me in the right direction! I was only able to make the Sunday but it was worth every minute.
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Brian Holmes Whitby, Ontario, Canada |
#10
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Is there any real difference between 20 gauge hot roll pickled and oiled and just 20 gauge cold rolled?
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