Cutting the panel ma

[John Rucker]

>> Has anyone done, or considered doing, this?  To cut the
>> aluminum, I thought I'd try putting a metal-cutting blade 
>> on my table saw. That way I could get nice square cuts.

>   If you can, you might want to find a way to slow down 
> the speed of the saw.  Cutting metal is tricky and tends 
> to work better with a low speed cutting tool, especially 
> aluminum which is softer and has a lower melting point than 
> other materials.  Too high friction heat will cause the 
> aluminum to "burn".  A good speed would be around 200-300 RPMs.

At a former job, I laid out sections of 1/4" aluminum sheet for
welding.  We cut the sheet with a standard circular saw using a
carbide blade (probably 30 - 40 teeth on the blade).  Was able to
cut a bunch of 4 x 8 sheets into ~15 pieces without needing to
sharpen the blade.  Used a stick of beeswax (found at many
hardware stores) to lube the blade a bit.  (Just _carefully_
hold it up to the side of the blade while the saw is running.
A slight film going in the first inch or so from the blade edge
should be fine.)  Take your time with the cut, and it should
work well.  You'll also get a ton of little aluminum shavings
to play with  :-)   Make sure you have long sleeves and goggles
on when you cut it, etc.

--John