Well, I was here 6 months ago. I've now cut a ton of aluminum with a router, and it's great! (Once you get the right bits.) A spiral bit of HSS is fine. I grabbed a few ¼" (6.25mm) bits for this. The HSS did fine, but the solid carbide, 2 and/or 3 flute bits are magical. One of the other reasons these are so great is that they shave curls rather than rip chunks. So it helps the mess, and keeps a majority of it from becoming aluminum dust. Just make sure you use a good router, (and a good router table) NOT from Harbor Freight. An aluminum cutting bit can be $7 or $170 depending upon type. So buy one around $20 (I prefer CMT bits from Italy as they have really great carbide, creepy sharp edges, and they're easy to clean any aluminum that might be stuck on them. Lastly, and most importantly... DUST COLLECTION!!! Aluminum is one of the worst things to cut as it can be easily breathed in and lodge in sinuses and lungs. Then it's RIP. So use a high quality vac with a hepa style, 1 micron filter. Also, a high quality cartridge mask... not a simple layer of material most ppl use.
I made an Aluminium repair piece for a V pulley on my Atlas pillar drill using a wood working router, I even ended up using a small milling bit with great success, works great!
I’ve used carbide tipped wood working tools for several aluminum and steel projects on the bridgeport. They work fine and if you need a cutter on the weekend than a run down to the home center will get you up and running again!
Cutting a few bits of aluminium with a router bit works fine. I've done that a few times but it will wear them out pretty quick. It's a handy tip if you are building your first CNC router. After that you can use proper carbide bits and let the CNC machine do the work.
Yup, both bit used were carbide. Still look and cut like brand new too. I'm sure they will wear out faster then cutting wood, but that's true of all tools.
Sorry by proper carbide I meant solid carbide with spiral flutes, ideally with 45 degree angles. These will have a shearing action and will last longer. But you needed the bearing guide on the brazed carbide wood routing bits.
Aluminum was, at one time, considered the “poorman’s oak”. Any and all cutting tools, used in hand or machine tools, used to cut wood can be used to cut and metal, ferrous and non ferrous. So long as the cutting tools are kept sharpened, and honed. Back in the 90’s I turned a full sized solid aluminum bat on a shop smith, using nothing but a broken pipe wrench handle out fitted with a 1/2” Bondhus Allen wrench, shaped in much the same way a lathe cutting tool is shaped. Those were the halcyon days of yore.
I would of not tried a wood router bit for that but gives me some ideas. Probably never use that bit again. How is the edge after using it? Or one bit and done (with the bit that is)?
The bit looked just like it did when I started, cut just as nice too. I'm sure it will wear out much faster on steel and aluminum, but it should still last for a while.
one thing that i highly recommend is using some beeswax when cutting aluminum with wood bits. Hell any bits. it really helps in stopping the aluminum from sticking to the bits.
I was looking for ways to cut .090 Aluminum and THIS would work... I have a CarveWright Hobby CNC that I can cut the guide from... Even make a 4 leg jig with a center vacuum head that held the aluminum blank needing to be trimmed... Keeping my fingers out of the cutting area for a 2 x 3 inch tag... THANKS !!!
It doesn't matter for a couple plates, but If you are going to do lots of aluminum, then use carbide tools. Aluminum itself is very soft, but it has layer of aluminum oxide on it's surface (especially when it's anodized or weathered) and this isn't the best stuff for HSS.
two questions: what about chip welding, did you use any lubricant? what about using a roundover instead of a chamfer, to get a little bit into the 21st century?
No problem with chip welding, my guess is the high speed of the router helped with chip evacuation. Also feeding it by hand, I was able to get a good "feel" for speeds and feeds. I think a round over bit would work just as well, though getting the depth right might be a little trickier.
A couple of years ago a student in the Robotics build team was trying to rip some aluminum extrusion on the bandsaw and making a mess of it. I said "cut it on the table saw." He thought I was nuts. I said "Give it here." I set up for the cut, every student in the shop retreated to the far end. Cut through it like butter and left a super nice finish on the cut. I cut aluminum with carbide tipped circular saws a lot. Doesn't bother a thing and works very well. Noisy though, put on the ear hole pluggers.
Good job getting an odd shape cut out nicely, two suggestions, firstly be careful with gloves and spinning tools, I have witnessed that go bad for a co worker. Second tip, use plastic contact film like you would to wrap your school books to protect the mill finish on the Aluminium. Saves you time in getting any scratches out after cutting it out.
I agree on both points. I stopped using the gloves after the first cut after realizing my mistake. Good call on the contact paper. I will have to pick some up.
Phillip Ramirez but wings aren't always about downforce, that depends on how is the wing and its features set up, downforce helps for grip, which causes drag, reducing acceleration and top speeds, on the other hand you could get it set up for better top speed and acceleration, resulting in less downforce and grip.
The actual effect is to make your car look crazy awesome to 14 year old boys, and like it's owned by a complete tool to the rest of the population. It also tells the cops who to keep an eye on.
John Ridley easy to assume, do you know if the guy doesn't do track time? I'm guessing you wouldn't like it if anyone told you a hobby you have makes you look like a tool, but then you would demand respect for what you do, keep your stuff to yourself man.
yeah car owner still enjoys it on the street and being in Florida convertibles are nice to cruise around in. simply add the hard top when going to the track, best of both worlds!
This is the way to go. I am unsure if either my half inch mdf or my 8th inch alminum template would work with a plasma and router and collar. ...Also, I have 20 half inch holes and 12 quarter inch holes, and found it very time consuming with a drill press. First, I would spray paint through the template, then find the center of the hole and mark, then drill the center with a small drill (I got off when I didn't do this step), then drill the half inch holes. I could cut out 3 steps by blasting the center of the hole with the plasma cutter through the template. I am wondering if anyone has tried this with failure or success?
i need to copy a part that is made of wood that i will me making out of aluminum, this technique will help, except i have a jigsaw and not a plasma cutter
I don't think the issue is with the cutting head. Carbide will go through aluminum no problem. The problem is all the aluminum shavings getting into your exposed router motor and ruining it.
Try routing titanium sometime and let us know how expensive they look. For me though, routing metal is not too bad on my bits, but most of that is just squaring up pieces, light passes only ofc. For one of those 'dedicated bits'-type jobs, I'd plan on buying extras of a good cheap one or 2 I knew for basic one-off stuff like in the video. As long as you're not wanting to churn out baseboard moldings from 6061 bar stock or something else ridiculous, most of your woodworking bits would likely do just fine with most light metalwork, provided you know what you're doing and don't get in a hurry. Of course, if I had a plasma cutter I wouldn't need to route so much metal in the first place.
Great video as usual, but the subject matter is up for debate! Is the S2000 a rear wheel drive car as a starting point? Secondly, send your friend over to the 'Engineering Explained' channel and look up diffusers, looks to be a better way of getting some serious downforce.
It's a total waste of time even having that wing on the car. The airflow will be so disturbed that it won't work. Nice machining, but a total waste of time
Likely because (pure speculation here) the wing is just bolted to the trunk, simply for aesthetics. No real engineering as far as air flow and management with regard to the rest of the car. Further, unless the wing is tied into the frame of the car, any significant downforce produced would buckle the trunk lid like a tin can. Same with the splitter on the front. Likely pure aesthetics. Doesn't look like the support rods are bolted anywhere close to an actual structural part of the car. If it produced real downforce, it would just rip right off the bottom of the bumper. It's his car. If he likes the way it looks, more power to him. I know I dig it.
So I used to do racecar suspension and aero for high speed stability: I don't know much about s2000 flow dynamics specifically but I can tell you that wing is easily in the path and probably not at much reduced pressure. Without knowing more about the angle and shape of the wing I couldn't tell you if the purpose is to create downforce or reduce the cd, but there's no reason it couldn't be for either. It also looks like it's mounted at the seam of the trunk, so even without reenforcement that area could take a few hundred pounds per side. Way more than a wing that size is capable of. I know wing size want limited by his track category too (afraid I didn't recognize the category, haven't been building track cars for a long time) Don't forget that most cars produce lift at the rear in higher speeds, which is less than great in wide corners and an otherwise balanced car.
Ryan Wilhelm Hasn't thought about reducing the CD, that's a good point. And now that you point it out, having it mounted over the seams is a clever way to add structure. And while you're correct that most cars get light in the back at speed... I can't help but think he'd benefit more from an air dam in the front, with the splitter much closer to the ground. It seems like it would be easier to keep air from getting under the car, to keep the back end from getting squirrely in long sweeping turns. But I'll obviously defer to greater experience. Thanks for the education!
Well, I was here 6 months ago. I've now cut a ton of aluminum with a router, and it's great! (Once you get the right bits.)
A spiral bit of HSS is fine. I grabbed a few ¼" (6.25mm) bits for this. The HSS did fine, but the solid carbide, 2 and/or 3 flute bits are magical. One of the other reasons these are so great is that they shave curls rather than rip chunks. So it helps the mess, and keeps a majority of it from becoming aluminum dust.
Just make sure you use a good router, (and a good router table) NOT from Harbor Freight.
An aluminum cutting bit can be $7 or $170 depending upon type. So buy one around $20 (I prefer CMT bits from Italy as they have really great carbide, creepy sharp edges, and they're easy to clean any aluminum that might be stuck on them.
Lastly, and most importantly... DUST COLLECTION!!! Aluminum is one of the worst things to cut as it can be easily breathed in and lodge in sinuses and lungs. Then it's RIP. So use a high quality vac with a hepa style, 1 micron filter. Also, a high quality cartridge mask... not a simple layer of material most ppl use.
Good job on the process, really accentuated the shopping cart look on the car!!
I made an Aluminium repair piece for a V pulley on my Atlas pillar drill using a wood working router, I even ended up using a small milling bit with great success, works great!
It is amazing which of the softer metals can be cut and shaped with wood working tools. Nicely done.
Wow, wood bit gives surprisingly decent surface finish too!
Whoa, no spoiler warning for the end?
*I am involved in a different racing format, is that a functional vs decorative spoiler? It looks like it probably works.*
@@1nvisible1 It's a wing, not a spoiler.
I’ve used carbide tipped wood working tools for several aluminum and steel projects on the bridgeport. They work fine and if you need a cutter on the weekend than a run down to the home center will get you up and running again!
Very cool video! Moar efficient downforce!
I'll have to make some of these when I get my 280z done.
I’ve been using my wood band saw to cut aluminum and it works fine, even to 1/2 inch plate
Don't grip the torch tight. Use a very light touch. This makes it easier to keep a constant torch travel speed.
Cutting a few bits of aluminium with a router bit works fine. I've done that a few times but it will wear them out pretty quick. It's a handy tip if you are building your first CNC router. After that you can use proper carbide bits and let the CNC machine do the work.
The router bits he used had carbide cutting edges. Guess you're not into wood working...
Sure looks like a carbide router bit to me.
Yup, both bit used were carbide. Still look and cut like brand new too. I'm sure they will wear out faster then cutting wood, but that's true of all tools.
Sorry by proper carbide I meant solid carbide with spiral flutes, ideally with 45 degree angles. These will have a shearing action and will last longer. But you needed the bearing guide on the brazed carbide wood routing bits.
4:00 use push paddles. Keep you fingers safely above the bit. NEVER wear gloves near power tools.
Aluminum was, at one time, considered the “poorman’s oak”. Any and all cutting tools, used in hand or machine tools, used to cut wood can be used to cut and metal, ferrous and non ferrous. So long as the cutting tools are kept sharpened, and honed. Back in the 90’s I turned a full sized solid aluminum bat on a shop smith, using nothing but a broken pipe wrench handle out fitted with a 1/2” Bondhus Allen wrench, shaped in much the same way a lathe cutting tool is shaped. Those were the halcyon days of yore.
That sounds epic!
Mods on cars usually are not the greatest ting lol. Thanks for the info about milling aluminium! WOW!
I would of not tried a wood router bit for that but gives me some ideas. Probably never use that bit again. How is the edge after using it? Or one bit and done (with the bit that is)?
The bit looked just like it did when I started, cut just as nice too. I'm sure it will wear out much faster on steel and aluminum, but it should still last for a while.
do you think a bit like this would work on somehting thicker, like say 1" 6061?
although it might not look the best on the s2k but at least you made it yourself and put in the effort, I respect that
one thing that i highly recommend is using some beeswax when cutting aluminum with wood bits. Hell any bits. it really helps in stopping the aluminum from sticking to the bits.
What about to adapt plasma cutter in the cnc laser?
Why is watching a router table cut aluminum so soothing?
Lol because aluminium cutting sound is not on
I was looking for ways to cut .090 Aluminum and THIS would work... I have a CarveWright Hobby CNC that I can cut the guide from... Even make a 4 leg jig with a center vacuum head that held the aluminum blank needing to be trimmed... Keeping my fingers out of the cutting area for a 2 x 3 inch tag... THANKS !!!
I like this edit, well done!
looks great. I wonder is there a risk of a bit of swarf falling into the motor?
Unlikely, the S2000 has it in front
Groovy! Them routers are pretty handy. Adam Carolla used his to bevel a stone countertop.
wow... wish i had seen this earlier! after just cutting out my new end plates with a bloody jig saw!! haha... love the router idea!
It doesn't matter for a couple plates, but If you are going to do lots of aluminum, then use carbide tools. Aluminum itself is very soft, but it has layer of aluminum oxide on it's surface (especially when it's anodized or weathered) and this isn't the best stuff for HSS.
xy4648841fd He did.
two questions: what about chip welding, did you use any lubricant? what about using a roundover instead of a chamfer, to get a little bit into the 21st century?
No problem with chip welding, my guess is the high speed of the router helped with chip evacuation. Also feeding it by hand, I was able to get a good "feel" for speeds and feeds.
I think a round over bit would work just as well, though getting the depth right might be a little trickier.
Candle wax on the bits will stop Aluminum from sticking .
Or a nice ogee, to take it back to the 17th?
Nice video. Good editing and music
A couple of years ago a student in the Robotics build team was trying to rip some aluminum extrusion on the bandsaw and making a mess of it. I said "cut it on the table saw." He thought I was nuts. I said "Give it here." I set up for the cut, every student in the shop retreated to the far end. Cut through it like butter and left a super nice finish on the cut.
I cut aluminum with carbide tipped circular saws a lot. Doesn't bother a thing and works very well. Noisy though, put on the ear hole pluggers.
Good advice. Have you seen the TH-cam channel sv seaker? He will even shape aluminum by hand with a table saw. That even makes me nervous
yikes. Yeah I don't do anything with a table saw except straight cuts. Table saws require caution.
Dude hat has happened to the surface grinder project? It has been so long since you give updates about it. Hope to see it in action soon
Sorry man, if I only worked on the surface grinder I would go crazy. The next video will probably be about it though
Why not anodize (type2, with dye) the plates?
Where was your ground clamp when plasma cutting?
Jeff - Linda Wells The entire table is conductive. Clamp below the surface so it's never in the way.
poor honda, it looks so so ugly :(
And color don't match
Good job getting an odd shape cut out nicely, two suggestions, firstly be careful with gloves and spinning tools, I have witnessed that go bad for a co worker. Second tip, use plastic contact film like you would to wrap your school books to protect the mill finish on the Aluminium. Saves you time in getting any scratches out after cutting it out.
I agree on both points. I stopped using the gloves after the first cut after realizing my mistake. Good call on the contact paper. I will have to pick some up.
great idea, nicely done!
They would look nice dyed in anodized black.
You should have put a spoiler warning in before showing that spoiler.. :P
He could have put a spoiler alert at the beginning of the video!
Does increase efficiency equals to saving fuel?
I'm thinking more like reducing aerodynamic drag (which results in saving fuel and better performance, in certain cases)
More downforce means more drag which means less fuel efficiency.
Phillip Ramirez but wings aren't always about downforce, that depends on how is the wing and its features set up, downforce helps for grip, which causes drag, reducing acceleration and top speeds, on the other hand you could get it set up for better top speed and acceleration, resulting in less downforce and grip.
The actual effect is to make your car look crazy awesome to 14 year old boys, and like it's owned by a complete tool to the rest of the population. It also tells the cops who to keep an eye on.
John Ridley easy to assume, do you know if the guy doesn't do track time? I'm guessing you wouldn't like it if anyone told you a hobby you have makes you look like a tool, but then you would demand respect for what you do, keep your stuff to yourself man.
Why not if it does work! You could swap laser head to plazma cutter from begining :)
Great video
Will this fit my Honda?
Looks like Florida. Is if?
Nice job.
How much downforce does that wing generate? I mean - I wouldn't feel safe sitting on those struts, and that's where all the downforce goes.
Nice. Go to all that work to improve aero efficiency with those end plates an destroy the aero with that roll bar creating turbulence.
It actually has a hardtop when on the track. And also this is a track car, so a roll cage is mandatory.
yeah car owner still enjoys it on the street and being in Florida convertibles are nice to cruise around in. simply add the hard top when going to the track, best of both worlds!
I'd anodise the plates and mounting bolts to some darker colour, if possible.
This is the way to go. I am unsure if either my half inch mdf or my 8th inch alminum template would work with a plasma and router and collar. ...Also, I have 20 half inch holes and 12 quarter inch holes, and found it very time consuming with a drill press. First, I would spray paint through the template, then find the center of the hole and mark, then drill the center with a small drill (I got off when I didn't do this step), then drill the half inch holes. I could cut out 3 steps by blasting the center of the hole with the plasma cutter through the template. I am wondering if anyone has tried this with failure or success?
I've always thought spoilers look like a towel bar in a bathroom. They have the same aerodynamic effect, as well.
i need to copy a part that is made of wood that i will me making out of aluminum, this technique will help, except i have a jigsaw and not a plasma cutter
I don't think the issue is with the cutting head. Carbide will go through aluminum no problem. The problem is all the aluminum shavings getting into your exposed router motor and ruining it.
Neat project! Ridiculous damn-sure-compensating-for-something-mobile car.
a paper template and a band saw would have been done by the time it can be drawn on the computer.
Nice job
Excelent, You Genius !
Hey man, that's amazing! :-)
that is some Florida shit right there, great info.
Never a fan of the S2000 but with that spoiler it looks ridiculous... But solid work making them.
Cool!
Hey, nice work, but is that purely for aesthetics? It doesn't make a lot of sense as far as i can tell
spoiler kicked in yo
Dope
To this day he claims that plate added 7 horse power.
If nobody tells him, it's a placebo, he won't know.
I'm simply too afraid of damaging my expensive bits, and flat out scared of buying a cheap bit for aluminum.
Try routing titanium sometime and let us know how expensive they look. For me though, routing metal is not too bad on my bits, but most of that is just squaring up pieces, light passes only ofc. For one of those 'dedicated bits'-type jobs, I'd plan on buying extras of a good cheap one or 2 I knew for basic one-off stuff like in the video. As long as you're not wanting to churn out baseboard moldings from 6061 bar stock or something else ridiculous, most of your woodworking bits would likely do just fine with most light metalwork, provided you know what you're doing and don't get in a hurry. Of course, if I had a plasma cutter I wouldn't need to route so much metal in the first place.
Great video as usual, but the subject matter is up for debate! Is the S2000 a rear wheel drive car as a starting point? Secondly, send your friend over to the 'Engineering Explained' channel and look up diffusers, looks to be a better way of getting some serious downforce.
It's a total waste of time even having that wing on the car. The airflow will be so disturbed that it won't work.
Nice machining, but a total waste of time
why because the roofs down?
Likely because (pure speculation here) the wing is just bolted to the trunk, simply for aesthetics. No real engineering as far as air flow and management with regard to the rest of the car. Further, unless the wing is tied into the frame of the car, any significant downforce produced would buckle the trunk lid like a tin can.
Same with the splitter on the front. Likely pure aesthetics. Doesn't look like the support rods are bolted anywhere close to an actual structural part of the car. If it produced real downforce, it would just rip right off the bottom of the bumper.
It's his car. If he likes the way it looks, more power to him. I know I dig it.
So I used to do racecar suspension and aero for high speed stability: I don't know much about s2000 flow dynamics specifically but I can tell you that wing is easily in the path and probably not at much reduced pressure. Without knowing more about the angle and shape of the wing I couldn't tell you if the purpose is to create downforce or reduce the cd, but there's no reason it couldn't be for either. It also looks like it's mounted at the seam of the trunk, so even without reenforcement that area could take a few hundred pounds per side. Way more than a wing that size is capable of. I know wing size want limited by his track category too (afraid I didn't recognize the category, haven't been building track cars for a long time)
Don't forget that most cars produce lift at the rear in higher speeds, which is less than great in wide corners and an otherwise balanced car.
Id love a video on these topics ! Can you make it happen for us ? Pretty please?
Ryan Wilhelm Hasn't thought about reducing the CD, that's a good point. And now that you point it out, having it mounted over the seams is a clever way to add structure.
And while you're correct that most cars get light in the back at speed... I can't help but think he'd benefit more from an air dam in the front, with the splitter much closer to the ground. It seems like it would be easier to keep air from getting under the car, to keep the back end from getting squirrely in long sweeping turns.
But I'll obviously defer to greater experience. Thanks for the education!
The end plates may be efficient - the way producing them wasn't for sure!
To make one set, probably not the most efficient. But for making 10-20, much more efficient then cutting them out by hand.
Sorry I didn't watch until the end...
Two . . . foam turds . . . connected by phone cable . . . yeah that's pretty much the Internet!!!
Make it wooden with the help of the Woodglut instructions.
Nice clean job but Really!?!?!!? Need more down-force for what!????
the car might fly away without it, seeing its so fast
Hi
Woodglut instructions is nice for that.
Fucking thing looks like a shopping cart.
I admire the workmanship, but it's a little moronic looking on that car.
That spoiler looks tacky... ruined his S2000...
MUSIC. Make this intolerable. Bye after 10 Seconds.
Two words : Anno and Dice ...
Join them together
Lose 1 letter N
Change 1 letter C into a letter Z
NO! Please don't try this at home, is too dangerous, you can draw your item and to let cutting it with industrial laser.
Hello