Page 68 - Issue 45

II
II
Tinman Kustoms

Advanced Sheet Metal

& Shaping Tools

WORDS AND IMAGES BY LUKE MERRILL (TINMAN 2 KUSTOMS)

heet metal shaping is equal in demands of physical Tools used for “advanced” sheet metal & shaping:
execution as it is in thinking and planning every step  Bead roller
Sin advance. In the previous article we discussed  Metal break
the basics of sheet metal fabrication. While the basic  Sheet metal roller
steps I laid out within the prior article still apply; within  Shrinker/Stretcher
this article I will cover some of the more advanced  Planishing hammer or English wheel
tooling that can assist in transforming your metal work  Dimple die set
into something outside the realm of the average Joe’s  Metal shears
arsenal of options. The next article will show and explain, Notice that I have mentioned numerous tools above.
in much further detail, “how-to” examples with each of These can get expensive, so if you are not going to be
these specialized tools. doing anything extravagant or high in fi nesse, you can
SO, WHAT IS “METAL SHAPING”? perhaps stick with utilizing the methods discussed in the
Metal shaping, in my eyes, is the process of previous article, but the thought & execution process is
transforming a piece of fl at steel into something on a the same.
more 3-dimensional level. This can be done in numerous
ways, but it’s essentially stretching, shrinking and forming Bead Roller:
material around an object. Whether that object is a » A bead roller adds signifi cant strength to fl oor pans
planishing hammer head, the dies of a bead roller, or a and other more structural sheet metal items by adding
hammer & dolly. The metal will always take the shape of 3-dimensional shape to the part.
the object that it’s pressed or beat against.
» The rule of thumb with engineering for strength is to
Shrinking: Compressing material to make it smaller in consider the thickness of material. If you want a fl oor
overall size, but thicker where shrunk pan that is as strong as 16 gauge, you can actually
use 20 gauge and add a few bead rolls (strategically)
Stretching: Extending material to make it larger in overall and it can be stronger than a fl at/smooth piece of 16
size, but thinner where stretched gauge. This cuts down on weight, slightly and adds
character to your work. 20 gauge is also cheaper than
Tip: When doing shaping you must consider the 16 gauge because of weight.
stretching effect of the tools used. Metal shaping is sort
of like chess, you need to think a couple moves ahead and The Mittler bros power bead roller that I use is the best
plan for the victory. Another similar example is bending on the market, and is used by almost all major fabricators
brake line; every bend in one spot will change how in the industry For the one time job you can consider a
another spot down the line will fi t. harbor freight (or similar) low price roller.

68 RAT ROD MAGAZINE ISSUE FORTY-FIVE

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