Titanium help

[newnitrofan]

Sup guys well I just purchased a pretty solid sheet of Titanium it is aircraft grade and is .160 thick or 4.064 mm thick. Well I plan to make some TVP's and possibly some other stuff for my savage. I need to figure out what I need to purchase to cut it and polish it. I have a drill press for putting all of the necessary holes in it and a bench grinder for de burring it and a dremel for most of the detail work but I am wondering what the hell I'ma cut it with. Anyone have any good ideas. It is aircraft grade 6AL4V Titanium. I'm pumped to do this. I am sure it would have been easier to just purchase some hardcore crap but what is the fun in that?

 

[GilBeQuick]

Dang man, I don't know what you'd use to cut titanium. I know if you buy a titanium ring, they tell you that it can't be resized because it's too hard of a material.... and if you ever get in a car crash or something and they need to get the ring off but can't, they have to cut your finger off because they've got nothing that can cut a titainium ring. Sounds crazy, but 2 different jewelery stores told me the same thing.

There's gotta be a conventional way though. I'd start out trying a grinding wheel on a Dremel or somthing like that.

 

[newnitrofan]

Hmmm Gil I was thinking of using the dremel but for that size of titanium I was thinking that a dremel would just take forever. I am thinking of getting an 4inch grinder with a good solid cut off wheel to cut it that way I could use some serious cut off wheels to get after it. I am also wondering what to polish it with.

 

[Domination]

Got enough dough for a water jet or CNC machine?? LOL

 

[StrechM]

You have your work cut out for you, no pun intended. Usually you would use a laser.

This may shed some light on the subject.
http://www.supraalloys.com/Machining_titanium.htm

and this.
http://www.timet.com/fab-p21.htm

 

[olds97_lss]

After reading stretchM's first link, it looks like you have your work cut out for you.

I use a reciprocating (jig) saw to cut cold steel for making parts, but I wouldn't know where to begin with titanium. It looks like in the second article that a band saw is used, so you might want to start with something like a reciprocating saw at first just to see if it will cut.

 

[newnitrofan]

Yeah from what I have read it will be best to use something that cuts slow but fine. Apparently titanium has a tendancy to spark and cause fires so I will have to be plenty careful. Thx.

 

[roundrocknitro]

A plasm torch will cut anything. do you have an extra $100,000 layin around?

 

[newnitrofan]

Hmmm stretchM's second link says if you have some sort of coolant or oil based water around than most any sort of cutting wheel on a slow RPM should do it. I think this is going to be easier than it honestly sounds.

 

[newnitrofan]

Just wanted to update this thread for all of the naysayers saying it can't be done. Ok first off I'm gonna straight up admit it's going to be a lot more work than I originally thought. However When I'm done I'm gonna have me one bad ass ride for sure. Don't know how original I will be with designs but I'll figure something out. Honestly It would probably be easiest to just throw this thing in a CNC Mill machine but I just don't have it in me to do so. Newayz I found that with my old ass hacksaw with a blade that is probably about 8 yrs old it will cut it slowly but it will get cut. Here's some pics. I'll update with more pics when I manage to get s'more cut.

www.nitrofan.net/dscf1060.jpg
www.nitrofan.net/dscf1061.jpg
www.nitrofan.net/dscf1062.jpg
www.nitrofan.net/dscf1063.jpg
www.nitrofan.net/dscf1064.jpg
www.nitrofan.net/dscf1065.jpg
www.nitrofan.net/dscf1066.jpg

Edit: the pics were to big for forum rules so just click the links.