Cutting steel shim

[Clive BarkerParticipant @clivebarker72854]

I wonder if anyone has experience of sourcing and profiling steel shim material? I need to make a shim spacer of .012" – .015" thickness 1.5" wide by 7.5" long with several holes within the boundary. So far I have not found a reasonably cost effective supply (without buying much more than I need or a whole range of thicknesses in one batch).

The second challenge is to cut the sheet to size for a one-off application. I don't want to go to the trouble of making dies to punch holes. Also I would prefer to avoid sacrificing two pieces of steel plate to sandwich the shim before filing to size and drilling the holes. For this reason was wondering about laser cutting. Does anyone know of a reasonable cutting service?

Any other suggestions would be welcome.

Thanks, Clive.

[Clive BarkerParticipant @clivebarker72854]

[Brian WoodParticipant @brianwood45127]

Hello Clive,

A good many years ago RadioSpares used to sell packs of precision thickness plastic sheet for shimming, colour coded to indicate thickness.

You might be able to find that by Google search and all you will need to shape it is a pair of scissors.

If your application involves heat it might not be suitable, much will depend on the temperatures involved.

Otherwise I commend it.

Regards

Brian

Edited By Brian Wood on 29/09/2014 11:05:01

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Try Malcolm High at Model Engineers' Laser.

Neil

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

Cut it with good tin snips, or use a pair of scissors. A cheap way of punching holes, get a little steel block and drill a hole(drill press/mill drill) the size you want to punch, take the drill out of the chuck and file the shank end flat(a slight angle won't hurt), refit the drill in the chuck shank end down, bring it down and place the drilled block under it to line up the hole, clamp it in place, start punching holes. You should get quite a number of holes before it gets too worn. Made 200 brass washers that way, punched the 1/4" holes, then another set up and punched out the washers 1/2".

Ian S C

[Clive BarkerParticipant @clivebarker72854]

Dear Brian and Neil,

Thanks both for your replies. I didn't seriously consider non-metalic shim but upon reflection realise that there is no good reason not to use quality plastic. So, will try this avenue first as it solves the shaping issue.

Clive.

[modeng2000Participant @modeng2000]

What a good idea Ian, never thought of that way to make washers. I could have used it recently instead of mounting ac series of holes on a mandrel to turn the outside to size.

If the hole in the die turns out to be a bit larger than desired it can be closed up a bit by placing a ball on the top of the hole and hitting it with a hammer.

John

Edited By modeng2000 on 29/09/2014 14:00:16

[Old SchoolParticipant @oldschool]

Fosters lager can 0.004" shim aluminium

Edited By Old School on 29/09/2014 14:19:57

[Tim StevensParticipant @timstevens64731]

Another dodge I have used for bigger shim washers is to trap the shim between two pieces of plywood, or similar, (using engineers clamps etc) and then carefully use  a smaller hole saw until you are through one side and the shim. Then use the larger size from the other side. This won't solve the small holes problem but it does work for stuff like gearbox shafts.

And I remind you that paper (such as manilla) can make a thin shim, too – as easy to shape as plastic but more heat-proof.

Cheers, Tim.

Edited By Tim Stevens on 29/09/2014 17:17:54

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