I'm thinking of using a stainless wire cloth to make some trim pieces for my interior. I'm leaning towards a stainless filter grade material around a 0.15 in a Dutchweave. Is this stuff still going to be rigid or loose and flimsy? Does this stuff cut easy or snag? My project will require clean and uniform holes, any recomendations on cutting them? Lastly, other than McMaster Carr and the industrial supply categories on ebay, any recomendations on where to find some? I just need two small pieces; a 12" X 48" and a 12" X24" piece. Thanks a lot...
clamp it to a table with a peice of wood on top where you intend to make the cut, and amke a couple passes with a razor. or if you have really aamazing scissors (cutco) you can cut it with those
It depends on the wire thickness that the mesh is made from. It's kind of tough on the shears, but you can use sheet metal shears if the wire gauge isn't too thick. For thicker mesh you can use a 3" cutoff wheel in a die grinder. Clamp it tight in between two boards or something to keep it from shredding up at the edge where you cutting it. For cutting holes, a plasma cutter might be the way to go. If you can live with square or hexagon shaped holes, maybe use a dremel type die grinder with a very small abrasive cutoff wheel.
Geeman, I was at my local sheetmetal shop getting some 20ga for my floor, and they had some really cool decorative metal that had .25 holes and some that had .125" holes as well... in about a 20ga or so sheet, might try your local shop and see what they have... they also had brass and copper, not that you need that but for future reference.
Pegasus Racing sells stainless steel mesh: http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/advcat.asp?CategoryID=HARDWARE
Check Westbrook metal on Canion in Austin. If they don't have it they can probably get it, for buying smaller quanities of metal they can't be beat. I live in Wimberley and will drive all the way up there to buy whatever metal I need. They will sale you any size you need with a reasonable cut charge (I think $5) and if you are there check they scrap cans by the shears. The website is http://www.metals4u.com/ Johnboy
Hey thanks for the tips. Johnboy thanks for the link, I forgot about those guys, I will give them a try for sure. I'm sure once I can see and touch the stuff, I'll know if it's going to work out.
check with SmallParts.com they have a listing for s/s screen and a lot of other interesting items in their catalog. very easy people to deal with.
McNichols has the best catalog I've seen, even if you don't buy from them. They have made some one off sheets for us for special projects, of course that ain't cheap, but they seem to have everything. (1 800 237 3820) We've found McMaster to be the easiest source for small quantities, however.
http://www.thomasnet.com/nsearch.ht...eel+wire+cloth&navsec=search&heading=95162806 You might find some suppliers here.
I agree sometimes trying to order stuff that you have never laid your hands on is kind of sketchy at best....It kind is like that whole mail order bride thing...It may be perfect for the application, or you may end up wishing you could send her back. Johnboy
If you want to see the material before you actuall place the order, call Belleville Wire Cloth and ask them for a sample of the material. They sent me a number of 4" x 4" sample squares of several materials until I found what I was looking for, just an FYI for all of you out there like me that don't want to order things that wont work for you! http://www.bwire.com/
Sorry, Just realized this forum was THAT old. I found it through Google in my search for some wire mesh material, and figure I would spread word on a good source. My apologies.
tip: NEVER ask the guys in a sheet metal shop to see their "scrap" bins... i've been asked in no uncertain terms to leave a shop for doing that. seems that they call their leftover stock "dropoffs". some shops police their stock VERY strictly, and regardless of the size of a piece, make you pay the rate for it..... just saying, especially in this economy. BTW... when you get that idea fleshed out, share some pics!
That is very true, its almost like asking them to see their bank account or something, they get very defensive over what can and cannot be used. For that reason alone, some guys never throw anything away, and these are the guys with the dirtiest and most cluttered shops in the USA.
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