Stainless steel strips-cutting

[eljainc]

Hello,

Does anyone know how one would cut strips of stainless steel without warping/twisting them? We are interested in strips about 1 ft long, 1/4" wide and 1/16" thick. One can buy stainess steel coil, but then it has to be unbent/uncoiled and restraightened.

I inquired today with an outfit that uses lasers to cut metals, but they said the heat from the laser would warp the metal also.

Is there any place that sells stainless steel strips about this size?

Thanks

[Shane123]

why not buy it in roll form at the correct thickness and width, and build a 3 roll set of rollers to flatten it back out as you unspool it? then you can just unspool as much as you need and cut it off right on the other side of the rollers. (unspool it like a portable steel banding cart.)

[Geof]

Shane123 has the correct idea. You should be able to get strip with those dimensions and it will probably be easier to build a straightener than try and get strips laser cut. I had a recent project that needed stainless strips 3/8" by 0.04" formed into arcs 12" long with a radius of about 15". It took me ten hours to modify a little roll former to bend exactly what I needed.

[rock4xfab]

Laser cutting SHOULD not be an issue... if they no what they are doing. But, you could also have have it sheared to size unless you need a Perfect edge.

[Shane123]

here is a rough draft of my idea. could easily use some 3x3 square tubing as your frame, and the rest should be simple to draft off of.

[snoeproe]

Metal shear or plasma cutter?

[Shane123]

either one would work, but i think a sheer would be faster...