Laser case cutting in UK

[Andrew Wasielewski]

Can anyone recommend somewhere in UK which does custom laser case cutting?
I want to get a 120mm fan hole cut in the top panel of my Lian-Li PC-71.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Hank]

Can anyone recommend somewhere in UK which does custom laser case cutting?
I want to get a 120mm fan hole cut in the top panel of my Lian-Li PC-71.

Thanks in advance.

What? The UK doesn't have die grinders and cut-off wheels?

 

[Gary W. Swearingen]

Can anyone recommend somewhere in UK which does custom laser case cutting?
I want to get a 120mm fan hole cut in the top panel of my Lian-Li PC-71.

You've probably already considered cutting the hole yourself, but I'll
suggest it anyway as I'm in a sharing mood. I've only done this for a
steel case, but I suppose that it should be about the same for Al.

Buy or borrow something like a Dremel tool and get the cut-off wheel
"bit". (It probably should be called an "arbor".) They have at least
two kinds of wheels, both are about 2 mm thick. Don't get the kind
that is about 15 mm in diameter and looks like an orangish ceramic
which is very brittle (but OK for fine grinding if used carefully).
Get the one that's about 25 mm and made of a cross-hatched fiber
impregnated with some grit. Blackish.

BE SURE to wear eye protection and maybe one or two gloves (though the
gloves might reduce your ability to cut smoothly). Be prepared for
lots of fine ground metal flying for a few feet. Sparks usually don't
carry enough heat to burn things, but be prepared for them too as they
could ignite fumes or make you jump or something.

Draw the circle you want to cut. (A child's pencil compass works OK,
but actually scratching a line deep into the metal might be better if
you want a very clean hole.) Maybe draw another with 2 or 3 mm less
radius. Hold the spinning cutting wheel with axis parallel with the
case surface and lower the wheel into the surface 2 or 3 mm inside the
first-drawn hole line, until the wheel is sticking out the other side
about 1 mm. (That's about the safest. Deeper might cut better but it
is harder to avoid jamming the wheel in the cut. Being careful to
keep the wheel axis passing over the center of the hole, so as to not
twist the wheel in the cut (maybe binding up), continue the cut
around. Depending on your skill and daring, you can cut closer to the
line. If you're clutzy, you can even not try to cut a round hole, but
just make a series of straight lines, like maybe a 12-sided polygon.
When the "hole" drops out, use the same tool to grind away your safety
margin, grinding very close to your line, and finishing off with the
sandpaper sanding drum attachment and/or a semi-round file and/or
sandpaper.

 

[Andrew Wasielewski]

Thanks Gary,

I am the proud owner of a Dremel, & have made extensive use of it cutting up
& then rivitting my case back together in order to fit a Vapochill inside
it. I have certainly thought about doing it that way, but not sure how
steady a hand I have. As this will be on the top of the case I want to have
a really neat job.

I thought about a 120mm bi-metallic hole cutter for the Black & Decker, but
can't find that either.

I'll carry on thinking about it...

 

[Gary W. Swearingen]

As this will be on the top of the case I want to have
a really neat job.

Another thought: Given the softness of your Al, just scribe your way
through it with a hard-tipped compass. A light touch with a rigid
compass should give you a nice clean edge.

If you don't have a suitable compass, find some kind of swing arm
about 10 mm across and about as long as your hole diameter. Drill
through one end and into your case at the center of the desired hole.
Remove the drill, leaving the bit to function as the pivot. Shorten
the swing arm so it is the width of a hacksaw blade from the desired
hole edge. Break the end off an old hacksaw blade about 15 mm from
the end and put a screw through its hole into the end of the swing
arm. Mount it at an angle so that the tooth next to the break will
make a good cutting edge. Adjust the length, maybe lightly testing on
the inside of the case, maybe using shims under the blade. From the
outside of the case, scribe very lightly at first and a bit more
heavily as the scribe deepens. It'd probably be best to go all the
way through from the top and then clean up the inner edge corner with
sandpaper, rather than cutting from both sides and trying to clean up
the ridge that would be left at the halfway point of the edge without
touching your nice clean outside edge corner.

You could make a trial run, going only part way into the metal on the
inside, using an alternate pivot hole in the swing-arm for a shorter
radius.

 

[Ric]

Thanks Gary,

I am the proud owner of a Dremel, & have made extensive use of it
cutting up & then rivitting my case back together in order to fit a
Vapochill inside it. I have certainly thought about doing it that
way, but not sure how steady a hand I have. As this will be on the
top of the case I want to have a really neat job.

I thought about a 120mm bi-metallic hole cutter for the Black &
Decker, but can't find that either.

I'll carry on thinking about it...

use a 120mm holesaw and suitable arbor for your drill. you NEED CUTTING
LUBRICANT! make sure the case is firmly clamped before you start. when
finished, a dremel rotary file takes the burrs off.

p.s. it's a 4.5mm drill for the mounting screws.

ric