If you have ever strolled through a metalworking shop, particularly when sheet metal is involved, you’ve likely seen these massive shearing machines littering the floor. Odds are pretty good that you didn’t know what they were used for at a first glance. Thankfully we are here to help you out. Today we are talking about shearing machines and the specific benefits and uses of the guillotine shearing process. If you plan to work with sheet metal at any point in the future then you had best pay close attention.
What is a shearing machine?
A shearing machine is the initial step of the sheet metal manufacturing process. Before you can even dream of a finished product you are going to need to run your sheet metal through a shearing machine in order to cut it down to size. Somebody has to do it, right? A shearing machine is a large device that allows for the cutting of different kinds of sheet metal. There are a variety of different kinds of shearing machines but today we are going to focus on the guillotine shearing process.
Guillotine Shearing
Alright, so the guillotine shearing machine is almost self-explanatory purely from the name of the device. This large metalworking station is used to cut down sheet metal in to a particular and specific size. There are several different things you want to consider when working with a guillotine shearing machine.
1. Metal Gauge – You cannot just put any piece of metal into the guillotine shearing machine that you own. You have to be particular with what kinds of metal work in the different kinds of machine. Smaller guillotines are used for smaller gauge steels. Larger machines, with more force behind the bite, work with those heavy gauge steels.
2. Price – When selecting a metal shearing machine you are going to be introduced to a large variety of different options. As far as automation goes, guillotine shearing is among the easiest to use without having to stay hands on. As a result, guillotine shearing is much more affordable.
The process of guillotine shearing involves feeding your material into the actual guillotine and aligning it to the size and shape that you want. After the material is locked in place you engage the machine and initiate the heavy guillotine blade. The guillotine blade uses kinetic energy to cut the sheet metal at the appropriate angles, sides, and force requirement. This is one of the quickest and easiest ways to manufacture sheet metal for use.