Thread: What tool to cut corrugated Iron

Do not use a angle grinder, as said above, it stuffs it.

LIke @Munsey said good pair of Gilbows will be your best bet. Gives good clean edge and saws will swarf with the hot bits wreaking your finish. @Savage1 Red and Green Avi shears and Left and Right cutting. Yellow are straight cut aviation shears.

Originally Posted by Savage1

I put a roof on our house a year or so ago.

Do they have to be perfectly straight edges? If they're covered ph a flashing or capping then the easiest and quickest way is to snip in a ridge or two then stand in one edge and pull the other edge up, it tears very easily but isn't perfectly straight.

Otherwise tinsnips, I've got an almost new pair of large Gilbows that you can borrow, provided I get them back. Other wise get a red and green handled pair.

I used a bubbler for a while but unless they're angled cuts then they're not needed, hard to cut straight with too.

No experience with power shears. All of the roofers I spoke to either use snips or tear it.

Hi

Thank you for the offer. Seing as so many suggest the Gilbows and looking at the hardware stores these dont seem to be expensive, I might just get a pair of those for myself. Thank you all.

Next question is where is the best value in Chch for these? And are ther any that I should avoid?

I am making a garden shed so flashing use will be minimal but its going to be a dam good shed. I will post images up when I have them of a progress in a new thread....in case anyone decides they like the idea of what I have done....

Here is an old carpenters trick for cutting corrugated iron lengthwise. Determine where the cut is to be made and make sure you turn the sheet over if required to get the cut in the bottom of a corrugation. Take a sharp cross-cut saw and hold it backwards (front of blade towards your body) and position the last tooth at the edge of the iron. Lift the front of the blade a couple of inches and hold it firmly (a bit of rag helps protect your hand), push firmly down on the top of the saw handle and drag the tooth down the full length of the corrugation. The tooth should make a deep scratch and it is important to keep it as one continuous gouge down the centre of the corrugation. Turn the sheet over and fold it back along the groove a couple of times and it will fracture neatly. Caution; the edges will be sharp! This is miles quicker and much safer than trying to use tin snips.

Originally Posted by gundoc

Here is an old carpenters trick for cutting corrugated iron lengthwise. Determine where the cut is to be made and make sure you turn the sheet over if required to get the cut in the bottom of a corrugation. Take a sharp cross-cut saw and hold it backwards (front of blade towards your body) and position the last tooth at the edge of the iron. Lift the front of the blade a couple of inches and hold it firmly (a bit of rag helps protect your hand), push firmly down on the top of the saw handle and drag the tooth down the full length of the corrugation. The tooth should make a deep scratch and it is important to keep it as one continuous gouge down the centre of the corrugation. Turn the sheet over and fold it back along the groove a couple of times and it will fracture neatly. Caution; the edges will be sharp! This is miles quicker and much safer than trying to use tin snips.

I will give that a try too. Thanks Gundoc. I have a few sheets I will need to rim lenghth ways...

i go ta metal guarded skilsaw and put an 8"metal cutting disc in it .iron was nailed on so just marked the cut then went for it -no wuckin furries!make sure youre wearin full protective gear though .Have used jigsaw as well but its a tad slow!

Originally Posted by gundoc

Here is an old carpenters trick for cutting corrugated iron lengthwise. Determine where the cut is to be made and make sure you turn the sheet over if required to get the cut in the bottom of a corrugation. Take a sharp cross-cut saw and hold it backwards (front of blade towards your body) and position the last tooth at the edge of the iron. Lift the front of the blade a couple of inches and hold it firmly (a bit of rag helps protect your hand), push firmly down on the top of the saw handle and drag the tooth down the full length of the corrugation. The tooth should make a deep scratch and it is important to keep it as one continuous gouge down the centre of the corrugation. Turn the sheet over and fold it back along the groove a couple of times and it will fracture neatly. Caution; the edges will be sharp! This is miles quicker and much safer than trying to use tin snips.

Still done today but an easier way to do it is use a Stanly knife , brake the tip off (3mm) . It's easier to hold and controll & really tears into the iron . Roofers use the battery power sheers now .

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14'' Gilbows

Originally Posted by 2Quack

+1 for tin snips and ripping it with gloves

Your onto it 2quack + a boot on it for across corros easy n fast

Got a roofing mate. As Munsey said, a cutoff wheel is a big no no

Same as you use for A-cat safes.

i find this a quick method of cutting corrugated iron, takes a while to file the edges clean though