Start Making With Metal - No Welding! 

I really like this format. Your humor has always been great, but this "I'm showing my brother's kid how to do it" vibe is really cool.

A Rip Taylor joke!?!?! Oh we are *old* my friend!

This video sure does make sign making seem more approachable.

Sandpaper on Aluminum edges seems a great way to come up with new cuss words.

Wesley Treat, for Mayor of all internet woodworkers/crafts ppl. Earnest, smart, no condescension, and a well of useful info and real no bullshit commentary on tools and techniques, not to mention entertaining. You have made me more confident in simply just beginning so many times.

If you are going to get into riveting, and doing a lot of it, save your hand, invest in a powered rivet gun. Pneumatic, electric, whatever you choose, a powered rivet gun will keep you from having to spend all that rivet gun money on painkillers and wrist braces.

The ratio for a caulk gun is the thrust factor that will be applied to the tube plunger from the force of you squeezing the handle. You apply 10 lbs of force, and it will apply 80 lbs to the plunger.

Im a automotive sheet metal worker and coach builder I can't say I disagreed with any of your statements and I watched the whole thing and learnt some things myself

All your videos are excellent, informative and nicely paced. This one is no exception and is absolutely a must-watch for many makers. You do not assume we know anything and you take the time to explain things simply. Experts (like yourself) sometimes get a superiority complex, you have not fallen victim to that! Thank you!!❤

The first nibbler I bought (to mod a computer case for my nephew) was a hand tool. The window in the computer case was incomplete when I bought my second nibbler. It was an attatchment for a hand drill. Like your pneumatic version, it threw the bites all over the place. Cleaning them up reminded me to wear gloves when dealing with metal. This also caused me to tape a shop vac hose to the drill to collect those bites. The ability to cut straight lines, then curves, and turn tight corners, all without changing tools, convinced me the nibbler was a brilliant invention.

That section on Fasteners was riveting.

One of the best RU-vid videos I've ever seen in any aspect. Thanks!

The trick that 99% of internet experts (and too many real experts, too) fail to mention: Cutting sheet metal with a jigsaw is *noisy.* Not a big deal, but you better plan accordingly. (Example: If you're not working in a dedicated workshop like Wesley but in your own home, warn your spouse before cutting, and try not to do it during times when there is something they want to watch on TV.)

Brit here, and language pedant. I am totally on board with the name Alumium - indeed the first person to isolate this metal, Sir Humphry Davy, called it Alumium, so yep. I suspect you knew this. Lets make this a thing!

Wow! Thank you for this. I feel like I've learned a decade or more worth of wisdom during these 40 mins.

For your holes, you can get any spade bit and grind the sides to whatever shape you want. You can make some interesting patterns in wood using the same technique.

I used those big metal shears (yellow handle, straight cut) to make aero mods for my cars out of galvanized sheet steel flashing, flat and l-shaped aluminum bars, pop rivets, and slotted hex washer head sheet metal screws. Used pliers, screwdriver, and hammer to fold over the edges to keep them nice and safe. Purely for fuel efficiency. Got 4.25% improvement in mpg at 55mph out of my 05 Accord from a subset of the mods.

I am a sign maker that cuts 063 aluminum all day long. Spiral up metal single flute bit with 60 to 70 Inches per min. 20000 spindle speed. Light oil or misting fluid. But the key is a vacuum table. Stick it down so it can’t move at all and you will be an aluminum cutting pro…

Wesley you are contributing to my tool addiction 😳 not to mention my skill set. I thank you sir. 😎

I haven't tried them yet, but the spade bit photos on the Harbor Freight site show that they also have the cutting spurs... Cheap enough to find out how well they work.

In the best way possible, you remind me of Alton Brown.

Safety tip when working with cut sheet metal: wear cut resistant gloves or leather gloves. It keeps you from getting small cuts in your hands and big cuts if the sheet slips and it hits you wrong. Jeans or another sturdy pants are also advised. Appropriate footwear means closed toed shoes unless you want to lose some toes and have them reattached if a sheet slides and falls on your foot. It will hut. A lot. You're gonna have a bad time. Steel toes aren't needed, but I would advise them, but I like my feet nice and intact.

As an armchair welder, rocket scientist, wood worker, brain surgeon, and carpenter ... you dun it all wrong.

A good horizontal bandsaw was the first big investment in my shop, and I still use it all the time. Definitely worth the extra cost to get a swivel head style, in my opinion, it makes changing the angle sooo much easier.

As a welder and plumber, I have complimented many welders and plumbers. I have also held my tongue many times when a weld looked OK but far beneath my standard or the plumbing wasn't done the way I would do it. But there is a lot of crap out there, welds that looks like bird shit, insufficient penetration, too much heat, plumbing that has inappropriate materials, poor routing, rubbing that might create a leak inside a wall years later, etc. I usually let people know when their welding or plumbing is garbage. Any way, I haven't seen you weld or plumb but if the reaction you get is so bad, you might have some Dunning-Kruger effect going on. Professionalism should include a certain amount of pride in craftsmanship that will make you strive to produce a product that will impress a professional. When I look at something I have made, the things that stand out to me are the details that didn't work out exactly as I planned or the one spot where my welds aren't as pretty as I like. A consumer that isn't a welder or plumber would almost certainly never notice the details that stick out like a sore thumb to me (because I know they are there). Another professional will notice those spots if I point it out or they examine it carefully but I have really fucked up if the first thing a pro says is "what happened here" referring to one of my less than perfect spots. Back to your video, hole saws can be great if you know what you are doing. I like a nice secure arbor to reduce chatter and walking. If you look at the saw material, it's like a bandsaw blade with the teeth pushed in and out in alternating fashion. If they cut a hole a bit bigger than you like, you can grind off a little of the outward bent teeth and sometimes that makes the hole saw cut smoother too. If you have a reasonable budget and need to do stuff like fishmouth thin wall tubes, look at rotary broaches (I think they are also called annular cutters). The cut quality is unmatched but you need a milling machine or a tube notcher to hold everything rigid during the cut. When drilling a hole for a rivet or self tapper, I would lay it out and use an automatic center punch to give your drill something to follow. I would also look at center drills and maybe extended length center drills. They are much more rigid with their large shank and I think the tip is a little better at following a center punch than a standard 118° drill tip. With all that said, I have done my fair share of sheet metal work and while I might have used slightly different tools, the only real.critique I can give is that the nose of the rocket is a focal point and you could have rolled one long piece to the radius of the rocket side, then bent it in your finger brake to create the point of the nose. That would be more symmetrical, less rivets. An average customer might never notice that but as a fabricator, that's the detail that sticks out, not because it looks bad or isn't a fine way to do it, it just makes me ask why. A reasonable answer would be "I didn't have a long enough piece of aluminum" or "I like rivets more than I like symmetry" but a lot of the time I hear stuff like "I didn't think of doing it that way" and I don't like to hear that from an artist or craftsman because that seems like a lack of creativity and the job of turning raw materials in to a quality product should use every bit of creativity you've got.

Ah so the spurred spade bit is Wesley's version of the Adam Savage mechanical pencil.

One thing to note, if you are bending aluminum go with a 3000 or 5000 series alloy as they are softer and bend easily. 6061 alloy will tend to crack and break when bending as it is a harder alloy.

Great video. Knipex pliers wrench works great for bending small pieces of metal and not damaging the surface.

The nibbler is a ninja. It throws shuriken.

as a welding teacher, i support this video! :)

Great video as always, Wesley! A tip about feeds and speeds: I use the “tools today” tool database, which is available on their website. It has all the feeds and speeds for every Amana bit they sell. Not using an Amana tool? Simply choose the tool with the same attributes as yours (say, a 1/4 radius, 2 flute, down cut bit) and you’re golden. This database has never let me down and has saved me hours and money for sure.

Totally on board with you on this, many people over look working with alumium (that's so much easier to type), when making products they want to sell. I fell into it by accident, never looked back, before that, chaning a fuse was about as hands on as I got with anything. If you have a bench grinder, get a fibre wheel for it for deburring, it does it in a fraction of a time. As for the CNC on alu, if you want to take decent cuts in it, get DLC coated bits, single flutes, they cut clean, fast and no lubricant required. I have numerous vids on my channel about this, I cut up to 3mm thick in single pass with these daily. They'll certainly do the 1-2mm no problen and fast! i cut 2mm alu 24k RPM, 1500mm per minute cut speed, with a 3mm (1/8th) bit 90% of the time. Thats on 1050, 5000, 6000 series alloys! A lot of 1050, that's my go to and that;s the one they tell you, you can't machine - I have videos on that too!

Nice! I've been welding (and a welding supervisor, and a weld engineer, of sorts) since the 1980's. I was trained in school (half of the welders reading this are already thinking I know nothing, now), have a stack of qualification certs bigger than I can measure with a 300mm rule (pissing more of them off), and I am not a great welder. If it meets requirements, that is what matters. Your welds are fine. With all of this, I just riveted my new shed together. Faster, easier, did the job. Fit, tack with a Cleco, drill the rest, lay in sealer, reassemble, and rivet. Fast. Easy. Sufficient, and will never leak. Used the hydraulic shear, break, and Beverly at work for the flat sections, used an air hand shear for the galvalum siding, and an air nibbler for a couple penetrations. Greenlee chassis punches for other penetrations. I did do the edges with a flap style scotchbrite disk on a grinder and a hand file. With that, I learned a few more things to try next time. (and from the comments, as well) Thanks

Harbor Freight sells those spade bits with the burrs under the brand "Warrior." Right now they are $6.97 for a set of 13!

This was fantastic! I could watch this all day.

I make roofing from time to time and I use nibler, and few years back I boght one wich have set of two cuters- first is nibler make those quater moon she..t and second make same springi croll like Ur shear. And work realy good. I use it all the time.

Great video. I love watching artists explain their process. You’ve made me think quite literally, “hey, I could do that.”

great... now I gotta buy new tools and add them to my collection

Another reason besides the obvious to wear safety glasses: aluminum isn’t magnetic unlike other metals so it could mean the difference between the ER doc using a magnet to take out the shard out of your eye or digging it out 🫣

I bought a jet version of that band saw 20 years ago. I use it upright 90% of the time. I have had nibblers for years. Mostly used for body work. Pain in the ass tool. We use with a vacuum so its not a pain in in the foot tool. A few years ago i bought a nibbler that goes in a drill. It is so much mor versitile because you can rotate the head and drill to get infinite combinations compared to the air nibbler.

This video was so fun, I hated for it to end.

This is amazing, perfect timing, just got a rivet set for my 50th birthday trying to learn new stuff after having watched this channel for several years, keep jo the great work, you’re an inspiration for many of us :)

This is a pinnacle of RU-vid content. So much information shared in a friendly, interesting way. Thank you for teaching. Also, I was thinking... I suppose one could grind a spade bit in such a way to reveal spurs which could be honed.

I really loved this video!! As someone with zero knowledge of the subject, it's really cool to see so many different ways to do the same thing. I'd love yo see more videos in this format!

Such a Treat to watch! Love your videos man. Always happy to see a new video pop up.

This is why I subscribed to this channel to start with love the sign episodes

Finally!!!!!!! Love it!

I've been told that spot welding aluminum is not possible. But I saw a guy on line do it by putting a scrap of stainless steel on both sides. Spot welding is also known as resistance welding because it uses the metals resistance to electricity to heat the joint. (And aluminum has good conductivity but stainless does not.)

I built a trailer with custom spare tire carrier and tongue jack mount and a modular sport rack for bikes and kayaks that attaches to the trailer with no welding. Metal cut off saw and a drill press basically.

Hang on. You’re in Dallas?!?!

Loved this! Really does make it seem so much more approachable that I would have thought. Thanks Wesley!

You are a true master at your craft❤

Holey Smokes, you called em hand seamers!! At work we call them anything but. Foldies, wide pliers, flangers, and Gray's (preferred brand).

I think Ryobi still has spurs on their spade bits. I bought a Ryobi "all in one" bit kit for a portable toolkit and it had spurred spade bits. According to HomeDepot's website it looks like the Ryobi 10-piece wood spade bit has spurs and looks nearly identical to the Irwin ones.

I guess if you made a metal shark head, you'd have a use for those cutouts.🤔

Awesome video Wesley, thank you!! You answered a lot of questions that I've had.

Outstanding. Very informative. Maybe I don't need to learn how to weld.

Quite a riveting video😉

Bless you, Wesley! What a friendly, generous and useful video!

I really appreciate this video, thank you!

FYI, RU-vid auctions on Ebay have a bad reputation; in general, a user will bid up the item "thinking it helps" and then won't pay. Ebay doesn't ban these users (for a single non-payment) or even attempt to verify an "over the top bids". At the end, you have a closed auction without a winning bidder.

Thank you this and every other video you have made, it's been incredibly valuable for my growth as a maker. I made my first 14' illuminated sheet metal marquee sign last year and it was incredibly satisfying, especially spraying it with the weathering fluid you suggested. One thing I've been doing with my aluminum project enclosures is flow drilling, it lets you make a tapped hole in thin material and saves on rivet nuts. I appreciate you!

Speedbor drill bits can easily be sharpened. I have drilled a lot of holes and destroyed the edges on them hitting nails and wires! Break out a cut off disk and re grind a new edge, some of my bits are over 30 yrs old. I only replace em if I bend or snap them in half, I have reground them as well to make exact sizes that I needed. also try the 12" bits

That is the most I have leaned in the shortest period in a long time! I had to set some counter sunk rivets recently in .100" aluminum. Using an 1/8" Dewalt countersink tool made for wood worked just fine. Getting the rivet flush is more of making a diameter Gage as a "check tool" (or a caliper) and matching OD as you plunge the taper. Also bonding metals can also be done as you say. My go to is 3M 08115 Panel Bond. They use it in automotive construction and repair. It will not come apart! Needs it's own 2 part caulk gun Joining your Patron, take my money LOL

Really interesting video. Thanks, Wesley.

Great video with some great info. Thanks

So many cool tips, makes me itch to try it out. Always a fan of your art. Thanks for sharing, fellow nerd!

Great video!!! Thank you!!! I love working with aluminum for all of the reasons you mentioned! Great ideas and techniques! I’m going to use those!!!

Thanks for all the tips! Always amazed by your sign work and patinas you do on each one.

This was awesome!

Since you're doing a lot of sheet, I suggest looking into getting a Beverly shear -- that's a USA-made brand name, aka, throatless bench mount shear. They're awesome. They're a GIANT pair of snips. Also, regarding your spade drills, you can always use a grinder to cut those tips if they wear or break off.

Awesome video Wesley!

Fantastic video thanks for making it

Love the video Wesley! I actually loved watching your doughnut sign video and makers sign video so much that I started making a Marquee sign in February. I found spade bits with the fangs on Amazon and they were great. I drilled about 100 holes. Keep up the great work!🔥

Coming from your previous video, I'm disappointed that the rivet squeezer doesn't actually make that cool sound :(

I was like, did Wesley just make a Discworld reference?!? But no, Terry Pratchett made a D&D reference. It’s turtles all the way down, man.

This video couldn't have come at a more perfect time. I just got over 30 000 rivets last month and I don't know what to do with that many. Now I know something I can use them for and at the same time fill my walls with fun stuff! :D

Wesley, if you haven't already visited, I'd suggest a visit to The Neon Boneyard in Las Vegas, lots of history and I think you'd thoroughly enjoy it.

the spade bit with wings is actually made for sheet metal and diablo makes ones just like the irwin ones you showed.

Harbor freight paddle bit Warrior brand still have the spurs. Great video!!

Cnc suggestion - 1/4in single carbide o-flute I have been successful with 18k rpm at around 100ipm (2540mm/min). I believe it was less than 1/8(3mm) 6061 aluminum.

nice type of video, thematic education!

Cool video. Seems like solid advice.

Great film. Super informative. Mahalo for sharing! : )

This was great

With regards to the nibbler Milwaukee now has a battery powered one. It does chip collection. Don't know how well it works but just wanted to pass it along. They also make a battery powered rivet gun.

Your shark teeth reminds of the Pangolin scales. If you took a football shaped chunk of wood could you use a brad nailer to attach. Or create a fish shaped board and do scales.

I see Kyle from RR Buildings using the Milwaukee M12 nibbler fairly often, and it has a small pouch that catches all the small bits of metal. I'm sure it doesn't get 100% of them, but it seems to catch the vast majority of them. It also seems to run a little slower, so the bits seem to be much closer to full circle than the slivers that the pneumatic one seemed to produce.

@WesleyTreat You would love the “Neon Museum” in Las Vegas, with all the vintage neon signs of the city.

I searched for "spade drill bit spurs" and saw a couple with them. Not sure how well they will work, but it is an option. Really cool build. I wish I had the money to bid. I have one of those on my leg, but with three port holes.

Wow! Learned some new words.

Jigsaw blade only needs to be long enough to keep the tip below the sheet metal. I have cut a few off with a grinder so I can cut thin stock on the 2" foam easily available at the bigbox.

My favorite hand seamers (bending tongs) are my set of 90° feels natural and give leverate to really get a good sharp bend. In the trades we decided to just use stainless mandrel stainless rivets for our jobs. They have better hold than aluminum and you dont have to worry about rust weeping or aluminun galv interaction

Thanks for this great tutorial Wesley! Learned a bunch of useful stuff. Hope to see you at Maker Camp.

Great stuff Great video

Gmtools have spade bits with wings

I've been looking for a spade bit like the old Irwin ones for years. I finally found that Milwaukee has a set called high-speed wood spade bit that's very close and doesn't have the annoying screw tip.

rivets...including plastic ones and lots of different designs. retro tastic

Great project. Could you not grind your own spurs on a spade bit?

oh cool you are here in Dallas