Rep Power: 269

I ordered new components for the front and from what I have read on this forum I am definitely going to have to cut metal. I read here a while back that u cut a triangular shaped outline and fold them back. that's cool.

What do you use to cut the sheet metal? clippers? dremel?

 
Rep Power: 786

I say dremel, best tool ever

 
Rep Power: 269

what is dremel? is it a drill bit attachment or a drill itself?

 
Rep Power: 0

id say a plasma tourch, but u probably dont have access to one of those, a dremal is a whole tool but you can get a bit and put it on a drill.

id say if the sheet metal is pretty thin to just use some sheet metal clippers, just go to a hardware store and ask what they'd recomend as far as what kind.

you might be able to do it with a jig-saw to if you had the right blade.

 
Rep Power: 300

if you have access to air tools, there's a cutting wheel thingy that would work...

basically similar to a dremel but bigger so it's faster...

a machinist friend showed me a demo of how he'd do it...looked pretty good

 
Rep Power: 328

Dremel, rotozip, whatever. Could go with nibbler, shears, whatever you choose, cost effective measure wise.

 
Rep Power: 310

Plastic knife. JK. I don't think you meant best way. I think you meant best, most practical way. Best way I know of is a cut-off wheel. The pneumatic "Thingy" someone mentioned above from a metal shop. Alternatively, shears might be the cheapest way, it doesn't have to be pretty. If you are going to be doing more hands on, custom work and fabricating, you can't go wrong buying a dremel. It's a little precision power tool that you can lookyup online for more info.

 
Rep Power: 274

Teeth lol

 
Rep Power: 380

it depends if anything pretty thin i saw go with the electric sheet metal clippers, they make nice lines and work really well. but anything 1/4 or bigger i say tourch it.

 
Rep Power: 338

for the garage mechanic, youve got three options: tin snips, dremel, air body saw. jig saw with a metal blade would work too, or sawzall, I find both of those cumbersome. But a dremel with a reinforced cutting wheel is a bit like paring knife to cut a steak. it works, and quite well, and very controlled. but a sawzall just chews up metal, youd be done in three minutes.

the best option is an air body saw, but its imposible to justify that kind of tool cost unless you already have a compressor and have lots of general cutting to do or sustained metal cutting for the future.

I assume you are talking about the speaker hole in the door, and also unfortunately, the tin snips just wont cut it. its not just any old snips that can cut through that hole; its got an 8th inch round over lip that most if not all tin snips would have a major problem trying to cut through.

the dremel works best i fyou have no other tools simply based on its sheer function. Noone could possibly buy a dremel just for this application and never use it for anything else ever again.

but if you have a sawzall, I say buy a 4 inch metal blade and be done with it.

if you already have a dremel, you probbaly have all teh attachments you need.

good luck

 
Rep Power: 328

I say use an air body saw...if you know someone with a compressor. Thats what I did...or if you have a really nice shop around you, if you take your door skins off and drive the car over there they may be willing to cut them for you for around $30...cheaper than buying a tool and doing it yourself.

 
Rep Power: 360

here is one version of a dremel tool

 
Rep Power: 301

i'd do the dremel. i love eating the sparks





jk

 
Rep Power: 0

DO NOT use a hacksaw/jigsaw/sawzall/ or any other reciprocating saw. The severe vibrations could damage the power locks actuator, window glass, or something else in the door.

I would use aviator snips or a dremel, depending on how nice i wanted it to look.

 
Rep Power: 310

First off, Mystic, just in case you ever run into a situation where you have to use the term again, like ordering parts or whatever, for future reference door skins are not trim panels. Door skins are actually the outer repair panels for doors. Very common misconception.

PATAU13- remember, you don't have to cut the circle bigger by cutting around the hole in a circle. You could just make straight cuts at certain points to slightly bend in the edges to open the hole wider. Much easier.

 
Rep Power: 269

J187, that's what i was thinking all along. I think I may call around to see if a shop can do a little cut-cut for me. What about putting a dremel bit in a regular drill? Does it turn too slowly?

 
Rep Power: 269

Another question--how deep a speaker can I put in the door? What I am really asking is, I have a speaker w/ 2.75 inch mounting depth. How big a spacer do I need/can I get away with, without having to make visible mods to the plastic door cover panel?

 
Rep Power: 338

1 inch spacer without cutting the plastic panel fits a 3 inch speaker. if you have 3 1/8th inch deep speaker, you are sol, add a quarter inch to the spacer and have to cut major plastic in the door panel to get it to easily fit back on.