Notching Angle Iron

[Riguy14]

Hi all,

Question: I’m wondering if using a corner notcher would work for notching 1/8 1.5x1.5 angle iron in the middle to bend into a rectangular frame. It seems the only purpose built solution is the roper Whitney notcher and bender. The bender is reasonably priced but the notchers even used are pretty pricey. I’m leery of buying a used notcher as the blades are super expensive. The corner notchers are cheaper by a few hundred bucks, but I can’t find anything that indicates if they would work in this application. Alternatively, if there’s another option besides these two please let me know!

Backstory for context: During the pandemic I started a little side business selling trellises I made in the backyard. I made them out of angle iron, cutting all corners to 45 degrees then welding them into a rectangular frame, I then welded a steel mesh and brackets to the frame. I started using an angle grinder to cut the 45 corners then upgraded to a dry cut metal chop saw. Even with careful set up I struggled to get clean 45 degree cuts on both ends, so I would use a disc sander to sand in in the 45 degree angle. The cleaner the angle, the easier set up and welding was. However, it got quite time consuming especially when I was getting about 5 orders a week. I eventually got burnt out but I’m considering starting up again. My thought was if I could get a tool to notch the angle iron in the middle, I could get 20 foot sections and notch and bend them into the rectangle frame. This would save a lot of set up and finishing work and cut down on the welding as well, which would allow me to keep up with demand and not spend 8 hours every Saturday making them!

 

[bdbecker]

Welcome to GJ!

The Roper Whitney No. 50 notcher will handle 2x2, 1/4" thick angle, so it'll work to notch your material. However, that only creates the notch, you still need to bend and cut your material to size.

For bending, a SWAG finger brake kit for a HF shop press could be an option, but you also need to keep in mind your clearances (may have interference with the press frame by the time you get to the last bend or two). If you want to bend by hand, you could also partially cut/score the material at each notch with a cut-off wheel and then weld the seam.

The chop saw could still work for the final cut and cleanup, and would still save you time since you'll only be cleaning up one joint instead of four. You may consider moving the seam to fall in the middle of one of the runs of material instead of in the corner, allowing for a 90 degree cut instead of a miter. This would also be a lot easier to access with the sanding disc for cleanup/blending.

An alternative option would be to spend the money on a decent horizontal band saw that has miter capacity. Minimal cleanup required for pre-weld, but still would require more post-weld finishing than the process you are proposing. But, for a similar amount of money, you'd have a more universal tool in your shop that would allow you to run other projects instead of being tied to a specific material type.

Finally, another idea that comes to mind would be to get rid of the mitered corners and use the notch method instead.

https://www.metalartspress.com/sites/default/files/chapter-images/wkh-chapter14-image002.gif

I've had good luck using this method on my projects. The material can be cut fairly quickly using a porta-band mounted in a stand. It's also pretty forgiving should you make a cut that's a little off. I'm not sure if this would save you any time, but it would certainly be easier than a miter.

I hope some of that makes sense...

 

[LeeG]

You could get a mitering bandsaw similar to the Femi I have. I am quite pleased with it. Another thing you can consider is that most steel sells will cut to length for a nominal fee (I think it is $10 per setup at my local place). With all the pieces cut to length, you can use the notching method that bdbecker explains above and quickly be ready to weld.

Lee

 

[gorilla]

A shop I worked at had a angle notcher like your talking about it was mostly unused because the corner it formed was poor. Almost impossible to hold any dimensional tolerance. I think that buying a pair of good corner clamps and cutting the material a hair short and filling the gap with weld might be a better solution.

 

[iagsxr]

I'd use a 4 1/2" cutoff wheel to make the notches. Then score the inside of the vertical leg with it. The angle will bend at the score. Weld the inside of the vertical leg and the notch. You won't have to do any grinding on the outside corner of the angle iron because it will have never have been cut.

I find quality cutoff wheels improve the accuracy of my free hand cuts tremendously.

 

[Joe Huld]

The Roper Whitney # 50 is the fastest, easiest, and in the long run cheapest way to make 90 degree bends in angle iron. I bought a used one 40 years ago and did thousands of corners with it. It still has the blade I got with it, and I only recently replaced the ball screws after 4 decades of abuse and neglect. You can make your own bender to use in a vise from a heavy hinge which I did until I got an angle iron bending die for my Hossfeld but the Roper Whitney #4 bender is far easier to use and does a better job, I was really happy to get one. Pretty much the R-W combo will reduce your fabricating and welding time by at least half and will produce a corner with a nice slightly rounded corner that will not require grinding.

 

[kerrynzl]

The Roper Whitney # 50 is the fastest, easiest, and in the long run cheapest way to make 90 degree bends in angle iron. I bought a used one 40 years ago and did thousands of corners with it. It still has the blade I got with it, and I only recently replaced the ball screws after 4 decades of abuse and neglect. You can make your own bender to use in a vise from a heavy hinge which I did until I got an angle iron bending die for my Hossfeld but the Roper Whitney #4 bender is far easier to use and does a better job, I was really happy to get one. Pretty much the R-W combo will reduce your fabricating and welding time by at least half and will produce a corner with a nice slightly rounded corner that will not require grinding.

This thread is 2 years old and the OP has disappeared into the cyberspace black hole after only 1 post [I doubt if he'll read your reply]

 

[gba2331]

But I just learned something new, thanks! Resurrecting old threads is helpful to me.