Cutting square hole through steel

[fusa]

I need to cut two 44mm holes for the pid and timer I will use for my control panel. I bought this encloser http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-12x12x8-300x300x200-ENCLOSURE-WITH-BACK-PLATE-INDOOR-OUTDOOR-/110926323924 What would be the best method to cut the square holes? For the heat sink I drilled 4 holes and used a jigsaw. It that was no where close to being square, and I had to file off a lot of the metal which took forever.

 

[LandoLincoln]

Pilot holes and a jigsaw are your best bet. You just need more practice with the jigsaw. It helps to have the right blades and a variable speed jigsaw (as opposed to a 2-speed jigsaw.)

 

[ajdelange]

Really the only way to do this properly is with a punch. You may have trouble finding one the right size and new they are quite expensive so look around on ebay etc or consider taking the panel to a metal shop to be punched. You've seen what you get with drills, jigsaw and files.

 

[Rockn_M]

Pilot holes and a jigsaw are your best bet. You just need more practice with the jigsaw. It helps to have the right blades and a variable speed jigsaw (as opposed to a 2-speed jigsaw.)

^This!

I just did this over the weekend. I measured and created lines that I wanted to cut then drilled 4 pilot holes, one for each corner then cut with a jigsaw following my lines. Making sure you have a good jigsaw plus good blades and plenty of cutting oil will make all the difference.

Take your time and go slow.

Good Luck!

 

[fusa]

Went to Home Depot and saw some reinforced cutoff wheels for a dremel. They cut through the panel very easily, just had to file a little to fit the pid through. I only used 3 wheels for two cutouts. When I tried using a dremel to cutout the hole for the heat sink, it scratched the surface of the encloser.

 

[zvanaernum]

I just cut some square holes in an enclosure for outlets. I started by finding a center point using a quality combination square. I then marked the center point in the outlet and traced the outlet. After this I drilled holes inside of the trace with a unibit and cut the trace with a jig saw. I personally used a variable speed dewalt reciprocating jig saw and took my time with it. I finished by using a hand file to smooth the holes. Just take your time and you should get some quality holes. Also, make sure to tape everywhere you aren't cutting with masking tape to avoid scratching the enclosure with metal shavings under the jig saw. Hope this helps!

 

[ChocolateMaltyBalls]

I hated cutting the square holes. I ended up using the jig saw for the big heat sink hole, and used the dremel for the little PID holes. My fat hands just aren't coordinated enough to use a jigsaw for that.

 

[Stealthcruiser]

zvanaernum......
Nice, and countersunk holes, no less!

 

[LandoLincoln]

I hated cutting the square holes. I ended up using the jig saw for the big heat sink hole, and used the dremel for the little PID holes. My fat hands just aren't coordinated enough to use a jigsaw for that.

I did my heat sink holes first, knowing that if they looked raggedy then the heat sinks would hide my sloppiness. Sure enough, they looked pretty bad. But then I got a feel for the saw and the material I was cutting through, so the PID holes came out much nicer.

 

[zvanaernum]

zvanaernum......
Nice, and countersunk holes, no less!

Thanks stealth, my girlfriend and I are starting to get into brewing, extract only at this point but we are working on a stc-1000 build.. It's a large enclosure but were leaving room incase we want to add another stc-1000 for another unit in the future. I plan to make a thread for the build when it's finished.