Thin Flat Steel

Hi, all.

I'm trying to source some steel to make a watch dial. The dial will be about 37mm across and wants to be between 0.4 and 0.5mm thick.

I've actually ordered a couple of bits in from eBay (one stainless and one mild), but neither were flat and the mild looked like it had been at the wrong end of a boxing match!

From what I can make out flattening steel sheet is far from trivial so best if it came flat.

I was also struggling to cut it without stressing the edges. Shears will almost certainly bend it, bandsaw really needs several bunched together. Dremel will probably work OK, but the attempt was the last gasp for my poor old dremel so I've another (cheap knockoff) coming.

My closest to success isn't too bad, though my attempts at pressure turning clearly need some practice! The dial will have a 2.5mm hole in the middle which will help.

So a few questions :-

where can I get stock (cheaply, of course) which will arrive flat (within 0.05mm say over my 40mm area)?

Can I flatten it to that level if it doesn't (with basic tools)?

Any suggestions on how I can cut it into squares (or polygons) before cutting to final size (Probably with pressure turning)?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

Iain

Shim Stock ? Watch dials are usually brass, or at least the old ones were.

Roy

Might be worth enquiring here: **LINK**

https://www.stephensgaskets.co.uk/product/stainless-steel-shim-0-020-0-5mm

That listing is probably much more quantity than you want, but at least they do “small” orders

MichaelG.

As Roy suggests shim stock would be a good start and then laser or water jet cutting into blanks for further machining should keep it flat. If doing it yourself consider a Dremel type tool with thin cutting disks to cut into useable pieces. just don't let it overheat in order to avoid thermal distortion.

Martin C

shears will cut without distorting. if held right all the distortion is on the waste. there must be loads of utube videos showing how its done

HI, Roy - true, but my plan is to blue the steel rather than paint / enamel the brass. Also I guess I would have similar challenges with brass.

Michael - that looks good. The steel version (shim in a can) is quite a bit cheaper at around 20 quid with postage - 10 sheets at 6 x 10 inches - which is a LOT cheaper per square inch than eBay can provide.

I think I will go with that, though it blows through the top of my already broached engineering budget for January. Don't tell the wife!

Martin. Laser cutting is a good thought, but there doesn't seem to be anyone offering that near me. Also, it kind of feels like cheating ....

Thanks all.

Iain

Shim stock often comes coiled so flattening would be needed but is available in steel, brass or stainless in many thicknesses. It can be had in flat packs. Noel.

Ah forget that. I didn't do the postage correctly. they want 15 quid and I'm not paying that (brings the total cost up to £40).

Sounds perfect otherwise

Iain

Martin - I've got some left hand shears and some flat shears so I will try that on one my my remaining offcuts. Thanks

Iain

You can use a jeweller's piercing saw to cut shapes from very thin metal - 0.4mm steel is no problem.

There was a recent thread about making shim washers that suggested making a stack of blanks and compressing them between end plates before turning the OD.

I make suspension springs from beryllium copper shim, only 0.1mm. I find that it cuts easily using a paper guillotine (Aldi special a few years back) without warping. I've tried it also on thin steel and it's OK but probably even worse for blade wear!

Also have used a method where the bit you want is clamped firmly in the jaws of my machine vice - faint scribed line showing where the cut is needed aligned with the top of the jaw. Then have a "shear" for which I used an old wood chisel, but better would be an old file with a straight sharp edge at say about 45 degrees ground on the end. Plave this against one end of the shim and tap to make the cut. Works very well with BeCu, a properly made "chisel" would be better for steel I think.

My local suppliers, which stocks everything from plastic buckets through engineering fasteners to power tools, sells sheets of steel shim in various thicknesses over the counter, I'm not sure what the thickest is.

Home laser cutters are a thing, they don't need to be too rigidly made like a router. I'm not sure if one could manage 0.5mm steel though, but they can do engraving as well.

Litho plates might be available from a small printing firm. Not sure of the thickness.
Cutting with piercing saw often helped by sandwich between thin ply.

I think litho plates are aluminium?

Gary - I've ordered a piercing saw from cousins. being in my mind as a want for a while (and quite cheap).

John - Joe Pie has an excellent video on pressure turning. Something I tried but with less success. I've learned a few things from that and hopefully my next attempt will creep towards quality!

My local suppliers (Metals4U) are generally good but don't have anything thin enough.

Iain

If you search for Steel Shim Pack on eBay UK you will find you can buy 10 sheets of .020" for 3 Quid. Auto parts stores and bearing and engineering supply shops often sell packs of mixed steel shim that are usually flat, packed in a flat cardboard sleeve. Otherwise, are there not horological supply vendors online who specialise in this stuff?

Iain …

Sorry, I have only just remembered :

Dash along to your local HomeBargains store

Last time I looked they had a ‘Jane Asher’ stainless steel cake-lifting sheet for some trivial price.

MichaelG.

What is wrong with blueing brass?

Hopper as I read it you can buy one for £3.25 or a selection (of 10 different sizes) for 12 quid.

Michael. Should I pass a HomeBargains, I will look in.

Not Done It: for reasons which are probably poor (and or aesthetic) I wanted to heat blue the steel rather than chemically.

I may also try a sample chemically (Steel blue compound) as one of a set of tests for how things look. I'm not great at understanding how something looks until I hold it finished.

Iain

.

£2.99

MichaelG.