best way to cut 1/8 3003 for Tig welding

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I have some prototypes to make from 1/8 3003 sheet aluminum.  Am wondering aboutpossibility of using CNC plasma or CNC laser cutting to cut pieces prior to welding.I have never seen how aluminum looks after these processes.  Would either of theseprocesses make a clean enough edge to require not a lot of edge prep ?  like heavyfileing -      Sheet steel comes our really nice but never seen aluminum done that way.The joints will be Tig welded so the edges will have to be dresses and cleaned carefullyso I am needing advice if either of these processes would yield a lower maintenanceedge than maybe bandsawing or running through a hydraulic shear.If yall could relate your experiences that would be helpfull !( figured if I called the laser and plasma guys I would just get a self interested answer )Thanks in advance, Tim
Reply:I would guess that waterjet would probably work better, or other mechanical method that doesn't melt the metal (like a saw/shear).Last edited by MikeGyver; 08-01-2011 at 03:43 AM.Welding/Fab Pics: www.UtahWeld.com
Reply:Saws have a tendency to push contaminants and cutting fluid into the cut surface which can be a pain to clean. A shear would be pretty clean and smooth but cant cut curves very well, unless your talking about a nibbler type hand power shear. Plasma can leave a very smooth cut but it will have an oxide layer that has to be removed, IMO cut quality is comparable to steel if the machine is set up properly. Same goes for laser. Waterjet sounds like a good idea as well, should be clean and if they only use water and cutting media there should be minimal contamination
Reply:Waterjet works very well for us. If there is an issue with welding, a simple chem etch can be done at your local plater or pick up some alumaclean at your LWS.Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:I have alumaprep...That sounds like about what I suspected.  I am guessing that the waterjet might be the more expensivethan laser or plasma due to its slow speed ???????  Do you think a light fileing would clean up after a plasma cut ? Or maybe a HEAVY repeated cut ?I am thinking the oxidadton might go back about .040 in endways and maybe more diagonaly intothe corners. ( ??)
Reply:I've always had better luck with saw cutting aluminum or using a water jet.Plasma cutting, even with high definition equipment, still leaves an oxide edge which must be removed prior to tig welding.For straight cuts on aluminum, I either have the material sheared or use the 8" Milwaukee Metal Cut Saw with an aluminum blade.  For curves, I use the band saw or a Bosch jig saw with a upcut blade.Syncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.
Reply:CNC router works good too, and ready to weldMiller Dynasty 700Miller 350P with Aluma-pro push-pullMiller 280 Dynasty with expansion card Dynasty 200 DXMigMax 215 Enuff power and hand tools to create one of anything..... but mass produce nothing!!!