Aluminium Composite

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ruffrecords

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Joined
Nov 10, 2006
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Location
Norfolk - UK
This seems to be a popular material for sign making. It consists of a plastic core faced on both sides with thin aluminium sheet (typically 0.3mm or 0.4mm). Complete sheets are typically 3mm thick. Seems to be much easier to work than raw aluminium, and cheaper too. I wonder how good it would be for front panels??


https://www.aluminiumcomposite.co.uk/what_is_aluminium_composite.htm

Cheers

Ian
 
A friend whose family happens to be in the business of sign making once made a guitar pedal enclosure for me out of that material. It was quite the wobbly affair. I had to put in several additional metal brackets for stabilization to make it comfortably stompable. It could be bent very easily. There might be different types and compositions though, I only ever saw the one.
 
I agree it lacks the strength of solid aluminium so 19 inch panels and stomp boxes are out. But what about DIY 500 series front panels?

Cheers

Ian
 
Questionable strength for a face plate.

Decades ago a technician working for me experimented with using it to make speaker cabinets (I don't recall if it was worth the expense).

JR 
 
ruffrecords said:
Seems to be much easier to work than raw aluminium, and cheaper too. I wonder how good it would be for front panels??
I've used Cobond in the last century to make alll sorts of enclosures. You can make a pretty rugged box based on two nested U shapes.
I made a few studio microphone panels that worked fine as long as they were supported.
I guess it would be the same for a 500 front panel, as long as it is well strengthened by the PCB. I would not recommend countersunk holes.
However, for a flat panel, there is no big advantage, unless you need to make very large or square holes.
 

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