Aerolam

Does anyone have experience of working with this stuff? Honeycomb aluminum core faced with aluminum – sometimes referred to as Aerolam.

Any suggestions / advice for cutting and finishing?

I'm looking to replace the upper shelf of my Quadraspire rack.

 

Yes it works well Rich.For cutting try using a coping saw by hand, or a machine bandsaw with a high TPI balde, ally is notorious for clogging up blades.
Also, try bonding 2 small thickness sheets together hey presto constrained layer damping

 

Cheers Tone. I'll give a coping saw a go – if things get hairy I know of a couple of local engineering outfits that have the tooling you describe.

hmm.. ideas..

 

Best make that LOw TPI actually, as bigger teeth are required not smaller oopps

 

Looking a little further (than RS) I've found a supplier that can fabricate various grades and facings of aluminum honeycomb cut to size – as one offs. Think I'll request a quote.

 

be interested in how you get on.

 

Didn't somebody once make speaker cabinets from this? Celestion IIRC?

 

Celestion SL6 I believe.

Bob

 

sl600 and sl700

 

I have lots of experience of working with this stuff. It is great when it is 'working' , but a complete PITA when it needs repairing. Delamination of the outer coverings is the usual problem on aircraft, which is then compounded when moisture gets inside and turns to ice at altitude , expands and then makes the problem even worse.
I would imagne that for the application you are going to use it for it would be an ideal material, just as long as the material you use is thick/strong enough to withstand the weight of your equipment. Make sure that you use flat pieces of meatl such as coins, etc underneath and equipment spkes or cones as they could puncture and damage the surface and the underlying structure. With any honeycomb type construction the problem is the damage you cant see underneath the top layers rather than any superficial damage at the surface.

I was working with some about 2 hours ago at work doing a wiring job underneath the floor of a cargo hold, although this stuff had carbon fibre outer coverings.
It is widely used as the floor boards underneath the passenger seats and on the cargo bay floors of Large transport and passenger aircraft.
Incredibly strong and light but doesn't like fat ladies wearing stilleto heels walking on it !

A far as tidying up the raw cut edges goes, time to get out some glass fibre or other such type of filler and then spend a few hours with some wet'n' dry prior to painting.

Some of the top range Technics loudspeakers of the late 80's used flat honeycomb bass drivers.

 

Thanks for the advice S and C.

I'm still trying to pick my way through the various core types, facings, cell sizes, densities and strengths etc I'll take into account what you've said. 3003 Aluminum alloy core with ¼â€ cells faced with 1.2mm aluminum looks good to me.
http://www.plascore.com/

The edge finishing may present a challenge – but again something that maintains the idea of low mass high rigidity like glass fibre.

 

Mos,

Did you get anywhere with making Aerolam shelves? Where did you get the material?
This is cheaper than the RS stuff.

Paul.

 

PT used it in their turntables.

 

Didnt know that untill I did a google on aerolam the other day.
I am in the process of building a DIY TT and am going the high(ish) mass route. But as a totally opposite approach I have been giving some thought to a low mass TT. At work I have been fitting some doors and they are the paper honeycombe type of construction. Not high tech I know but I swiped a damaged one to have a play with.
Apart from PT I cant find anyone that has used this type of material for a TT.

 

One of those projects I haven't got around to finishing Paul.

For your information the supplier I identified was below; the UK supplier for Plascore.

http://www.coretexgroup.co.uk/

http://www.plascore.com/