How can you visually tell the difference between 6061-T6 and 6063? Darren Crompton AUSTRALIA
On 2/13/07, Mark Langford <n5...@hiwaay.net> wrote: > > Brian Kraut wrote: > > > Be leary of any metal you get from Home Depot or Lowes if you plan on > > doing > > anythng structural with it. I am not 100% sure what alloy they carry, > but > > it is pretty bright and corrosion resistant which means it is most > likely > > a > > weaker alloy than 6061. > > The aluminum that's sold at Home Depot and that kind of store is usually > 6063, which looks like polished 6061. It's also called "architectural" > grade aluminum, which means it's pretty and won't corrode, but the name is > a > little misleading. It's great for making things look nice, but > structurally > not as strong as 6061-T6, so not the one to use if you're building an > airplane. I fish a few scraps of aluminum out of the recycle bin at work > on > occasion, and although we hardly ever use 6063, I do see a piece now and > then. Like Brian said, it's clearly apparent that it's not 6061, and more > importantly it's real obvious when you drill it, as it cuts like butter > and > the chips are a completely different animal than 6061 chips (smaller and > more crumbly). > > I made a pretty huge pile of chips last night, machining a piece of 4.5" > diameter alumimum round down to 3.96" to make a plug for a Corvair > cylinder > head. This will allow me to pressure test the intake and exhaust valve > sealing capability before installing the head on the engine. It takes the > place of a 94mm cylinder, and bolts to the head to seal off the combustion > chamber. A nice tool to have, and one that nobody sells. I made a tight > fitting 94mm VW piston pin installer last week, which sure beats the old > 15mm Craftsman socket that I've used for the last 30 years for that job! > Another handy tool... > > Mark Langford, Huntsville, Alabama > see KR2S project N56ML at http://home.hiwaay.net/~langford > email to N56ML "at" hiwaay.net > > > _______________________________________ > Search the KRnet Archives at http://www.maddyhome.com/krsrch/index.jsp > to UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to krnet-le...@mylist.net > please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html >
