Almost A Bike Project

[BAHNZY]

Hi Guys,
With a fleet of bikes between myself and Bumper McGunn we need something more than a 3 bike trailer to get the machines to and from the VIPER events. Having completed the chassis, a 5m x 2m (not including draw bar) i am at the point of putting a frame on it and cladding the frame. Her in lies the problem. I want to have a radius to the front and rear top edges so i need 25x25x1.6 blue primecoat bent to a radius of 150 (or so) millimeters. I then want to clad the outside with a .50mm colorbond sheet starting from the bottom edge of the front to the bottom edge of the rear, a total sheet length of 9 meters @ 1200mm. Every one that i have spoken to in Melbourne won't cut anything other than 2400 or 3600 sheet which means that i will have heaps of wasteage and it gets away from the original idea of having as least amount of joins as possible. Getting a bend on the RHS comes out at $20 plus GST (per bend) and they won't do it unless they supply the RHS stock, at almost twice the market price.

Any one got any suggestions.

[Doc]

For the sheet you really need to find a business with a shearline cut to length line. I know of places here in Brisbane where it's possible as this (sheet and coil) was my job for 20 years. If someone wanted an extra long sheet of 0.55 we could do it but cutting to exact length became difficult (+/- 10mm) and time consuming once the sheet length went past the positive stop (max bed length of 4200) on the measuring table. An option we offered was to cut the longer length and then roll it up for transporting. Being 0.55 thick it does not really require the rollers of a straightener to level it out as it retains very little coil set once it is unrolled. The main reason 3600 is the max used is because of the machinery (stacker) the handling and transporting. The stuff will crease if you even blink at at. Anything longer requires special means to load it and special pallets to suit the extra length and it near always gets damaged. If you could find somewhere like a tank or roofing manufacturer that cuts coil to length then I feel sure you could work a deal but regardless the guys on the floor who cut it and handle it will be cursing you. The standard sheet sizes cut from 1200mm wide colorbond coil are 1800,2100,2400,3000,3600. The most popular length is 2400 followed by 3000. Other lengths can be cut but you will pay extra. Maybe try a larger sheetmetal or tank company. As for the radiused 25x25x1.6 primed RHS you could try a furniture manufacturer as many chairs use a similar radius. Only thing with furniture companies is they use furniture tubing which is normally 1.20mm thick and unpainted. Maybe worth a shot.     

[BAHNZY]

Thanks Doc/KB,
Took the advice and found a roofing supplier that will cut off the roll. no drama's.......Except.
Colorbond .50 in a 1200 x 9000 sheet is $250, yep $25 per meter. Gunner cost a 6 pack short of $1000 for the metal to sheet the bloody thing and i havent even added in the rivets, the 50 or so drill bits that i destroy drilling the holes and a couple of tubes of Sikaflex urethane adhesive.
And i thought building Pre80 dirtbikes was a quick way to burn holes in the pocket.
The last time i felt like i had dug a hole so deep that i couldn't get out of was the RM125C that i committed to restoring, that was nothing compared to this bloody thing.

Bahnsy

[Freakshow]

By a truck