need help sourcing small strip stock

[XLR8]

Hey all, I'm trying to source some very small aluminum strip stock (a.k.a. bar or flat) that's about .5mm thick x 2mm wide or roughly 1/32" max. thick x 5/64" max. wide. A 3 foot piece should be enough to finish the project I'm working on. I'll want aluminum or stainless so that it can be polished. I've checked the all the normal online metals supply houses but no luck and I've run out of ideas. Any recommendations?

[GoMachV]

Most larger hobby shops and some hardware stores carry K&S metals. They have some that might be close to your requirements. If nothing else you can usually get them from tower hobbies or other onlines

[Y'ernat Al]

McMaster Carr. Has a great search engine, and speedy shipping. Prices are not the hottest, and you might have to buy more than wanted on occasion. But way more selection than any brick and mortar hobby or home improvement store.

[Jools]

Or, this could work... get into a car accessory shop and look at the windscreen wiper blades.
Some of them have a thin strip metal behind the rubber, looks like S/S. Never know.

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

Oh sorry, I thought you said stripper's socks. I was going to suggest that you just hide under a stall in the dressing room and wait for them to all go home. That's how I get their underwear. My bad.

[Lowgear]

Have you tried https://www.onlinemetals.com/ ? If you can find somthing in the thickness you're after, they can custom cut it to size. Look in their sheet plate sections.

[Dadio]

Or, this could work... get into a car accessory shop and look at the windscreen wiper blades.
Some of them have a thin strip metal behind the rubber, looks like S/S. Never know.

+1 , probably 1x2 mm stainless steel .

[jwscab]

your best bet is going to buy some aluminum flat stock, mcmaster carries .025" material or .016" material at 2" wide. Then cut into strips.

at that thickness, you could very easily cut and score and snap with a utility knife and a good straightedge. In fact, thinking about it, you can probably buy aluminum flashing from the box store in a similar thickness. roof flashing.

[XLR8]

Those are some really good suggestions, thanks everyone!
I have this trim decal set from RC4WD but the closer I look the less I like it (maybe I should just stop looking at it then) and so I want to go a different direction.

your best bet is going to buy some aluminum flat stock, mcmaster carries .025" material or .016" material at 2" wide. Then cut into strips.

at that thickness, you could very easily cut and score and snap with a utility knife and a good straightedge. In fact, thinking about it, you can probably buy aluminum flashing from the box store in a similar thickness. roof flashing.

Before posting the question, I’ve made one attempt at making the trim strips. I used some .024” thick “aluminum” sheet stock from the local Tractor Supply store. I was only barely able to cut the sheet with a sharp utility knife; although it’s labeled “aluminum”, I cuts like titanium – it’s extremely hard (aluminum flashing would have been easier to work with). Anyway, after it’s cut, it leaves a ragged edge burr and filing the edge smooth is next to impossible without bending and deforming the strip. More time and effort than I wanted to invest.

Most of the online metal shops I've checked have thin aluminum and stainless but it’s only available in sheet form.

I found a discarded wiper blade in the garage and it does indeed use a stainless strip for reinforcement however the one I have is about 4mm+ wide.

So, I paid a visit to the local Hobby Lobby this afternoon and found K&S 0.016” 4x10 sheet aluminum. I’m hoping this thinner material will also be softer and easier to cut and deburr than the previous metal. I’m going to try cutting it with a metal rule and utility knife as before but this time laying on the iron top on my table saw. Hopefully the hard backing will allow for a cleaner cut and less burr to remove. If this doesn’t work, I’ll just go with the decals.

[jwscab]

To clean the cut edges, clamp the material between some clean pine or really true hard material and leave just a thin ribbon of the exposed edge. Then you should be able to run a small file down the supported edge. If you draw file, that works really well. It's when you hold the file 90 degrees to the material and pull towards you or push away, rather than run the file from end to end.

https://disher.com/2016/08/12/filing-away-use-hand-file/

[XLR8]

To clean the cut edges, clamp the material between some clean pine or really true hard material and leave just a thin ribbon of the exposed edge. Then you should be able to run a small file down the supported edge. If you draw file, that works really well. It's when you hold the file 90 degrees to the material and pull towards you or push away, rather than run the file from end to end.

https://disher.com/2016/08/12/filing-away-use-hand-file/

That's good advice, thanks Joe. I've got some misc. poplar strips left over from a woodworking project that should work perfectly for this.

[Dadio]

Another thing that came to mind was copper , useless if you need a steel like finish but if not then you can get flat rolled copper wire tape probably in exactly the dimensions you need , its a self adhesive tape for running electrical line in awkward places .

[XLR8]

That's a good suggestion. I have a partial roll of this heavy mil, adhesive backed, aluminum foil that's meant for sealing heating ductwork. It's polishes nicely, is extremely easy to cut and the adhesive is super-sticky. I've used it for metal trim on my scalers and the only downside I've found is that it doesn't lay down smoothly - the adhesive causes some rippling effect. While I was at Hobby Lobby, I picked up one of the Molotow liquid chrome marking pens so I'll want to give it a try as well.

https://shop.molotow.com/en/marker-refills/molotow-liquid-chrome-1mm.html?___from_store=de

[joey_zrl]

XLR8, I saw just what you're looking for at Home Depot last weekend. They had stainless steel and aluminum in the sizes you need.

[XLR8]

Okay, thanks Joey. We don't have a Home Depot close by but I'll check their website. Thanks for the tip!!