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(surftom) wrote in message . com...
Hi Gang -

In the process of finishing the hydraulic punch and have a question on
tooling.
I have to build a railing (steel) and want to use 1/2" SQUARE bar for
the stiles (vertical) that pass through a rail (horizontal) 2" wide x
1/4" thick flat stock
Should I punch with a 1/2" square punch or go up to the 9/16" punch.
The intent is to weld around the bar when in position. Does a 1/2"
punch actually make a 1/2" hole or is it a little bigger? Also, what
are the tolerences on typical steel bars (when they say 1/2" is it
really 1/2")?
Always drilled and never used a punch before so am a little unsure.

Thanks in advance...

Tom

PS... What else can I do with a hyraulic punch? :-)

Better going 9/16".The punch will punch the proper size.One of the
problems with punching the holes in the rails is that you will have to
straighten it after and it can be a bit time consuming.You will need
14 tons of pressure for that size.
Regards,Mark.