Bodywork Basics

Harness the power of lightning for quick, neat and accurate cuts

Learn to use a plasma cutter.

Cutting metal can be laborious, inaccurate and especially neighbour-annoyingly noisy. For most of us, an angle-grinder fitted with a slitting disc is the go-to animal for cutting out rotten car bodywork and shaping new steel. The issue is that angle-grinders are very noisy, aggressive, not especially good at cutting curves or getting into corners, and not easily manoeuvrable in tight spots.

A plasma cutter doesn’t suffer any of these drawbacks. It has the added benefits of speed, economy and accuracy. It’s able to cut extremely thin sheet metal without distortion, right up to stupidly thick material. It can get into awkward areas and it isn’t restricted to straight lines. This means that you can cut out elaborate and very threedimensional sections of car bodywork with great precision. Cutting very thick plate is possible with a gas torch, but it’s quicker and cheaper with a plasma cutter – and the technique also requires less practice.

Advances in inverter technology have made plasma cutters small and affordable. The only other potential outlay is for compressor – but it’s so useful for other jobs that most workshops have one already. A plasma cutter is quick to set up and use, and requires no specialist skills. Even if it doesn’t replace your angle grinder, a plasma cutter will certainly complement it.