How to Cut A Center Opening In Wood Or Metal

If you need to cut an opening, no matter what the shape or size, within a piece of wood or metal, there is a simple procedure that will make this easy for you to do! Read on to learn how.

Things You'll Need

• Proper cutting saws for the material you are cutting (Power jig saw or hack saw blades)
• Ruler and tape measure
• Drill and bits
• Marker or pencil
• Safety glasses
• Heavy gloves if working with sheet metal
• Wood or metal files, narrow in size

Instructions

1. Measure out the shape of the opening you need and draw it out on your wood or metal.

2. 

   Set up your drill using a bit that has a diameter that is a wider than the cutting saw you will be using.

3. 

   If you are cutting a square or any cornered opening, drill your first hole into the inside corner of your line making sure that your holes remain just within the line and follow through with a few more holes right next to each other as close as possible, creating a length of holes long enough to slip your cutting tool into. Follow this same procedure on each corner so that you end up with holes in each corner to use as a starting point for cutting. If you are going to cut out a circular or a non cornered opening, you will only need to drill a few holes for a start point.

4. 

   Using your files, work out any metal or wood that is between your holes that may prevent you from inserting your cutting tool.

5. 

   Insert your jig saw or hack saw blade into the holes and saw along the inside of the line. If a cornered cut, simply stop at each corner and insert your saw again into the holes on each corner till complete!

6. 

   File smooth your cut out area as needed. For corners a flat edge file will keep the corners the sharpest and for round cuts a rounded file will work best.

Tips & Warnings

• As they say, measure twice and cut once!

• Use heavy gloves if working with sharp metal!

• Safety Glasses on when drilling or power sawing!