How to cut an aluminium profile
Updated: 23 October 2026
How to cut aluminium profile, for a home job, means a square end, a cleared slot or channel, and a cover that seats without a hammer. The bar is already on the bench. This page assumes you already own the extrusion. Choosing the family stays on the [aluminium profile buying guide](/hub/diy-supplies/aluminium-profile/sub/aluminium-profile-buying-guide). Prices stay on the [aluminium profile comparison](/hub/diy-supplies/aluminium-profile). A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We did not run a saw test.
How to cut aluminium profile, for a home job, means a square end, a cleared slot or channel, and a cover that seats without a hammer. The bar is already on the bench. This page assumes you already own the extrusion.
How to cut aluminium profile, for a home job, means a square end, a cleared slot or channel, and a cover that seats without a hammer. The bar is already on the bench. This page assumes you already own the extrusion. Choosing the family stays on the aluminium profile buying guide. Prices stay on the aluminium profile comparison. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We did not run a saw test.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Profile type | Can be cut | Diffuser | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Fabal Aluminium Fabal equal angle, 15 × 15 × 1.5 mm, 1 m | Mill-finish angle | Yes | No | 6.9 | about £10.16 | View offer |
 LightingWill LightingWill LED channel, 6 × 1 m | LED U-channel | Yes, in reviews with a hacksaw | Milky white cover | 8.9 | about £21.55 | View offer | |
| Alternative |  CNCMANS CNCMANS 2020 V-slot, 4 × 600 mm | 2020 V-slot extrusion | Yes | No | 6.9 | about £21.33 | View offer |
On this page
Mark a square end before you saw
An end that is out of square opens a mitre, leaves a light leak beside a diffuser, or stops an end cap from sitting flush. Mark the length on the face you will keep, then mark the waste side so the kerf does not steal the finished piece. A square or a mitre box is enough for a short cabinet offcut. A hacksaw is the simple DIY cut, with eye, hearing and breathing protection matched to the tool.
Support the bar close to the line. A plaster-in lip bends when the blade snatches. Clamp so the channel is not crushed: a squeezed U-channel is why a cover will not go back.
Clear swarf before the next piece goes in
iMetrx reviews describe aluminium swarf stuck to the packing film, and CNCMANS reviews describe chips that scratch the anodising. Peel the film back from the cut, tip the swarf out, and wipe the slot. Do not slide a bare hand along a fresh edge. A file or a deburring tool takes the burr off the end so an end cap or a bracket can seat.
HSE EH44 treats dust from cutting and grinding as a COSHH issue in workplaces. A hacksaw on one metre makes chips you can sweep. Grinding fills the air, so ventilate and wear eye protection. If you still do not know the inner width, that measurement is on the aluminium profile for an LED strip.
The cover is a separate cut decision
UK lighting shops disagree about the diffuser. Simple Lighting tells you to cut the diffuser while it is in the profile, so the cover and the aluminium finish at the same length. ATOM LED tells you to slide the cover out first, because sawing an opal cover while it is clipped in is the crack they see most. LED Lighthouse cuts plaster-in profile and cover together, then fits the cover after the skim.
LightingWill buyers say the milky cover is tight and cracks if you force it with a hammer. A cover that will not seat is usually a squeezed channel, a burr, or a cut that closed the lips. Start at one end and press along. If you cut the cover separately, cut it a fraction long and trim after the aluminium end is square. Do not hammer the plastic to hide a bad end.
Home tolerance is not a trade cut
Fabal states ±2 mm on the mill-finish metre you buy already cut. Ooznest’s specialist 20 × 20 mm rail quotes about ±0.2 mm on their own cut-to-size service. A home hacksaw does not inherit that 0.2 mm figure. If a joint must land inside a fraction of a millimetre, order the length from a cutter who states the tolerance, or leave the last millimetre and file to a square. One CNCMANS review measured 19.8 mm outside instead of 20 mm. That is a section miss, not something your saw will correct.
Cutting does not soften 6063-T6 the way a weld does. Hydro’s caution is heat in the weld zone. If a T6 joint must keep its strength, call a welder. Call a plasterer if the cut is part of boarding a ceiling you are not already doing. Call an electrician for a new circuit or a bathroom special location, not because the saw needs a certificate.
Common questions
Can you cut this with a hacksaw?
Yes for a simple straight cut on these channels and short rails. Reviews of the LightingWill U-channel and of the PULUME black channel mention a hacksaw or a fine hacksaw. Use a mitre guide when the end must be square or angled. Support the bar beside the line so a plaster-in lip does not bend.
How do you keep the end square?
Mark the finished length and the waste side, clamp close to the cut, and saw against a square or a mitre box. A bar left unsupported will wander. File back to the line if the kerf leaves a slope. A home saw does not hold a specialist ±0.2 mm tolerance.
What do you do with the sharp swarf under the film?
Peel the film back, tip the chips out, and wipe the slot before the next bar or the cover touches it. iMetrx and CNCMANS reviews both describe swarf against the anodising. Deburr the end before an end cap or a bracket goes on. Do not run a finger along the fresh edge first.
Should the diffuser be in the channel while you cut?
UK guides disagree. Simple Lighting cuts the cover in the profile so the lengths match. ATOM LED slides the cover out because a clipped opal cover cracks. For plaster-in work, LED Lighthouse cuts them together and refits the cover after skimming. Pick one method and do not hammer a cover that will not seat.
Why will the end cap or the cover not seat?
Usually the channel was squeezed, the end still has a burr, or the lips closed during the cut. LightingWill reviews also describe loose caps that all have cable holes, and a cover that is tight even on a good end. File the burr, check the channel is still open, and press the cover from one end.
Is a home cut as tight as a ±0.2 mm trade cut?
No. Fabal’s own stated tolerance on a mill-finish metre is ±2 mm. Ooznest’s ±0.2 mm figure belongs to their cut-to-size rail, not to a hacksaw in a kitchen. If the joint cannot tolerate a couple of millimetres, buy the length from a cutter who states a tolerance.
Does cutting a 6063-T6 bar weaken it the way welding does?
A saw cut is not the weld-zone warning. Hydro’s note is that heat softens the metal around a weld. Only the two Fabal listings here state 6063-T6, and those minima were not measured on these ASINs. If the finished joint must keep its strength, that weld is a trade job.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Prices and review counts were captured on 19 October 2026.
- Durbin Metals, 6063-T6 data sheet (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- Hydro EN AW-6063 datasheet (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- BSI, BS EN 755-2:2016 overview (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- GOV.UK Approved Document P (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- LED Technologies profile guide (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- LED Lighthouse plaster-in method (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- Ooznest extrusion category (retrieved 19.10.2026)
- HSE EH44, dust from cutting and grinding (retrieved 19.10.2026)