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they're not very thick, .025, i don't know what gauge that equates to.  but the tools i used were a pair of tin snips for rough cuts; a dremel with cutoff wheels for fine cutting (i learned that you don't need to cut all the way through with the dremel, just get a good score line going with it and then you can snap the rest of the flash off with your hands or a pair of pliers.); then along the lines that i need to bend i would lightly score it with a box/utility knife (because that's made of stainless steel it's harder than the aluminum and cuts through quite easily.); and small flat head hammer with a block of wood to help bend the edges; and finally i used my hands for getting the shapes correct.  a few extra items you may want around while you're working on this is a good pair of gloves because aluminum is sharp when it's cut with snips and gets hot when you're running a dremel over it, a face shield cuz snips or dremel you don't want to run the risk of something flying into your face or eyes, a mouse sander because you will find a use for it sooner or later.  i foolishly bought an angle grinder that i didn't need just for this project, i'm going to keep it because i know i will figure out some project that it will be perfect for.