Potentially Stupid Question

thebrain said:
Good for you ,asking a question that you think might be stupid. I have used a sawzall for this type of thing and unless you use them all the time they are a pain in the ass to cut where and how you want.
Click to expand...

I just tried it on some 1/4 1084. The blade lasted about ten seconds. I did it even after reading this thread just to see.

I'll jump on this discussion and ask about cut off saws (the bench nounted 14" type). I see that nobody seems to use them and was wondering why. I used to have a porta-band. I may have to go get another one.
 
.......ask about cut off saws (the bench nounted 14" type). I see that nobody seems to use them and was wondering why........

Some full time makers use them. They are not a safe tool for people who aren't used to them.....and they throw sparks 20 or 30 feet. Improperly used, they can easily start a fire ( ask Raymond Richards if this is possible !). Used to try and profile a blade, they can remove a finger, or send a piece of steel flying.

Many knifemakers and metal shops use them to chop off a length of steel. They are often called a "Chop Saw".
 
Last edited:
Thank you for the info. I used one for years cutting cold rolled and threaded rod. I thought maybe the heat created is what kept people away. They do throw sparks a long way and could easily start a fire. When I borrowed it shop one and brought it home I'd just aim it so the sparks went out into the driveway.

I see they're less expensive than a portaband, which is why I was asking.
 
If you use the right blade and a decent sawzall, you can get good results. I sawed all of these blanks out of 1/8" and 3/16" 1084 in less then an hour and I'm pretty sure I was still on my first blade when I finished.

74Hnf.jpg


That being said, a sawzall can be very dangerous if you don't know what you are doing. It takes practice to use one safely and effectively. CLAMP YOUR WORK DOWN and use a slower speed. My sawzall has 6 speed settings and I usually use the 2nd or 3rd lowest. I use the 4" version of the DS0414BF (on this page: http://www.diablotools.com/recip-metal.html) but only because I can get them locally. They run about ~$3 ea. last time I looked.

One note, while this works well on the 1084, I tried cutting some 1/4" 5160 and couldn't cut it.
 
I'll have to get some of those blades until I can get a band saw. I was just using a 18TPI metal cutting blade I already had.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top