reciprocating saw?

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dalr753

Joined
Jan 5, 2012
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77
hey guys, im getting sick of cutting my knives out by hand with a hacksaw. so i was wondering if a reciprocating saw was a good step up? i cant really afford or fit a table saw in my apartment so thats kinda out. any ideas or tips welcome.
 
By knives I'm going to assume you mean the steel and if so how about a portable band saw. You can make a home made vertical holder, there are plans for them all over the web, I have even seen some just hold them in a sturdy vice.
 
A recip saw, WOULD work, though thats not really its intended use. and in my opinion, a recip IS NOT very user friendly. If I had a choice between that and a hacksaw, I would choose a good quality hacksaw, every time. A portaband on the other would be a good idea.
 
You cant beat a cheap angle grinder with a cutting disk, HF has the grinders for $20 all the time and 10 disks are about $6.
 
Port-a-band is what you need. Even a cheap HF one will work. Make a simple base and clamp it on your work table.
 
Sounds to me like you may not have room for a band saw.

A lot of guys use angle grinders with cutting discs. I use one on every knife I make, and I have a very nice band saw. I learned how to cut out knives from a Master Smith we all know, and he finishes about 100 knives/mo.

We do relief cuts with a grinder or a 12" abrasive cut-off saw, then "connect the dots" with the band saw, but it doesn't take much more time to just use the grinder.

The 4" Makita is about $65, and the 4.5" is closer to $100, normally. I got my 4.5" on sale with a really nice case and a bunch of wheels for less than $100.

I actually like the 4" model a little better for knives. It's a little smaller, and the switch is handier.
 
I got a very good deal on an electric die grinder and cutting discs so that is what I use often if I don't want to drill and saw. Beats the Dremel I used before, and I find it more comfortable than the angle grinder.
 
I hope you don't mind Dair, but I'd like to jump on this thread with my own question. I have just been using a jig saw to cut off the length and then attacking all the profiling with a belt grinder. I have been contemplating the port-a-band setup but is it really worth it? Hogging the steel hasn't been a problem so how much time would sawing the profile actually take? Let's say on a 10" blade.

Thanks.
 
strider214 said:
I hope you don't mind Dair, but I'd like to jump on this thread with my own question. I have just been using a jig saw to cut off the length and then attacking all the profiling with a belt grinder. I have been contemplating the port-a-band setup but is it really worth it? Hogging the steel hasn't been a problem so how much time would sawing the profile actually take? Let's say on a 10" blade.

Thanks.
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You would probably get much more use out of a good quality Lennox M42 blade for $7 compared to whatever belt you are using. Plus having a bandsaw lets you do other things you cannot do. Both options can work.
 
Grizz, "We do relief cuts with a grinder or a 12" abrasive cut-off saw, then "connect the dots" with the band saw". That's a great idea! I hate spending the time on the bandsaw on the cuts that don't need to be thin or pretty.
 
I used a Makita jig saw on slow speed with metal cutting blades. Worked great for a long time, take it slow and know it will make a LOT of noise. Then I bought a cheap porta band and never looked back. Its easy to make a stand for them.
 
The porta band will out cut a bandsaw 2 to 1. The bimetal blades that are needed are also quite a bit cheaper. Takes up less room.
 
I'll throw my two cents in as well. I started on a wheel (stone) grinder and was spending way too much time trying to shape my blanks out of stock. Not only was it time consuming but very noisy and made a heck of a mess as well. I finally got a cheap Harbor Freight portable band saw and a decent blade and can cut a blank out in a matter of minutes. About the same amount of noise but WAY less time and mess. I made a stand out of a 3/4 piece of plywood and 2 2x4's screwed together. I used the 20% off coupon at Harbor Freight and paid about $70.00 for the saw and got a good 18TPI metal cutting blade for about another $10.00. The wood I already had. It's a great set up IMHO and does not take up much room. Plus I can pick it up and move it out of the way or to another location if needed.
 
A reciprocating saw is not exactly a precision cutting tool. Between the long blade whipping around and the small contact shoe, getting the cut started where you want it and cutting to a line are a challenge. As others have suggested, a portaband on a stand is a good way to go. I recently pulled our rarely used portaband out and made a table stand for it. The ease with which I have been able to cut out some brackets and other small metal parts has made me wish I had put it on a stand years ago. Compared to holding the tool and trying to cut a workpiece held in a vise...it's a completely different experience...with much more control.

If a portaband is beyond the budget, a jigsaw or sabre saw with a good metal cutting blade would be my next choice. An angle grinder with a cutting wheel is another option, if you don't mind that many sparks flying around the apartment...
 
I typically use my mitre box saw for this task. Like several folks, I don't have the space in my workshop for a bandsaw (although that may have to change sometime soon!). So I use my manual mitre saw - I have the ProMan from Nobex, but other folks make them. On the positive side, it can make very accurate square cuts to trim the outline of the scales. On the down side, it can't make curving cuts like a coping saw or bandsaw. So I use the mitre saw to make relief cuts on the inside curves like Mike mentioned. Then I use the coping saw to "connect the dots" and trim it out. Not as fast as a bandsaw, but it works like a charm.

TedP

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I've used a recip saw to cut out blanks. It works fine, just as long as you use the metal blades that are 18 to 24 teeth per inch. After your done, take the cut out to the grinder/ or sander, and shape it.
The recip saw I have, has a speed dial on it. Make sure you don't run the saw too fast, and take your time.
 
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