I stole a abrasive metal chop saw at a garage sale ,I actually don't like them because they are so dirty and noisy . But I was wondering ,can I put one of the metal cutting blades on it . I was told it would rpm too fast for a metal saw type blade. Any one ever try it? Thanks
My cousin tried it once, once. No sooner had he started cutting than the blade exploded and left him with a huge cut in his forearm that required 137 stitches. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I BELIEVE THE METAL BLADE SAWS SPIN AT ABOUT 1400 RPMS, THE OFIBER BLADE SAWS SPIN MUCH FASTER. I WAS ALSO THINKING OF GETTING A SPEED CONTROLLER, BUT THEN SAW A YOUTUBE SHOWING THAT WOULDN'T WORK EITHER
I have learned over time that trying to get one tool to do the job of another is a formula for disaster. I would never try to get a metal chop saw to do anything other than what it was designed for. One last thing, buy QUALITY cut off discs, they last longer, create less of a mess, and are not prone to shattering! Be sure that you check the operating RPMs of your chop saw, and buy a disc that works in that RPM range. KK
I've used a fine-tooth carbide-tipped blade on a chop saw to cut aluminum (draw it through slowly!), but no way you can cut steel. Also used a table saw for aluminum, again with a carbide-tipped blade.
Man...that sounds like a headline waiting to be written. I love my big 'ole Milwaukee. Yes it makes a mess but it works well for it's intended purpose.
What is no. Buy a good quality and thin fibre disc. Walter is a brand I like using and long wearing. Had a cheap disc disintegrate in an air die grinder, lucky I didn’t get hurt!
Harbor Freight actually has decent abrasive chop saw blades. I use a metal blade in my skil saw and it works quite well.
They do... When I was still working we used a chop saw a fair amount and theirs were the 'best bang for the buck' by a wide margin, and we tried all the major brands.
When I was in highschool shop class, we had a huge DeWalt radial arm saw we cut steel with. That sucker would cut through 1/4" steel like butter! It would also sling stuff if it ever hung up. Saw it sling a piece of angle into the 10 foot ceiling like a tomahawk. Dangerous as hell! 45 years ago they didn't think anything about letting us teenagers run it, now OSHA would hang the instructor!
The last few I got from there absolutely suck. They just heat up the steel and don't cut thru it. Doesn't matter if it's 3/4 round stock or 2-1/4 exhaust pipe.
Little different use but same result. My neighbor put a saw blade on his Weed wacker. It kicked back and went through both bones on his leg just above the ankle.
I used to have a weed wacker apparatus that held 3 lengths of chainsaw blades. That MoFo was bad ass.
I had one of those chain link weed wackers also, truly bad ass but probably just slightly more dangerous than a nuclear bomb. Used it for saplings that grew near drain end that plastic line wouldn't touch. Still have all my limbs and digits but older and wiser (and more sacred) now.
Got an old beat up Milwaukee chop saw off of CL for $20. Cleaned it up and replaced the power cord and blade. Noisy and makes a lot of sparks but works great! A much better alternative is a bandsaw. Precision cuts and no mess at all. Here's the cheap way. Use a portable and build a small table for it. I've cut everything from 1" bar stock to tubing to 18ga sheet metal. Cut every piece of 2"x3" rec tubing for my roadster frame with it. Fast, clean and cuts steel like butter! It sits on the floor in the corner of my shop. Pull it out when I need it, push it back in when I don't.
My Milwaukee chop saw is at least 25 years old and still cuts like it did then noisy and dirty. Cut all the frame rails on many tube chassis cars.
I have a nice old Kalamazoo horizontal band saw love that thing. But I have a chop box also use them both. And your guys story's are scarry. A buddy of mine thought he could cut steel on a miter box lucky for him he asked me first I told him he would be digging carbide out of his skull for weeks. It's all about the RPM.
Interestingly enough, the Milwaukee chop saw is made by Makita and just re-branded. I love mine.... Yes, it's noisy/dirty, but set up right it gives fast, accurate cuts. I used to have Porta-band (and used them for years at my work) but accurate would never be a word that I'd associate with one which is why I sold mine. They'll do OK cutting smaller pieces, but I dare you to get a dead-straight cut on a piece of 4" conduit... I wouldn't mind having a vertical bandsaw, but lack of shop space and cost benefits just aren't there for me...
There is a company that sells a carbide blade for the lower rpm chop saws to replace the abrasive blades, can't remember who it was. Thought it was Praxair (welding distributor)?
I had two 57-64 Olds/Pont axles I needed to have shortened 1 inch to use them in a 57 housing. Went in to my local 4 X 4 off road type shop, right at closing time. Asked the guy if he could/would do it, and he said they did that sort of thing all the time. He went at those two axles with a vengeance. Ends of the axles were RED, sparks flying everywhere, and I stood back, way back, out of harms way. It looked like an accident waiting for a time and place to happen. Took a while for them to cool down enough to put them in my trucks bed (factory plastic bed liner), and they still melted into the plastic some. Guy had more guts than I would have tried to summon up. As it turned out, one axles splines were then too short to fully engage/seat the axle with the side gear. I found another off road guy who could cut/extend the splines without having the pivot/center in the axle end. Personally, I'm a little leary of chop saws. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
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