Basic FNG question, but if I want to cut into a 4 door sedan for an El Camino clone, is it better for me to get a cutting wheel tool or a sawzall and why the one over the other?
Traditional was either a hack saw or cold chisel, I think. Maybe cutting torches if someone was lucky. I think the number of different answers is going to roughly equal the number of replies.
Get a cutting wheel. Ive see too many newbies do some serious damage with a sawzall. Jig saws work well, just dont let them bounce.
X2 - you may go through more cutting wheels, but you'll get a cleaner cut and if the sawzall "grabs" once, you've created more work.
BOTH. and a small Jig saw, and hand hack saw. I use the cut off wheel and the jig saw for the thin floppy metal and the sawzall for the Posts. Hand saw for delicate work.
if i was doing it i would probably end up using a plasma cutter , sawzall , port-a-band and a cut off wheel at some point during the process.
Circular saw from some place with a liberal return policy with a chop saw blade makes easy straight cuts in floppy rusty steel.
4 1/2" grinder is pretty hard to beat. They made loads of disks for them; grinding disks, cut off wheels, wire wheels, sanding pads, foam paint/rust strippers. If you have nothing else you need to get one of these. Sawzall is my second choice. plasma cutter on a car only has limited apps.
Thank you. I was thinking, like mentioned, that the cutting wheel would give you more control but being a FNG, I wasn't sure if you needed a separate tool body for the cutting and another for grinding and sanding. I never considered needed hand and jig saws, awesome.
LeoH, I see you have a nice Studebaker Lark Wagon. Is that the car you're planning to convert to a truck? If it is, maybe you should find another vehicle that's in rough condition. That way if project goes south , you have not lost much.
sawzall, tinsnips , cutoff wheels, I love my sawzall. use masking tape so you can see your cut lines better, straighter and closer to the line.