I just “lost” my metal cutting horizontal band saw, it was one of the $200 cheapo’s.
Mainly cut anything from 1/2″ solid square to 3″ or 4″ (1/4″ wall) square tubing.
So, thinking portability, wonder if I should consider a 14″ abrasive cutoff saw instead, for about $200. If I buy another band saw, it’ll be a better one than I had, in the $5-600 range.
How fast do the abrasive saws cut? Noise? Quality of cut (i.e. squareness, etc). How long do the abrasive blades last?
Thanks,
PB
Replies
I've used the Milwaukee cutoff saw alot, mainly for metal studs or rebar. They are loud, throw out alot of sparks and the blades can explode on you if you're not careful, but they do cut square and the blades will last awhile if you take your time while cutting and not try an power thru a cut.
Dave
I have both and for the steel you describe I always go to my Horizontal band saw.
2.5" x2.5" 1/4" angle iron took forever to cut on the chop saw and the cut was messy and not as accurate as the band saw. Plus I could not cut on a 45 well with it. Come to think of it since I got the horizontal band saw I have not used my chop saw. No more hot sparks of metal flying around and no more of that awful noise. I can work late without upsetting the neighborhood. I have a Jet and it was only about $250, make sure you have a variable tooth bi metal blade. Blade makes a huge difference.
If it is for steel studs then that is a different story but for anything other then thin stuff go with the bandsaw.
I bought one of those cheap ($60) 14" abrasive cut off saws from Harbor Frieght. Blades are cheap (any Home Depot).
Cuts studs, pipe & rebar square.
I agree, noisy (I recommend hearing protection)
Sends sparks, must be carefull
Leaves melted slag at the cut, can be sharp but you can use the spinning blade to knock this off or chamfer the edges.
Use gloves for the sparks and the occasional breaking blade.
Not an elegant tool, but worth it to me. Also a lot smaller than the alternative saws. My space for tools is as limited as my budget.
for a quality cut, stay with a bandsaw.
Abrasive cutters leave a an edge that you will have to file down with a grinder or mill bastard file. They cut slow on thick gauge metal and the thicker the cut the more prone they the abrasive wheel can wander. They leave sparks and on top of that are messy due to the abrasives and the metal wastes, they leave a thick kerf on the cut so you loose some accuracy.
Id like to dry those newer cuttoff saws that use a carbide toothed cutter as opposed to an abrasive wheel. However they cost the same as a bandsaw.
that being said, i own a cutoff saw and use it, however if i could chose one or the other, id go bandsaw every time, no second thoughts about that either. THey give a clean square and plumb cut whereas the abrasive wheel will deflect.
I use an old craftsman radial arm saw I got for $10 at a garage sale.
Follow previously advised precautions - caught a stack of old pallet on fire once with the sparks, ruined a couple pair of good glasses till I learned to put on goggles no matter how small the cut.
Every big commercial place I have ever bought steel cut they use big (20+ inch) abrasive cutoffs. The horizontal bandsaws are for machine shop tolerances.
I don't know if you are cutting a lot of metal, or if it is just an occasional thing. I don't know how much they are, but they have things called cold saws, which are similar to woodworking mitersaws. They supposedly don't really spark, and don't make a mess. They probably cost a lot, I'm not sure. But if you use it a lot, maybe it's worth the money.
Young, poor, and eager to learn