>>>ABRASIVE CUT-OFF or BAND-SAW ??<<<

[keeney]

For portability and light fabrication work, I love my Porta-band. Its a hand-held 4.25" throat bandsaw. Anything soft enough to saw, it cuts.

When cutting aluminum which would otherwise gum up the teeth, or to extend the blade life, you do need to apply a little cutting lube which can be a bit messy. By cutting from both sides, and/or angling the saw a bit, you can get through profiles a bit bigger. I cut some 1x12" steel plate on one project I was working on which would have been a PITA (if even feasible at all) using my abrasive chop saw.

There is an optional base/stand/vise for this saw which sounds really handy, but for most things I do, just marking the piece with a straight edge and a steady hand will suffice in accuracy.

As I said, it is hand-held (with carrying case), so you can take it anywhere you have power. The handiness of being able to cut things "in-situ" when re-working or modifying something big like a trailer, dock equipment, tractor attachments, is a huge win. Even just cutting larger lengths of stock in the shop, its handy to bring the saw to the stock where it is stored rather than to wrestle a 24' piece of stock into a fixed saw just to cut the 1' piece you need.

As others have pointed out, for hardened steel, a band saw will not work, and an abrasive saw is going to be the right choice, but for most things I do, this small band saw is the right answer.

- Rick

 

[LD1]

I have got both a generic 64-1/2 x 1/2 bandsaw made by clarke for tsc and a HF 14" chop saw that was on sale for $64. The only problem I have had with the band saw is that blades don't last very long and every couple of years I have had to replace the worm gear. It only costs like $14 and I have been told by clarke that it is a much softer metal designed to fail instead of some of the other componets. It is weak and cuts slow, but always does a nice job.

The chop saw, as others have mentioned are pretty slow on larger tube. It starts the cut quickly but the deeper you get into the cut, the more friction you have on the side of the wheel which slows it down a lot. 2x4 steel tube can take awhile but 2x2 angle or 2" round tube are a breeze.

Generally most of the projects I get into I start out with the bandsaw or chop saw but always end up going back to the torches. Yea they arent perfect but a hammer to knock the slag off and a mig welder do the job. Rarley do I have to do any cleaning with a grinder.

In general, anything with a cross-section of 2" x 2" or less, or something that has to be perfect, I use the band or chop. Anything bgger, like 3" or 4" channel or tube, gets the torches.

 

[DuckHunterJon]

I didn't read through all the responses, so forgive me if this is duplicated. I started out with a cheap ($59 on sale) HF chop saw. I splurged and got the 1 year replacement warrantee as I figured I'd kill it in a hurry. That was 4 years ago. I have used it, abused it, and it still works great. It works very fast in thinner materail (<1/4) and slow but decent in thicker. I had a project where I had to cut 1.25 square tubing thick wall, about 50 peices. I bought a cheap 64.5" bandsaw, and just about as quickly, returned it. I wasn't impressed with the cut quality, and it took forever. The project went through exactly 1 abrasive disk, and was much quicker with the chop saw.

Lastly, someone mentioned you can't free hand cut with a chop saw. I do all the time. Yes, you are taking a big bite, and yes you have to be careful, but as long as you are smart, you can hand cut things easily.

Hope that helps.

Jon

 

[allenr]

I have been know to use those blades in my HD Industrial Black& Decker 8" angle grinder, to cut light tubing, not possible to put in any saw...

I also use the worn 14" wheels in 9" hand held grinders and then in 4 and 5" grinders- needs a bit of adapting to keep them central though!

 

[bw_wis]

Five years ago I bought a Milwaukee cold cut (or dry cut) chop saw. And I love it. Expensive; Yes. I only had two blades for it. And the blades can be reshapened.
Pros-quieter(reatively speaking), no/few sharks, can touch most cuts with in seconds, nearly burr free(less time grinding).
Cons-Cost, must be careful with blades.

I also have a Milwaukee porta-band for notching, funny angles, and material I'm afraid risk a blade on.

I have a B&D 7-1/4" circular saw with cut-off wheel in it for rebar and the like, and when all else fails.

And yes I have used several different horizontal band saws. Until I have need and several k for a quality, liquid cooled band saw. I'll stick what I've have.

 

[2manyrocks]

The way the OP posed the question I totally forgot about using thin cut off disks for the angle grinder. Very handy and quick for certain materials, but they don't last long.

 

[alegriarick]

I plan to get one of the new Carbide chop saws as soon as I have enough $$- I have seen them cut easily with few sparks through 1/4" material. They run cooler as well, but they cost from $50 to $100 more than an abrasive saw. "Evolution's Rage" is one brand. You'll also want to get some good ear protection!

 

[Steve C]

I have had one of those generic "made in Taiwan" 64-1/2 x 1/2 metal-cutting band-saws for over thirty years.

It has served me well on countless projects, some quite intensive, such as building a deluxe fully-equipped 20-foot goose-neck live-stock trailer.

I have never used one of those H-F abrasive cut-off "chop-" saws.

How do they compare to my band-saw for general purpose cutting of such things as 1-1/2 x 3/16 angle-iron ??

I figure the abrasive wheels would be short lived; am I right ??

What can the "chop-saw" do that my band-saw can't ??

Is the chop-saw quite a bit quicker ??

Thanks.

My vote goes for the chop saw. The one thing that a chop saw can do that your band saw can't is always cut a straight line. It will always cut the line that you set it to and will do it rather fast if you have a good wheel on it. You won't have to dink around grinding and fitting if you use the chop saw to cut the part. The band saw tends to have a mind of its own sometimes. I have both and use the chop saw 99% of the time. The wheel life is very good and the replacements are cheap and easy to find. The wheels can make a lot of cuts before they wear much. On the thin angle iron you are cutting the abrasive wheel will be much faster. You need to get a feel for what it is doing and not try to force it. Once you feel the sweat spot it cuts like a hot knife thru butter. If you need to cut a curve, use the band saw. For all other uses the chop saw gets my vote. I had a ryobi that I lost in my barn fire and replaced it with a rigid. a very nice tool.

 

[woodlandfarms]

Hey guys... Been following this with great interest as I need some new tools for christmas (Oh thank you Santa!)

That said, What is the realistic sizes I can expect to cut with a 14" Chop and / or a portaband

I see that there are physical limits (I am assuming 6" or so on either) but I wondered what peoples results are .. Thanks for those of you who have thrown in what they have been able to cut....

Let me add one dumb questions. Can I geta 14" abrasive shop saw and put on a Lennox metal cutting saw blade on it?

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Hey guys... Been following this with great interest as I need some new tools for christmas (Oh thank you Santa!)

That said, What is the realistic sizes I can expect to cut with a 14" Chop and / or a portaband

I see that there are physical limits (I am assuming 6" or so on either) but I wondered what peoples results are .. Thanks for those of you who have thrown in what they have been able to cut....

Let me add one dumb questions. Can I geta 14" abrasive shop saw and put on a Lennox metal cutting saw blade on it?[/quote]

You can do anything you want, but it is not a good idea to put a toothed metal cutting blade on an abrasive saw. The abrasive saw has a faster RPM motor than what the Lennox blade is designed for.

 

[powerstroke444e]

I have a milwaukee portable bandsaw and would not trade it for anything. I have had it for several yrs. We have @ the farm and one in my shop. I have used for everything from pvc pipe to cutting steel for my shed no sparks, and easy to use. I think they still make a 18v one also. The local tool dealer has blades that are 100% better than one you buy in the stores. The portable bandsaw & plasma are my 2 favorite purchases. Both run on 110v and can be used with my generator.

 

[GE222]

I currently own a Kalamazoo horizontal band saw and a Milwaukee portable band saw. I couldn't live without the large K-band saw as I often cut thicker steel items. I am sure that I would get a more accurate cut as well versus a chop saw.

I have never had a chop saw but have used one from time to time. They have their place, such as cutting hardened steel, but they are very noisy an make a real mess.

 

[Steve C]

Hey guys... Been following this with great interest as I need some new tools for christmas (Oh thank you Santa!)

That said, What is the realistic sizes I can expect to cut with a 14" Chop and / or a portaband

I see that there are physical limits (I am assuming 6" or so on either) but I wondered what peoples results are .. Thanks for those of you who have thrown in what they have been able to cut....

Let me add one dumb questions. Can I geta 14" abrasive shop saw and put on a Lennox metal cutting saw blade on it?

You can cut some pretty large stuff with a chop saw. It holds a straight line well enough that you can cut things like 6x6 or 8x8 tube steel or large angle iron one side at a time and just rotate it to complete the cut. With my cheap bandsaw unless the blade is brand new it wants to pull to one side of the cut and continues to get worse as the blade wears. This makes it impossible to jut one side at a time because the ends of the cuts won,t match up. The large oil cooled industrial models are much better and are a dream to use but I think the cost is a little higher than most home shop budgets can support.

Our local steel supplier cuts all his smaller steel with a chop saw. The largest I have bought from him is 4x4x3/8 tube steel. It is very loud and very messy but very fast.

 

[BearKiller]

THANKS FOR THE MANY RESPONSES !!!


I note that in many replies about the stationary band-saws that people are experiencing less than accurate cuts.

Such was also the case with my old saw for a good many years.

I finally took the time to address the situation, spent nearly half a hard day making adjustments and test cuts; and, >>>NOW<<<, my band-saw cuts perfectly square in both planes in the largest material it can hold/cut.

There are three (?? or more ??) "cam-shaped" "eccentrics" that make the many adjustments necessary to bring the saw into tune.

Extreme patience and many many test cuts finally rewarded me with straight/square cuts that rival those acheivable in the wood-working field.


When I posted this thread, I had completely forgotten about the portable band-saws.

I have never been any closer to one than pictures in catalogs and didn't really know what their intended use was.

Thanks again for all the information.

 

[Steve C]

THANKS FOR THE MANY RESPONSES !!!


I note that in many replies about the stationary band-saws that people are experiencing less than accurate cuts.

Such was also the case with my old saw for a good many years.

I finally took the time to address the situation, spent nearly half a hard day making adjustments and test cuts; and, >>>NOW<<<, my band-saw cuts perfectly square in both planes in the largest material it can hold/cut.

There are three (?? or more ??) "cam-shaped" "eccentrics" that make the many adjustments necessary to bring the saw into tune.

Extreme patience and many many test cuts finally rewarded me with straight/square cuts that rival those acheivable in the wood-working field.


When I posted this thread, I had completely forgotten about the portable band-saws.

I have never been any closer to one than pictures in catalogs and didn't really know what their intended use was.

Thanks again for all the information.

Good work! I hope it stays in tune. I gave up fighting with mine years ago. I would get it to cut good for a while and the next time I needed it to work well it wouldn't.

I would just eyeball the amount of correction needed and clamp the material in the vise crooked to compensate, and grind as needed. I started building most things with non critical overlapping joints rather than percision butt joints.

Perhaps I should have purchased some premium blades for it

My neighbor has been running a wood cuttting bandsaw sawmill professionaly for 20 years. He claims that the blade going out of tune is the nature of the beast. When he has them sharpened they run them through rollers to stretch one edge of the blade to help compensate for the run out. I don't know if this applies to metal cutting saws or not. His blades cost him around $70 each. He has told me that he can buy blades for half that price but even at that the cheap blades but they are not worth it. They just won't cut straight. I have taken his blades to his sharpening service in lots of 40 and 50.

He has a couple of bucks wrapped up in his equipment.

 

[mjncad]

That's the key to any bandsaw Bearkiller...patience to tune them up properly. It took me the better part of a day to tune both of mine up; but the results are well worth it. I'm also using Starrett blades, which are better than the cheapies that came with each one.

 

[cleatus]

When cutting 1" to 6" x up to 8" wide solid, I use my 25yr old import band saw and get straight cuts one heck of a lot faster than any chop saw. Besides one blade is still going when finished with 20 plus cuts as compared to several dozen cut off wheels.

 

[J_J]

Hey guys... Been following this with great interest as I need some new tools for christmas (Oh thank you Santa!)

That said, What is the realistic sizes I can expect to cut with a 14" Chop and / or a portaband

I see that there are physical limits (I am assuming 6" or so on either) but I wondered what peoples results are .. Thanks for those of you who have thrown in what they have been able to cut....

Let me add one dumb questions. Can I geta 14" abrasive shop saw and put on a Lennox metal cutting saw blade on it?

Carl,

NO, to the last question.

The rpm of the cold cut saws are about 1/2 speed of the abrasive chop saws. I think you would ruin the blade. However there are electronic speed controller that will reduce the speed as long it has the current carrying ability. I believe they use a silicon control rectifier to only use part of the sine wave, and therefore the slower rpm.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

When cutting 1" to 6" x up to 8" wide solid, I use my 25yr old import band saw and get straight cuts one heck of a lot faster than any chop saw. Besides one blade is still going when finished with 20 plus cuts as compared to several dozen cut off wheels.

You should clarify that when you say chop saw, you mean abrasive chop saw. That is what you mean isn't it?

 

[dex3361]

Carl,

NO, to the last question.

The rpm of the cold cut saws are about 1/2 speed of the abrasive chop saws. I think you would ruin the blade. However there are electronic speed controller that will reduce the speed as long it has the current carrying ability. I believe they use a silicon control rectifier to only use part of the sine wave, and therefore the slower rpm.

I picked up a router speed controller from HF to experiment with whether it would do the job with a metal cutting lenox or other blade. I will use a tach to adjust the speed and then check it. Any thoughts would be appreciated.