Cutting .063 4130?

[Bugs66]

I used a 6" plate shear extensively for my project. I was able to cut 3/16" 4130 using a cheater bar. Makes nice clean cuts. Then take to grinder to finish shape any round corners, etc. I've cut everything with it, steel, aluminum, plastic, composite plate, etc. Very useful.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/Plate-Shear-6-/H0732

[patmike]

your angle grinder idea is the cheap way to go. you can get 4 1/2"x .045 depressed hub wheels for it at lowes or home depot. also a sawsall with an 18 tpi blade works good too. built 3 race cars using just those 2 things for cutting and notching. when your cutting with the wheel trace out your part with a sharpie and then with the grinder slowly follow that path a little at a time. don't try to cut it in one shot.
good luck
Pat

[Hangar10]

+1 on Neil's comments.

My project is mostly wood, but I recently purchased a Jet metal bandsaw and it is now one of my facorite tools in the shop. Sure, they all have their purpose, but for cutting fittings and tubing this is just the ticket.


The vertical table was kind of flimsy and it had to be removed for horizontal work, so I fabricated a rigid table from a piece of .250" stainless and shaped it to clear the bed during horizontal operations. Not my idea, but it sure works great.


I tried to cut metal with several different tools prior to picking up the band saw... wish I would have done it a lot sooner.

[nrpetersen]

From my experience, slow a wood band saw down by a factor of at least ten. Use 32 tpi blades. A little bit of sulfur cutting oil helps blade life. Use genuine DuAll blades.

[nrpetersen]

And - You want the 1/tpi (makes it inches per tooth) to always be less than the thinnest metal you expect to cut. If you are cutting .063 minimum you could get by with 16 to 18 tpi, but if you are also cutting thinner 4130 stock, you should use proportionately finer blades. Otherwise the stock feed becomes extremely aggressive and you will break or strip teeth out of the blade.

I have an old Sears craftsman 15 inch bandsaw that I cobbled two jackshafts with simple wood b bearings, pulleys etc that is just fine for cutting 4130.

[Clarke Tate]

+1 on Neil's comments.

I fabricated a rigid table from a piece of .250" stainless and shaped it to clear the bed during horizontal operations. Not my idea, but it sure works great.

I tried to cut metal with several different tools prior to picking up the band saw... wish I would have done it a lot sooner.

That is a very nice table and solution for metal cutting! If anyone else fabricates something similar please be VERY careful and don't even think of having your hands anywhere but behind a blade without some kind of even basic guard. I learned on a semingly benign scroll saw cutting 1/4" pine what can happen when being "safe" without a guard and hands in front of a blade. I don't even want to think what a power hacksaw or bandsaw can do!

[Tom Downey]

Metal being cut on a band saw gets hot. a trick to cutting small parts are to attach them to a piece of wood big enough to hold. and don't force them thru the blade, let the blade cut, rather than try to hurry.

[Jim Hann]

An update folks, I purchased a 3" pneumatic cutoff at HF for 6.99 (coupon) and the wheels at Lowe's (Gator, MADE IN USA), now I hope I have a nipple for it, I have to dig in my spare bin or rob one off of a tool I don't use (most of my pneumatics qualify). I'll let you know/post pics when I get everything up and working in the next week or so!

Jim