Best affordable DIY metal fabrication chop saw tested (Vevor 355mm) | Auto Expert John Cadogan 

Yeah - perhaps I glossed over that. I did mean not forcing the tool. Agreed that carbide likes to be worked reasonably hard. The saw is certainly not as happy when more teeth are engaged.

Yes, dangerous if forcing your tool. Usually results in unwanted marriage.

Do the blades in these saws have anti-kickback shoulders? I'm assuming this would limit the risks of too much force being applied. I'm not suggesting that it makes this a non issue or that you shouldn't worry about it. You're still going to induce excessive frictional heating of the blade and other issues, but at least it mitigates some of the risk of all that angular kinetic energy being rapidly dissipated in undesirable excitement. At least, that's my non-expert understanding of why some saw blades have these.

Not only downward pressure but you need to limit the kickback too. You have to be the shock absorber providing steady pressure. When cutting rhs/box/right angle you cut slower on the horizontal surfaces and faster on the verticals. Its all in the surface area/number of teeth engaged at once

I slow down just before breakout. That lessens the large burr on the off cut side. It also reduces the tendency for small cutoffs to jump off the saw.

Good plan

Please let me know how it goes mate. Thanks for watching.

I have been using one for nearly 20 years now as well as a band saw and I always use the circular saw when I need very accurate cuts as whatever you do there is always a little wander out with a bandsaw, for super accurate cuts a cold saw is best but it takes longer the saw is more expensive and so are the blades, of course you can get the cold saw blades resharpened and even new teeth fitted but there are now some companies around that will fit new teeth onto a tungsten carbide saw. I will say that if you want to cut stainless or thin wall tube a friction saw is a better bet.

​my method of choice is to use a bandsaw to cut something to size +2mm and then put it on my conventional mill to face both sides. takes a little longer but if it really has to be the size i want it to... and small conventional mills can actually be found for not that much money... just gotta find the space for them.

The motor looks the size of my Hitachi abrasive drop saw.

@@Low760 Its not about size, its about torque and rpm. A cold cut saw runs at about 1400-1500rpm from memory and your abrasive drop runs about 4500-5000rpm which can cause all kinds of bad things. Either it'll bind up or start spitting off teeth at supersonic speeds and that gets... exciting

Inside is galvanised as well, but the weld probably doesn't affect much of that inside. Best solution is the vinegar, or a thin pneumatic belt sander that reaches inside the tube. And weld in the open air. (Last point is not so compatible with GMAW - MIG welding using a gas shield.)

Here in Australia 9 inch grinders are banned from most worksites. They are one of the biggest if not the biggest cause of workplace injuries apparently. I was injured by one years ago and it gave me a whole new appreciation for grinder safety 😊

If you’re serious, you’re lucky the teeth didn’t explode off the blade. Did you read the max speed of the blade on the side of the blade?

Thanks, Reg. (Agreed on 'Sawzall'.)

I haven't tried it mate.

☝

I have both, the bandsaw gets used for larger material and for more fussy angles as it's easier to set up accurately. The drop saw gets used for basic 90 and 45 degree cuts as it's easier and faster to setup for that.

Bonus points for knowing what a 760UB actually is...

is that coz you can always add to metal if you cut it too short, unlike wood lol

I was wondering what the blades cost. Not surprised its half the price of the saw. My old abrasive saw is good enough for the small amount I do and it was free.

Yeah a bandsaw is better, blades are cheaper and last longer

I have a 305mm Bosch version of this saw and when it works it's great but in Australia these saws are an awkward compromise. They are faster than a bandsaw, faster and cleaner than abrasives and cheaper than a Brobo. They are also way more expensive to run than any of the other options. Water cooled cold cut saws are way more expensive but the blades last about 5-10 times longer and can be sharpened whereas the carbide tipped bladed are basically throw away. I've heard it's possible to sharpen them but every specialist I've spoken to who sharpens blades won't touch them. If you need a fast, accurate and productive tool water cooled saws are worth the money. If you're cost sensitive a bandsaw probably gives bang for the buck whilst maintaining similar precision. I hate abrasive chop saws personally and would rather just use the ol 5inch. These dry cold cut saws are in an awkward niche for prosumers who can't justify the cost of a brobo like saw but won't use it enough to be affected by replacement blades costs. To be fair to John that is the exact niche he targets but as someone with one of these types of saw who works in the industry I'm underwhelmed with it's performance. Also for whatever reason, cutting galvanised material seems to halve the life or more. I got about 80 cuts out of Diablo Steel demon blade and it only dulled a bit. I did one project with 2mm wall 50X50 mild steel and after about 10 cuts the blade wanted to explode it was so dull so I had to cut the rest by hand with a grinder. One issue I have is that these saws are not in my view safer than a grinder. Cutoff wheels aren't the worst thing to hit you. I've had discs blow up in my face literally, take chunks out of me etc but as long as you have eye protection you need to be really reckless or unlucky for a cutting disc to seriously injure you. Chop saws are more controlled and controllable but if and when things go wrong they can go very wrong. Especially with a dulling blade. If the clamp comes loose and the blade chatters as it will do long before it's warn out, these saws are prone to throwing that piece of steel at you which is way scarier than a cutting wheel exploding.

Or cut off the L to fit a drill.

@@AutoExpertJC Yeah in a pinch but there are bits ready made for that. (Probably for my application to assuming you are prepared to pay VW oem prices and assuming that they will sell it to a mere mortal.)

It'll cut aluminum fine but aluminum is so soft a dropsaw made for wood will cut it no problem if your careful how fast you feed it.. I use carbide tipped saw blades made for cutting wood in a milling machine for cutting aluminum

Dutch Oven hazmat shitfight.

Mine too.

Same here.