I've been asked to cut some 1" diameter Al tube into some short lengths - is an angle grinder with a metal disc suitable? I was wondering whether there could be a problem with the Al cuttings sticking to the disc.
Rob
Not my favourite way to cut al..
I'd hacksaw first, and clean up with the grinder. Or a file.
Strangely, machine working Al is often done with woodworking tools more or less.ISTR we cut extrusions on what looked like a tungsten carbide tipped wood saw bench..
I would use a bandsaw or hacksaw. Whatever you use, you do need to lubricate and IME the best lubricant for cutting aluminium is beeswax.
Colin Bignell
That's worth knowing.
it can be done, but it knackers the discs well before they wear out,
i usually cut alli extrusions with my woodworking compound mitre saw, it has the standard tugsten carbide tipped blade in it, and slices through alli easier than wood,
You can get tungsten blades for metal for your angle grinder similar to this.
I've done the same before - just make sure that the workpiece is very securely clamped, as it does like to kick more than wood.
Angle grinder is pretty slow at cutting tube of any great size. Decent jigsaw & appropriate blade or chop saw with TCT blade.
No, the disk will clog. This clogging is bad enough that the disk can become unable to cut. If you _must_ do it, use an extra-thin cutting disk for stainless, and expect really fast disk wear.
For a small number, use a hacksaw by hand. Probably a fine one - try to stay within the 3 teeth / wall thickness guide, for easiest sawing.
Best is probably a bandsaw, which I guess you don't have.
A circular saw works well, ideally a chop saw with some decent clamping. It's really important to use the right blade, with the right rake angle (easy to get - Screwfix et al). Woodworking blades are dangerous here - there's a serious risk of snatching, kickback etc.
If you have to jigsaw them, you need to clamp the tubes well into bundles in a vice. One tube alone is too awkward and has too little support for stability. A firm bundle of them is much easier.
Yup, not the best tool for the job. That sort of thing I usually cut on my sliding compound mitre saw with a fine (ish - 12" 64 tooth) TCT blade in. Clamp and support well though.
Do some practice here ;-)
It clings to the blade well and keeps lubricating much longer than anything else. We used to have a job where we needed to buy 4 metre lengths of 1/4 inch aluminimum tube in 100kg or 250kg lots and cut it down to approximately 5 inch lengths, so I've had a lot of practice.
Colin Bignell
Stone cutting blade is recommended for aluminium or a tct blade in a circular saw but watch out for hot chips coming off the saw blade, they can really burn. Bit of lubricant on the blade as suggested above.
Paul Mc Cann
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember F Murtz saying something like:
refuse to use one like that on an AG.
My solution of first resort would be a pipe cutter, e.g.:
In the end a new hacksaw blade and some hour and a half''s time was all that was required. Many thanks for all the inputs.
Rob
Don't actually know - how much longer? I don't think we were told the number of cuts required, or the gauge/diameter of the tube.
I've used a pipe cutter on steel tube (shortening the legs on a couple of tall breakfast bar chairs), and on copper, but never on aluminium, but I would be prepared to spend a bit more time for the benefit of the clean finish..
I doubt it - an angle grinder is much too fast for that type of blade.
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