reciprocating hacksaws

[Fred]

Hello,

Can you get hacksaw blades for sabre/reciprocating saws and if so, how effective are they?

I have a rusty (beyond repair) wheelbarrow and barbeque to chop up and dispose. Would such a saw cope with these or do I need to use an angle grinder? The cutting discs never last that long; I thought the saw blade might have better longevity?

I read through some old posts here and the Aldi model was recommended as good for a beginner but I could not find any left in my shops; that's what comes from reading old posts! The Screwfix Titan was also recommended but that particular one has been discontinued too ;(

IIRC the advice was to get one that needed a spanner rather than a quick release blade change because the latter would let the blade loose. Is that still the case?

TIA

[Clive George]

For once the stock uk.d-i-y answer is correct - angle grinder.

Friends had some thick metal sheets - the sort used to cover holes in roads temporarily - and they wanted them cut up a bit. So they used a 9" angle grinder. The first blade lasted about half a sheet. Then they realised the answer was to be rather more brutal with the thing, and the second blade took care of the rest of the sheets with plenty to spare.

A wheelbarrow and barbequeue will be made of tiny thin steel, which will be dealt with in seconds by the grinder. And you get much better sparks :-)

[The Medway Handyman]

Pretty good, although I've only used them to sever the odd rusty bolt.

More fun with an angle grinder! TBH that would be my weapon of choice.

I've got one of those, good solid tool. They have discontinued the one I have but there is a replacement

> IIRC the advice was to get one that needed a spanner rather than a

That would prolly have been from me. Personally I prefer the allen key versions because I've had trouble with cheap Q/R mechanisms in the past. Others may have different experiences.

[adrian]

I have the Ryobi OnePlus reciprocating saw - which (so far) I'ver used mostly for some radical gardening (taking 5 ft off a fuschia hedge!).

However - it also comes with a metal-cutting blade - and this seems to work very well - though I'm nort sure whether the angle-grinder would be faster ??

The Ryobi has a quick-release blade clamp - it's been fine so far..

Adrian

[John Rumm]

You can get all sorts of blades including hacksaw. IME they work very well. I managed to cut through 8" of 8mm steel plate with one and there was still plenty of life left in the (Bosch branded) blade.

Either would work fine.

Metal cutting disks usually last quite well - it tends to be stone cutting ones that vanish fast (unless you use diamond).

For a basic one with enough power you could also look at the Axminster white one.

A good quick release mechanism is best. Spanner or Allen key fixing is ok - just takes longer.

More details:

[Cash]

I'm not one of those "health and safety" pedants - but in this case, when cutting thin metal with the ubiquitous 'angle grinder', take care to ensure that the metal is supported so that it does not 'pinch' the blade during cutting and cause the grinder to 'jump back' into your body.

This once happened to me when cutting a metal corrugated sheet with a little

4 inch angle grinder - and 6 hours later I was leaving the local A&E department with old hand well dressed in bandages, and boy, didn't it bloody hurt for a few days. :-(

Cash

[The Medway Handyman]

I'd take issue with that John. I've had two cheapies with tool free blade change and found that the blade simply jumps out every few minutes, impossible to keep it secured. I became so frustrated with one that I simply threw it in the bin, it was impossible to use. The cheapies I've had with allen key fixing have been streets ahead in that respect.

I guess a 'good' Q/R blade change on a Mak or Bosch might be best, but the technology to make it work isn't used on the Chinese cheapies.

[R]

Gas Axe is *far* more fun

[John]

Can't you just bend and break it? Surely it isn't a heavy section. I have managed to get all sorts into my wheelie bin without resorting to special tools (Car tailgate, washing machine, dishwasher, not to mention flat pack furniture.)

[Reentrant]

When it is the right answer I propose we reply "Thermic lance".

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Only when Lidl sell them for 19.99...

[ARWadsworth]

Take the easy approach.

Leave them in view for passing pikeys to take them.

Adam

[dennis]

I think you can get one in screwfix for less.

[Jules]

I had one kick back on me when cutting a bit of scaffold pole the other day - big chunk went missing out of the disc in the process (makes me wonder if the disc failed first, actually, although it wasn't old and not damaged in any obvious way before use on the pole). I tend to make sure when cutting that I'm not directly in line with the angle grinder though, so if something like that happens it doesn't remove limbs and the like :-)

Key to longer disc life seems to be to not force things - I think the metal cutting discs are so thin that they can be prone to overheating and wear out very quickly. Just keeping a firm but light grip on the grinder and letting it do its thing seems to make them last ages IME.

cheers

Jules

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Tell you what Dennis, you get me a working thermic lance for under 19.99 and you can keep the difference. ;-)

>

[dennis]

Have you got a compressor or better bottled oxygen? then you need a 3m length of screwfix copper pipe. some steel wire a hose. Should be less than £19.99.

[John Rumm]

That is why I said a "good quick release mechanism"! If you are buying a cheapie, then spanner would be preferable.

[Rob G]

.....and please also make sure that there is nothing flammible near by. My father died that way.

Rob

[R]

Why do I want to bend my gas axe?

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember Rob G saying something like:

Was he made of petrol?