Cutting Aluminum on the Home Shop Table Saw.

After reading so far, there is not much difference in the consensus of table saw safety on the woodworking forums. A table saw is not any more likely to hurt you than something like a nice powerful drill press, milling machine or lathe. It all comes down to work holding and stock control. Tablesaws can be operated safely and trouble free. They can also be a deadly machine.

Personally, I haven't had one in years. Not because of safety but more the fact that to use them effectively you need good side and outfeed support that translates to a lot of space that I don't have. I would rather break down large sheet stock with a circular saw with a cutting guide. The new metal cutting circular saws would be a pretty good match as well for metal sheet with a similar guide. Something smaller than big sheet? It is just so much more simple on the bandsaw or chop saw.
 
I'm kind of late to this thread, but I wanted to share a couple of things from the past...

At work, the machine repair guys had some negative rake blades and a Zero Clearance insert. They would use them in the carpenters' table saw (in frontwards) for aluminum and brass sheets, rods, extrusions & such.

But...

Accident 1:
A guy was cutting sheet aluminum. The saw dust that was in the saw skirt caught fire. I don't think aluminum sparks, so it may have been hot chips?

Accident 2:
One day I was in the carpenters' shop while a co-worker was cutting sheet aluminum. It kicked back and flew up. I suppose the saw's kickback fingers could not grip the metal sufficiently.
Instead of a bonk on the head as one would get from wood, he got cut badly enough for lots & lots of stitches. (Face, neck, hands and one arm)

Accident 3:
Gloves with rotating machinery do not mix. Add a workpiece with sharp edges and you end up with yet another trip to the clinic for the guy in "Accident 2".

End Of The Practice:
An OSHA inspector happened to go in the shop while the saw was in use. That was the (costly) end of table sawing metals.

Honesty Time-
At home, I've cut aluminum sheet 0.125" and above with an all-metal body circular saw. (I never had luck circular sawing metal thinner than 0.125".)
I had a blade with zero tooth offset and no carbide tips to break off. I added a full face shield, no bystanders and extra hearing protection to compliment the normal safety gear. Work was always well clamped. Note- No Gloves With Any Rotating Machinery. Ever.

Personally, I never had a problem. Some lousy cuts, but no accidents.
I stopped using the saw for metals after I saw 'Accident 2", above.

Now-a-days I will score the aluminum sheet with a knife a bunch of times and snap it. Up to 0.250" is as thick as I have tried it on. I clean the resultant burr by dragging a swivel reamer along the cut edge or by using the edge of a file. It takes a while to score & snap, but it is a rather peaceful project.

Enjoy Today & Work Safely!
Paul
 
Back in the day I worked at a vacuum forming operation that was to say, primitive at best, would be an understatement. When asked to make a mold plate I said " how do I do that with no plate stock", well to my surprise the boss showed me where the plates were kept. They were full four foot by eight foot sheets of 1/2" 6061T alum. Well long story short I took it over to an old antiquated Sears Craftsman sheet metal bodied table saw with the old style fence. " Just wax up the blade" and cut said he. I made a habit of it after that, it was part of the job. I was scared, yes, insanely careful, yes. Oh, we used a Sears aluminum cutting carbide saw blade to boot!. So, yes it is a common practice to cut aluminum plate on a wood table saw with the proper blade, a wax tube lubricant used liberally, and much safety considerateness. The maximum I have cut this way was 1.00" stock in two passes. Full body protection is mandatory and, very much required to cut this stuff.
 
I've used a fine tooth blade on thin - stop sign thick - stock for fair size pieces. It's loud and a bit scary, but same precautions as wood - make sure you know where your hands are, guards on if possible, fences, etc. Only pieces big enough to well clear the blade slot and maybe not get crosswise. My 10" has a thermal trip on the motor, so if you get too aggressive with anything it'll shut down. I have also used a circular saw to cut corrugated steel, like you see on farm buildings. Take an old blade and flip it around, cuts real clean. Skirted our mobile in the country back in 1984 with that method. You could hear the saw slicing that stuff a good half mile away.
 
i said i would show off what i was attempting to do. . . . in the photo is the blank plate, about .190 thick. sanded, buffed and polished to a fair luster. next operation is to bore a 1-1/2" hole, about .175 deep to hold a canadian $8 silver coin. Christmas gifts for grandkids and greatgrand kids.
last week i made a couple of them from black walnut from a neighbors tree, these are larger coins but for the same purpose. sanded them out fairly nice and sprayed a couple coats of poly on them. when dry, i pushed the coin into the bored hole, and the face of the coin is just a bit below the surface. . . . .
more pictures to follow..
oh ya, i did saw the aluminum ones with my vertical old craftsman bandsaw. then milled them square. . . they came off the saw fairly straight.aluminum coin holder.jpgIMG_1199 (800x600).jpg

aluminum coin holder.jpg IMG_1199 (800x600).jpg
 
speedre9 said:
Back in the day I worked at a vacuum forming operation that was to say, primitive at best, would be an understatement. When asked to make a mold plate I said " how do I do that with no plate stock", well to my surprise the boss showed me where the plates were kept. They were full four foot by eight foot sheets of 1/2" 6061T alum. Well long story short I took it over to an old antiquated Sears Craftsman sheet metal bodied table saw with the old style fence. " Just wax up the blade" and cut said he. I made a habit of it after that, it was part of the job. I was scared, yes, insanely careful, yes. Oh, we used a Sears aluminum cutting carbide saw blade to boot!. So, yes it is a common practice to cut aluminum plate on a wood table saw with the proper blade, a wax tube lubricant used liberally, and much safety considerateness. The maximum I have cut this way was 1.00" stock in two passes. Full body protection is mandatory and, very much required to cut this stuff.
Click to expand...

WOW,

It's a small world....I worked as a designer @ a Milwaukee based Point of Sale Advertising Co. long ago. One day I observed the shop production foreman & his assistant sawing on an aluminum casting 4 inches thick on a table saw. It was a vacuum form mold. When the overload heated up & cut out they cooled it down with an air hose! Needless to say I got the H3ll out of the way quickly.
 
I rip (with a fence) up to 1/4 inch aluminum all the time on my table saw. The chips are hot and the noise is deafening. Other than that it's uneventful. I would never cut freehand or crosscut aluminum on a table saw as a cocked kerf could launch the piece at bullet-like velocity.
 
I admit I cut alli on a table saw when I had one and still cut it with my circular saw. But I either use a vitrified solid wheel or a hight tooth count Carbide designed for the job. The noise is awful and the vibration through you hands is enough to want to limit that activity as much as possible. I never cut anything any thicker than 14 gauge mild steel and Alli either.

Bob
 
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