Which Circular Saw Blade to Cut Steel

Olli-Matti said:
How about Klutch benchtop metal bandsaw? I was searching for a suitable smallish saw also and found this one interesting.

Anyone using this saw? It has received good reviews it seems.

https://www.amazon.com/Klutch-Bench...95720&s=power-hand-tools&sr=1-21&ts_id=552910
Click to expand...
That one has the advantage that it can be left to itself to just do the job, without getting up to any mildly terrifying stuff by directly handling it as described @Str8jacket. The drop saw seems OK, but from my experience with a freehand Makita circular saw, even though it did a good job, the adjective has to be something with a bit more zing than "mildly"!
 
Olli-Matti said:
How about Klutch benchtop metal bandsaw? I was searching for a suitable smallish saw also and found this one interesting.

Anyone using this saw? It has received good reviews it seems.

https://www.amazon.com/Klutch-Bench...95720&s=power-hand-tools&sr=1-21&ts_id=552910
Click to expand...

I don't have the Klutch stand, but had a similar looking setup from Milwaukee for use with their PortaBand saw. I didn't like the way it worked; it did not track well, and applied too much pressure which would cause the blade to pop off the pulleys. I ended up getting rid of it and getting the Swag Table setup which I am much happier with.
 
hman said:
@basalt - My main concern with using a mini lathe to drive a metal cutting saw blade, even 5 ⅜" diameter, would be the strength of the plastic gears driving the chuck. That's a pretty large diameter for such a lathe, and even with new, ultra-sharp carbide, the torque needed to cut 1x1 solid bar would be tremendous.

And yes, safety would also be a major concern.

Cold saws are an option, but a bit pricey. Maybe you can fit a 4x6 bandsaw (similar to the Harbor Freight 93762) into your budget. As I recall, you have a store similar to HF in Canada ... or else you could drive south to Marysville, WA and hit the HF store there:
11401 STATE AVENUE
MARYSVILLE, WA 98271
360-939-1718
Click to expand...
I stripped all of the plastic gears in my mini mill using a 2 1/2" saw blade. I had to replace them with metal gears. Even then it just wouldn't have the power/depth of cut.

I have Evolution saws, hand held, miter and sliding miter. They are great and surprisingly cheap for what they can do.

I also had a small HF bandsaw and it was pretty good for the price. Best to buy a used one and replace the blade. Very flexible and convenient. I now have the larger model and I love it.
 
I've used a few different ferrous metal blades including the diablo and have had no issues. But not on a lathe. Just check the recommended rotation speeds. One made specifically for a circular saw is different than some of the evolution or other saws that turn much slower RPM. As long as you can match the recommended RPM with your lathe there is no reason it won't work. Just mount your material securely and safely, don't feed to fast and stand aside wearing eye protection when cutting due to hot chips and the possibility of a tooth breaking! I bought an evolution and the motor burnt out the first time it was used for light tubing. I may have just got a lemon, but I switched to a horizontal bandsaw and will never go back anything else.
 
@coherent : Sorry that you had a burnout scene man. In me, that would get a tad "emotional".
I admit I have treated the Evolution "hard". Not outright abuse, but at times, ran the hell out of it, and it hasn't missed a beat! I thought of it at the time as "relatively budget kit", £150 all in, and by now, I don't think it owes me anything!

[Emotional ih-moh-shuh-nl adjective / ɪˈmoʊ ʃə nl / Pertaining to or involving emotion, characterised by Anglo-Saxon expressions of a robust nature that are a standing menace to decorous and seemly behaviour, and to Christianity and all other Faiths in the nearby area].
 
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