DIY wire saw designed to slice up a forklift

[strantor]

I found this!

Diamond Wire Loop-D0.35 - Ensoll Diamond Wire Loop ,Wire Cutting Machine

Description: Endless Diamond wire loop Model D0.35 is the thinnest endless cutting wire in the world.It’s an tech breakingthough,this kind of wire have a diameter of 0.35 mm,the cutting kerf is very small. If you need to cut very small and expensive material, D0.35 is the best choice. You can...

www.toolsresearch.com

Ok, so it's not impossible to join the ends of steel wire that small... I wonder if they'll tell me how they do it?

I'm curious if they take already-made diamond wire like I have, and splice it together, or if they make loops if steel wire and then sinter diamonds onto it. My money is on the latter.

 

[Eddyde]

I don't see why it couldn't be welded or brazed like a bandsaw blade, though I know it would be much harder to do.
Or, I suppose a heavier gauge wire could be welded into a ring, drawn down to size and then coated.
How ever they do it, It's probably a proprietary, secret process.

 

[WobblyHand]

Ok, so it's not impossible to join the ends of steel wire that small... I wonder if they'll tell me how they do it?

I'm curious if they take already-made diamond wire like I have, and splice it together, or if they make loops if steel wire and then sinter diamonds onto it. My money is on the latter.

The worst that could happen is they won't tell you. Maybe they would give you a clue. Only one way to find out!

 

[strantor]

The worst that could happen is they won't tell you. Maybe they would give you a clue. Only one way to find out!

I have submitted the question to them, among others. No reply yet but if I hear back I forward the response.

 

[strantor]

I got a reply!



So, when I fill in the blanks between the answers, the process that I see is like this:

• Start out with a "washer", or something resembling a plain wedding band.
• Anneal
• Draw it radially over successive mandrels to enlarge/stretch.
• Anneal
• Use some sort of hydraulic opening device to stretch it out radially, until it starts to look like a square profile wire.
• Anneal
• Fit a split die around it, start drawing linearly into more of a round wire, and getting longer.
• Anneal
• Fit progressively smaller dies, drawing linearly longer and thinner, and annealing, until you hit the target loop diameter and wire diameter.
  • You would need to hit both numbers at the same time, which means the weight of the washer you start out with would have to be very accurately calculated and weighed.
• Do the diamond coating process, and all the many steps I'm sure it entails.

Is that what you see in your head too, after reading the answers? If so, the price seems low, even for China.

So, either she told an untruth out of ignorance or Chinese honesty, and they actually do have a way of joining the wire, or the above process (or close/similar) is actually the case. Either way, I still have no ideas to make me think DIY manufacture of endless loops is feasible.

 

[jmkasunich]

I got a reply!
View attachment 393156


So, when I fill in the blanks between the answers, the process that I see is like this:

• Start out with a "washer", or something resembling a plain wedding band.
• Anneal
• Draw it radially over successive mandrels to enlarge/stretch.
• Anneal
• Use some sort of hydraulic opening device to stretch it out radially, until it starts to look like a square profile wire.
• Anneal
• Fit a split die around it, start drawing linearly into more of a round wire, and getting longer.
• Anneal
• Fit progressively smaller dies, drawing linearly longer and thinner, and annealing, until you hit the target loop diameter and wire diameter.
  • You would need to hit both numbers at the same time, which means the weight of the washer you start out with would have to be very accurately calculated and weighed.
• Do the diamond coating process, and all the many steps I'm sure it entails.

Is that what you see in your head too, after reading the answers? If so, the price seems low, even for China.

So, either she told an untruth out of ignorance or Chinese honesty, and they actually do have a way of joining the wire, or the above process (or close/similar) is actually the case. Either way, I still have no ideas to make me think DIY manufacture of endless loops is feasible.

Looking at the photos it's hard to be sure but it seems like the cable might be stranded. They may have a process that lets them start with a single solid wire 7 times longer than the final loop and wind/twist it into a 7 strand cable. Seems like the two ends of the strand would have a tendency to pop out, but maybe the diamond plating process also bonds the strands together?

The process described just seems much too complex. Especially since they offer a wide variety of loop lengths.

 

[strantor]

Ok I did some preliminary testing of the saw on thick cast iron. I sliced long-ways through a transmission housing flange. It works, but it's abrasive cutting and this is like planing boards with a belt sander at 2000 grit. Finish is great, dimensions are great, but the process takes soooo long. Here's 70 minutes of cutting:





I decided that was enough data for a proof of concept. Breathing unhealthy amounts of cast iron dust helped me reach that conclusion. I hack-sawed the corner off to see the finish:





Not exactly a surface grinder finish, but the best finish I've seen come off a machine with "saw" in its name. Around the edges the finish is worse because of the wire vibration exiting the cut. I have a feeling in the middle of the cut it's smooth as glass. Will confirm some day soon.

Bonus material, sawing a Dollar Tree beer stein.





The mug exploded shortly after these pictures were taken. It was pretty spectacular. I think it was like what happens with a Prince Rupert's Drop. It didn't fall out and break, it exploded right there in the vise.


And a 4" steel pipe



I recorded video of all this, will post here when I get it edited and uploaded.

 

[WobblyHand]

This is so awesomely cool! Love it!

 

[7milesup]

This is so cool! I love your "jankiness" in order to test out a concept.

This thread has actually given me a potential new approach for a project at work that has been doggin' me for a while.

 

[rwm]

This is awesome. Please continue. Cut up a forklift. How about a pic of the forklift!