Tired Of Hacksawing - Can A Slitting Saw Help Me ?

[bbutcher]

Have run out of budget for any new toys this year so cannot get a bandsaw.

Am tired of hacksawing metal and have tried abrasive 14" saw and thin blades on angle grinder.

Have just made a slitting saw arbor, but I get the impression that I wont be able to cut significant thicknesses with a slitting saw - is that correct ?

I get the impression that although textbooks and safety officers in big companes would frown on the practice, many people use 3.5" carbide tipped woodsaw blades as slitting saws on milling machiines - I will try this - any known traps with doing this i.e. I'd guess 200rpm for a 3.5" carbide tipped woodsaw blade for cutting mild steel ?

I purchased a 6 inch chop saw (item#61659) from HF a couple of years ago, and find it very handy for most small to medium size stuff. It uses thin blades similar to the angle grinders, but larger in diameter. I also have a 14 inch HF chop saw, but I find the 6 inch will cut just as fast or faster due to the thinner blade. I have a vertical bandsaw, plasma cutter, cutting torch, and slitting saw for the milling machine as well, but find the HF 6 inch gets the most use for steel. The band saw seems to work better for most aluminum cuts. HF also has a small horizontal bandsaw on sale for about $200 and I have been tempted, but so far cannot justify it. I purchased a 6 inch metal cutting blade and tried it on the HF 6 inch saw, but found the abrasive was better for steel. I often use a HF 10 inch wood chop saw with carbide wood cutting blade for aluminum and it works OK, but can kick back and be dangerous for small stuff where your hands get too close to the blade.

Bob