Using a TS to cut other things?

[seaco]

Does anyone know if you can get blades to cut metal etc. on a table saw, I just thought as we have a very accurate tool here and it seems a shame that it will only cut wood and soft materials on it?

 

[SketchUp Guru]

You can cut aluminum with a carbide blade on the TS. Just reverse the blade first.

 

[Simoli]

I know that some plane makers will use the TS to cut the brass parts. Not sure if I have the nerve to do that though.

 

[stairman]

the blades I have seen on metal chopsaws have different teeth to the ones I use for wood

 

[Anonymous]

Table saws work best on timber and fingers!!!

 

[Scrit]

I'd say the biggest downside is dealing with the swarf. If a single piece of swarf is left anywhere it will find wood and mark it..... also, certain metals require lubricants.

Scrit

 

[seaco]

ermh! I guess not then! yep good thought Scrit...

 

[Shady]

I think I've also seen a couple of posts floating around about the possibility of fire as sparking bits of metal are sprayed onto sawdust - dunno if they're urban myths or reality though...

 

[Scrit]

I should add that I've regularly cut all sorts of plastics and composites in the past - from acrylics (Perspex, Altuglas, etc) and polycarbonates (Lexan, etc), through phenolics (Tufnol, etc), polyethylenes (including high density PE = UHMW plastic) and various grades of nylon and acetal plastics as well as solid-surface worktop materials (which are generally acrylic/polyurethane resin mixes with stuff like aluminium oxides or bauxite thrown in). They all cut well on table saws, but some such as polyethylene do benefit from having special plastics blades which have zero or even negative rake teeth and greater clearance angles. Weld-back and swarf build-up around the blade (it melts and weld on) are the biggest problems with the non-thermo set plastics as they are a definite fire risk. This means that the saw and dust extraction system have to be cleaned-out and inspected before cutting and immediately afterwards and that a fire extinguisher has to be on hand when sawing! Thermo-set plastics such as phenolics get hot when sawing but don't seem to jam the saw or get hot enough to ignite, but I still don't take chances with them. The solid surface worktops are the composite worktops are the worst for leaving grit and swarf which will potentially mark rimbers, so a thorough clean-up is required after machining them.

Scrit

 

[Mike B]

If you were considering cutting ferrous metals e.g. steel bars/plate etc then a TS will not be suitable for a couple of reasons:

1) metal cutting saws have a much lower speed, typically a couple of hundred rpm (as you don't use a tipped blade) and like Scrit says ideally require a constant flow of coolant

2) clamping/feeding the work through the saw - most metal cutting machines clamp the work rigidly using pneumatic or hydraulic clamps and then push/pull the blade through the work, again using pneumatics or hydraulics in order to get a consistent high feed pressure which gives a better cut and blade life.

Furthermore, metal saw blades are made from a solid sheet of high speed tool steel, which is then hardened and slightly hollow ground to provide clearance (c/w a wood saw blade which is typically a mild steel disc with TCT tips welded on to the teeth) making steel cutting blades much more brittle in use - even the slightest movement of the workpiece during the cut can result in either teeth snapping off or a completely broken blade.

However, as Dave R and Scrit say you should be ok with some non ferrous metals and plastics.

Mike