[rickbreezy]

Yes the TCT blades are great for aluminium, I have a few for my angle grinder. I don't know how much they cost, but a single blade used every day for 8 hours would last about 2 weeks. So a hobbyist would be set for a long time.


Good luck! And remember to hold on tight to those things, they can take you for a dangerous ride!

-Rick

Seriously, they are very dangerous.

[jakeru]

TCT angle grinder blade? Holy moly! Do you have a picture? Sounds amazingly dangerous. But, you've got me curious.

[kermdawg]

I saw some of those at homey depot last time I was there and was thinking about one too. Might pick one up for the peanut grinder if you give em a good word

[ogorir]

so, an update on those stud cutter blades... they only have abrasive around the outside 1/8"

in short, ripoff. I was getting about 15 cuts/blade on 1" 1/8" angle. oddly enough, I cut at least that many pieces of 1.5" 3/16" sq tubing with the first blade I had on there. so, back in search of a good abrasive blade. too damn bad, too, 'cause those blades cut really well while they still cut.

[kermdawg]

Which blades are you using? When I think stud cutter blades I think of these-
http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware ... ogId=10053
You can use those things almost all the way down like you can with an abrasive cutting wheel on a peanut grinder.

[ogorir]

harbor freight 3/32" 14" chop saw blades, sold in a 5-pack. they LOOK like they're abrasive all the way through, but they stop cutting once the outer edge is gone.

I need to go to lowes and buy a few brand name blades and maybe a TCT blade. see how long they last.

[kermdawg]

I know we cut cast iron sewer pipe on the job using the same chop saw blade for weeks, cause our company was to cheap(or the foreman couldnt remember to put one on his god damn requisision form). Imma pick up a couple abrasive blades at homey depot and slap em on my saw next time i stop by there and see how they do.

[ogorir]

no TCT blades at lowes, guess I'm going to have to order one.

I picked up a dewalt XP stud cutter blade and a regular 1/4" blade. the stud cutter is built the same as the HF models and lasted about 5 cuts 45 degrees across 1" angle. part of it, i know, is the harbor freight chop saw has a little bit of chatter, but not blade destroying chatter.

the 1/4" only saw 3 cuts yesterday, but it looks to be abrasive all the way though. I'm building a cart for the I-mig today, so, we'll see.

[kermdawg]

1/4 inch thick? Holy smokes thats a bad mother right there. I dont think the ones we used are even and 1/8 inch thick.

edit-is that 1" thick angle or 1x1x? angle.

[ogorir]

the angle I made the windshield rack from is 1"x1"x1/8". in short, not shit. should've been able to build 2 on one blade, but read on, I think I found the problem.

1/4" seems to be the standard chop saw blade, at least in 14 inch. the thinner ones are for lighter gauges. are you thinking of smaller skil-saw sized blades? those are thinner. so are the 3" deals for an air cutoff saw, I usually use 3/32" or 1/8" in the air cutoff saw. the 1/8" 3M #01990 green corps cutoff wheels are amazing, but equally as expensive.


I bought some norton 7/32" blades(same thickness as the dewalt XP stud cutters) at the local welding supply today, $20 for 5(same as the shitty ones at HF)

lasted through about 12 cuts, mostly through 2x2x 1/8" angle, then it stopped working worth a shit. I took a close look at it, and one half was really smooth, the other was slightly rougher. I took a file and knocked some chunks out of the smooth part and it cuts as good or better than new now, so they're a winner. I'll have to go back and rough up the HF stud cutters and the dewalts and see if there is any difference. I think the problem is the HF chop saw's arbor is just slightly out of round and is not powerful enough to cut through the side of the angle. it stalls out(not literally, just stops cutting) when it reaches the bottom of the angle. it cuts a hell of a lot better if you put the angle in like this: ^ . the only problem with that is you can't do any angle cuts that way, which the windshield rack I did was all 15 degree cuts.

I'll try to remember to grab the number off those norton blades, they're definitely a lot better than the others I've tried thus far straight out of the box.

[rickbreezy]

I looked long and hard, but I couldnt find the tct angle grinder blades I took of my last job(i wanted to take a pic of them).....hmmm.

I don't know where to buy them, since my employer bought them.

Sorry

[rickbreezy]

But anything with a carbide tip should work.

[ogorir]

did about 75 cuts or so with the norton blade on friday, 2 through 2" 1/4" wall sq tube. as long as you keep dressing the edge, it keeps cutting. I might try some cutting wax if I remember to pick some up at the welding supply. I think I've burned up about 3/8" off the blade so far. not bad for $4.

[Wobulate]

Food for Thought,

Are you sure the TCT blades are for a chop saw?
The speed of a 14" Abrasive Chop Saw is between 3600 and 3900 RPM (Milwaukee=3900).

There is another type of chop saw called a dry cut saw that uses the TCT blades exclusively.
The speed of a 14" Dry-Cut Saw is between 1400 and 1600 RPM (Milwaukee=1500.
They use 72 or 90 tooth TCT blades.

Wob