blown formula

After killing a few dozen blades in a scroll/jig saw I made some startling discoveries.

When I was at Eliminator recently, I saw a guy cutting 1/2" aluminum with a Skill saw. I asked about the blade & it was a regular 36 tooth carbide wood blade. They do it all the time he said. Startlling!! The blade was not reversed as many have said in the past. The thinner the material tho', the more teeth needed. The key to this operation is to use WD-40... spray the material & the blade frequently... cuts like butter!!! no kidding.

No for thinner stuff 1/4" or less with a scoll/jig saw. Forget using regular metal cutting blades. Find some COBALT wood blades of about 8-10 teeth per inch. Again, spray the metal & the blade. Clean cuts, no blade wear. Great.

The WD-40, in addition to lubeing the blade & cut, help keep down the flying metal.... this is a good thing for the eyes! Also, use the WD-40 when drilling. The aluminum will NOT stick to the drill bit.

I thought I may save some one a lot of dull, gummed up or broken blades..... I wish I had known this several years ago.... I always looked up someone with a plasma cutter on thick stuff.
Oh, finishing the edges... use a 80-100 grit sanding belt on a belt sander. Works great & again, use belts for wood not metal. Seems strange but it works great!!

Reed Jensen

I used to cut anodized high strength aluminum with a Delta miter saw... just put on some WD-40 and a carbide blade... I mean the ones with the big teeth... 1/2 of an inch apart... works great.. you just have to feed into it slowly.... I don't know about using a skill saw though. Besides eye protection... use hearing protection too... it is way too loud cutting aluminum.

blown formula

The protection stuff of course.... The miter saw thing is good but only on small pieces. Large pieces of aluminum, use the Skill saw... and feed it SLOWLY!!

mmwalters

I have worked with aluminum quite a lot. Most wood working tools can be used. A good tip for a circular saw it to find the thinnest blade you can. Also a router with a carbide bit makes a nice finish. Where a hat, goggles face shield and a long sleeve shirt.

blue thunder

With straight blades (jigsaw, hacksaw etc.) always select a blade that has 3 teeth in contact with the material. For example, when cutting 1/4 inch material use blades with 12 teeth per inch.

BT

blown formula

If too many teeth are in contact, the aluminum starts sticking to the blades and cutting stops until the blade is cleared.

mcollinstn

Aluminum won't stick to the blade if the kerf temperature is kept in check and the cutting edge is kept lubricated. WD40 is handy, but the following works better cause you can use a higher volume of it for cooling:


Take a quart oil bottle and drill a .090" hole in the cap.

Fill it with 1 ounce of gear oil and the rest of the way with kerosene. Shake it all up. The sulfur in the gear oil will keep the edge clean and the kerosene will keep the alumnum from oxidizing itself and becoming gummy.

Keep a steady stream into the cut (both sides of the blade if you are using a skilsaw).

If you have a big pan, you can put it under the work area to catch the runoff so you can use lots and lots of it.

blown formula

Your right of course, about the heat... I didn't mention use a moderate speed with the scroll/jig saw. The Skill is a slow feed anyway..... WD 40 works & is less mess than the oil/kerosene. Also no fire hazard in the shop.... In large cuts I would probably use your way.

This was primarily for anyone making small parts, brackets, clamps, etc..not production work. Less to buy to cut & works well, no mess, easy clean up, saves material & blades.

mcollinstn

PS: WD40 is pretty much a can of kerosene.

And it is much handier than a squirt bottle of homebrew. But if you plan to cut much, go with the bottle.

blown formula

No argument here!!