Cutting Flat Bar Stock

shouldn't be a problem

bill tindall

>You should have no problem cutting annealed tool steels so long as you don't get them hot. I wonder if you have too fine teeth and that is heating the cut. We used much coarser blades. I usually add a dab of oil.

Re: Cutting Flat Bar Stock

ThomD

>You need the blade really well clamped in a vise or with a clamp, and you need to advance it every half inch or so. Other than that a HSS hacksaw blade should be fine.

I have a cheap bandsaw I do this with. My rule is that whatever you don't automate is what you spend all your time doing, so it better be something you like. Of course for just a cutter or two.

Re: Cutting Flat Bar Stock

philip marcou

>If that stock is in the annealed state then even an ordinary cheapy hack saw blade will cut it. It helps to have the stock well supported, and if you are using a blade with relatively few teeth then you can offset that by cutting on a slant to enable as many teeth as possible to be in contact. Also a cutting oil, such as Lennox oil, is beneficial. Firm pressure on the forward stroke, ease up on the return, about 50 strokes a minute.

Ofcourse automation takes the pain out of it. I make planes, the soles of which are 8mm thick O1 stock-same stuff as yours. I use a bandsaw, suitably tensioned , running at 50feet per minute-eats it up like corn off the cob.

Re: Cutting Flat Bar Stock

paul womack

>I'm using 1/8" Starrett Oil Hardening stock and the teeth on the hack saw blades just break off.

Are you cutting on the narrow face? If so you're generating a lot of pressure on a small number of teeth, especially on the coarser blade.

Put the stock "wide face horizontal" in your vice, and saw it like a tenon cut. The cut should be rather close to the vise to absorb vibration (around 1/4" should work fine). 50 strokes a minute, and moderate pressure.

IME annealed steel cuts quite nicely.

BugBear

Re: Cutting Flat Bar Stock

Frank D.

>I use Lenox hacksaw blades and they hold up with no problem, don't know about Buck blades. As others have mentioned, you may be heating the steel as you saw, which can harden it. A little oil should make things easier.

Perhaps

Jim Reed @ Tallahassee

>you should try abrasive. Do you have a Dremel with a cut off wheel? How about an angle grinder with cutoff wheel?

01 cuts easily

Jim in Burlington On

>Maybe you have a bad batch of blades. Try to snap one that you've already cleaned the teeth off of. Even hardened 01 cut's with good bi metal hacksaw blades.

plow plane iron

Adam Cherubini

>Tom,

If you aren't going into business making these, skip the O-1 steel and start with an old plow plane iron. Its already got 90% of the features you want. You can easily grind or hack saw the wrought iron into the shape you want and you 've already got that little groove in the back you need. Nothing beats a laminated iron. An old match plane iron would be even better. These are easy to find on ebay, or just ask Todd nicely to look thru some of his coffee cans.

Adam

Thanks To All: plow plane iron

Tom Colligan, Peoria

>Thanks fellas; I took a second look at Todd Herli's terrific video on making hollows and rounds and he made a point of saying the hack saw blade should always have at least two teeth in the material. That is, if you're cutting 1/8" stock then an 18 tpi blade should be used. I don't know if this was the answer but this and some periodic oiling made it all work properly. Thanks again.

Thanks Adam; I aslo need to make some floats.