On 4 Apr 2008 12:58:52 GMT, Jim Yanik wrote:

SMS wrote in
:

I bought a 10" metal cutting wheel for a miter saw to cut aluminum, but
it really doesn't work too well. It cuts it, but it's not a straight
cut, presumably because the cutting wheel is flexible, and the motor
isn't fast enough.

I ordered this blade "http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006407O" but I
may return it unopened if it's not going to work well.

Is a 14" chop saw necessary for cutting aluminum (3/16" flat bar)?

Are most of the chop saws 14" because this effectively lowers the speed
of wheel across the metal?

I saw a 6" chop saw that runs at 9000 rpm, which is close to the speed
of a 14" chop saw running at 3900 rpm.


if you think about it,the larger diameter the cutting blade,the FASTER the
teeth go(linear rate),for the same RPM.

and a 14" blade has a lot more teeth than a 6" blade.


You don't need a fast blade to cut aluminum. For most applications
the harder the material, the slower the cutting blade. For example,
to cut pine, use a fast blade. To cut iron, use a slow blade. You
can buy blade stiffeners/stabilizer, which look like a large washer
that are fastened to the arbor against the blade. Make sure you buy
one with the correct arbor size of your saw.

See:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw...ade+stabilizer