I don't know how you never got exposed to how things are done outside your
facility, but tubing cutters have been for generations, and are still
routinely used for cutting steel and other metal tubing.

Automotive brake lines/hydraulic tubing , EMT thin/heavy wall, exaust
tubing, thin sink drain tubes and multiple other uses.
Tubing cutters are used for one-off jobs, construction trades and production
shop cutting of all sorts of tube sizes.

I've frequently used common single-cutter tubing cutters for small EMT
thinwall, and single-cutter pipe cutters for larger EMT.. which is the same
method used in auto/truck exaust shops.

Works the same for bright plated sink drain pipes.

I dunno WTF your problem is with implying that tubing isn't cut with a
tubing cutter, or the difficulty of figuring out how to cut tubing.. which
is just sheetmetal FFS.

There aren't a lot of complicated issues involved.. the thin cutter disc
displaces the material and the wall weakens to a point where it separates.
Deburring is what it is, which makes having the job done outside for $.50
each fairly cheap.

For doing lots of pieces, the only practical way would be to cut off the
pieces while rotating the full length tube (properly supported by rollers
along it's length), but that doesn't mean a lathe.. a 1/2 HP motor and some
speed reduction would likely be more than adequate.
I don't think a sharp disk would make the best cut, but it would be cheaper
than a thin abrasive disk that cuts thru the wall only as the tube is
rotating (a chop saw is a lot more wasteful as far as the kerf width and
time).

A fairly intelligent HSM could fabricate a machine setup such as this, able
to handle various sizes of tubing and adjustable, repeatable lengths.
Additionally being able to debur/chamfer at least one end of each workpiece
could be integrated into the machine without too much difficulty.

All your self-righteous compassion BS about supporting US jobs apparently
doesn't apply to supporting workers in other US shops, such as the one that
cuts your custom parts to your specs.

Halve it your way.

--
WB
..........


"Tom Gardner" mars@tacks wrote in message
...
On 5/10/2012 2:23 PM, Existential Angst wrote:

You just have to ask yourself what kind of a moron would ask if a tubing
cutter could be used for cutting off tubing to begin with....
=================================================

I would like to see ANYBODY cut 2" x .049" wall tube with a tube cutter.
It seems that politics overrides physics...loudly.