All,

I've been having some fun with my cheap MIG, and have done some welding jobs the FC. Now that the DP is said and done, I've been thinking about making another one in SS. My experience at cutting SS has been awful, so I must ask how do you guys cut SS?

 

Chopsaw, 4.5"grinder with a cutoff disc and some carefully placed tape, or the ole' Hyperterm Powermax 30. Anyone cutting more than sheet aluminum on a regular basis needs one of these bad rides.

 

I second the notion on the 14" chop saw. Built (alot of stuff including) my SS exhaust with that baby. Sweet noisy, spark tossing action.

 

Chpsaw eh?

I've use the 4" grinder, and the SS eats the disc in a matter of minutes The Hyperterm Powermax 30 looks good, but is an overkill for the type of fabrication that I do (only once in a while)


Which one do you use? just did a quick search on HF, and they have one

 

I'v been rocking the DeWalt heavy duty for a long time now. Has cut some THICK material. Just make sure you plug it in directly to a wall socket. Any extension cord with a breaker will pop. The thing like >12A of powa for that spark flying action.

As for the Plasma...... I can't say enough about it. I put off that purchase for a LONG time becuase much like you, the fabrication wasn't all that frequent. But let me tell you, you FIND uses for it. I seriously don't know how I lasted this long without it. Cutting anything >16ga sheet AL gets the plasma out now.

EDIT - make sure there are no rags behind it. Oily or not they'll light up.

 

Ummm......makita? Honestly can't recall, its been a trusty ol' girl I've had for a while. Pretty sure its a makita.

As a forewarning - I had a "value" brand chop saw back in the day, and the bearings didn't stand up to the rigours of that machine.....hence why I went with a more recognized name (that I now can't remember ) the second time around.

EDIT: Just looked and its a DeWalt

 

I personally went with the DeWalt becuase of the name and becuase of how the trigger and handle are arranged. Compare the DeWalt trigger to the makita's and it just seems much more natural to grab and use the DeWalt as opposed to any other brand. Plus, how can you go wrong with a DeWalt?

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00023S32W

Serves me well.

 

Homedepot has inexpensive chopsaw's, i think i spent $100 on mine a few years back, has served me well

 

dewalt chopsaw with the abrasive blade goes right through 4" ss304 exhaust tubing. dont waste your time with an abrasive disc in an angle grinder, you will blow through them in no time.

 

im not that partial to the chop saw i have one right now but id much rather use a vertical or horizontal band saw. although take your time and itll work out the chop saw is by far cheaper.
z

 

The above tools can be used (chop saw or grinder with cutting wheel) or a bandsaw/portabke bandsaw. If using one of these decrease the cutting speed and/or add a lubricant, this will save the blade from dulling fast. When dealing with SS you just need to take your time as it is very difficult to work with when cutting/drilling/milling etc.

Always besure to have a dedicated SS wire brush, as anything used on steel then stainless will cause it to rust, however an iron file is an execption, and a good way to clean the edges after cutting.

 

I gave my chop saw away the day I got my band saw. You can pretty much buy the cheapest bandsaw you can find, just make sure you have a good blade. I cut alot of stuff on a daily basis so for me the quite supervised operation of a bandsaw is a great. Stainless work hardens so you hand low rpms and plenty of pressure. The most important thing is quality cutting tools. A hass drill bit will burn up after 1-3 holes, whereas I can drill out 5-7 flanges with a quality cobalt bit.

 

All,

Thanks for the info, I found a Hitachi chop saw, but I am eyeing a couple od dewalts on ebay. The only problem is that I'm running out of sapce on the garage!!

I wasn't aware that SS actually rust out. I know that for aluminum, I should have a dedicated brush, but wasn't aware that the same principle applied to SS.


Band saw, eh? So, a band saw is easier to use than a chop saw? The band saw was my favorite tool at the shop class, many many moons ago, and I can see myself buying one, rather than a chop saw

 

Man after reading all this I think I may make my downpipe out of mild steel, even though I don't really want to. I'd like to do stainless but it seems all the little extra stuff is going to be expensive, like the cutting tools and shielding gas. It's not like I'm worried about it rusting away anyways.

 

There's always room to be found.... SOMEWHERE.

Same principle of transfer. Learned it the hard way.


If you've got the tools to make a mild steel DP, I think the only thing extra you'll need for the stainless is the tri-mix shielding-gas. All the cutting tools would be the same.

 

first off you do not need anything special for stainless. if you can do mild you can use all that on your stainless. you can use mild wire on stainless it wont be as corosion resistant but t will work. your mix gas will work just fine but you will have a bit of sut that you can just wipe off after welding.
all the special little tricks are more for tig welding and if you just have to have te shinny 304 stainless. but there are other stainless out there like 409 stainless is just as easy to work with as mild it isnt shinny like 304 but it is stainless to last for things like downpipes and exhaust. that you want to ceramic coat anyway right?

z

 

I use a nice band saw, chop saws work well but you will need cleanup for sure.

 

I don't know man!

Cool, that means I need a new wire brush!

I've done some SS on my cheap *** MIG, no problems so far, the only issue is cutting that damn metal




To be honest, my current cutting tools for mild steel is a meal hand saw (can't remember the actual name), a sawzall, and a 4 inch angle grinder.

 

ya a chop saw would help you a bunch if ya wanna do it on the cheap check craigslist in your local area usually you can find some real cheap tools.

 

I have a band saw. The nice thing about a band saw is that you can chuck up the piece, start the cut, and walk away doing something else.

If you don't want to invest in a band saw, a chop saw works well if you go slowly (otherwise you get a lot of flash).

But just an angle grinder and cutting wheel does the job very well, but a bit slow. Score around the diameter of the cut so the wheel has some place to sit, then just run around the cut until it's done.