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Thread: hacky saw..

  1. #1
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    hacky saw..

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYhc5U_Ix_Q

    this is my mechanical hacksaw that i use to cut big pieces of metal. this was built because cutting large pieces of metal with a chop saw sucks and blows, in that order... it is a 1/2 hp motor that turns a worm drive gear box which has the crank on the output shaft which actuates the blade frame that is mounted on ways on the main saw frame.. this is the same saw i used to cut the materials for my pneumatic press im currently building. it is cutting some aluminum plate in the video that will be used for the ends of another pneumatic cylinder for my press to kick the output force up another 1,200lbs for 3,200lbs of force at 135psi..

  2. #2
    Boolit Grand Master jmorris's Avatar
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    I always wanted one of those, just to have one. I have a few automatic feed cut wet band saws and a Roll-In I use most and a few port-a-ban saws for some stuff but I always liked the idea of having various short (less expensive) speciality blades for one of those reciprocating saws.

    I have come across some good deals on them in the past but as most are old, they were built to last several human lifetimes so generally cost a lot more to ship than the machine itself costs.

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    this one was built out of all salvaged steel and parts so got less than $200.00 in it. got some steel ladder sides in it for the flat bar. the wheel off an old doctors table. a threaded rod from a large screw type garbage compactor for the vice screw. 1/2hp motor off an old drill press. gear box off a chip conveyor for a CNC lathe. pulley off a garden tiller. V-Belt off a dodge van.. just whatever could be salvaged to build it..

  4. #4
    Boolit Grand Master jmorris's Avatar
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    That sounds like a great "special projects" build thread.

  5. #5
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    We had 2 doall rolling band saws for small work that cut very well and were great saws. For bigger stock and heavy cutting there was a power hack saw that had a power feed on it that actually raised the blade a few thousandths on the back stroke so the blade didn't rub returning. It made great cuts and soft metals didn't load the blade near as bad. It had a coolant set up also. The blades were ( this is from memory now) 1 1/4 wide and 16" long. It was nice as it was quicker and easier to have the correct teeth per inch for what you were doing than the Doalls bands were to change. We had from 8 tpi ( for big stock and aluminum) to 24 tpi. This saw cut straight and was quick. They were great saws but tie study decided half the work time was in the wasted return strokes same as the shaper and planer. Blades were cheaper and easier to change replace than the bands were, Its an art to weld a bandsaw blade and get it right. Also these blades didn't need to be "rolled or coiled to be manageable another required skill for bandsaws.

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    yea i can get dozens of cuts per blade with this setup Vs maybe 2 or 3 cuts with a chop saw. plus the blades are a lot cheaper and the thing actually cuts faster than the chop saw and without all the abrasive grit disbursed all over the place.. it will cut a piece of 8inch solid steel bar with a single blade and keep on going, most chop saws will go up in smoke and ruin several blades b4 it dies. the one in the video is a very coarse blade that i got out of a scrap pile. the coarse teeth helps a bit with aluminum being it does not load the blade up like the finer blades. i got a big vertical band saw and it sucks bad for cutting aluminum this thick, ya might get 1/4in in b4 the blade on the band saw is so plugged up that it will not cut anymore.

  7. #7
    Boolit Grand Master bedbugbilly's Avatar
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    That looks like it does a great job!

    Somewhat related . . . . . this triggered a memory . . . . years ago, there was a company that sold a power hacksaw"kit". It was the castings that you machined and built your own. I'd forgotten all about it until I saw this thread. Just for "nostalgia", does anyone remember those kits and who made them? Seems like they had a number of "kits" to machine up for different tools. I believe it would have been in the early 1970s I was in college and was going to buy one to make as a project in my machining class but couldn't get one in time as they were "backordering" them. I never pursued it - wish I had as one would certainly be handy to have.

  8. #8
    Boolit Grand Master jmorris's Avatar
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    without all the abrasive grit disbursed all over the place.
    That is why I dislike abrasive cutting and only use it on hardened materials that would ruin a saw blade.

    I added a counter balance to my portable band saw rig so I can adjust (back and forth) the load the blade sees. Also set it up so it can do angle cuts, add a vise so I don't have to mess with the chain as much and the best mod is one that is not as easy to see but just to the left of the sticker on the table you can see a nut, that is holding a push button (clutch pedal cruise control kick out off '80s ford truck) than opens the circuit to an outlet under the table. So saw is plugged into it, length of wood holding the switch on the handle and you set your material to be cut and continue about what you were doing, when the saw is done you will hear it stop and can come back to retrieve your part.

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails image.jpg  
    Last edited by jmorris; 09-09-2017 at 10:44 AM.

  9. #9
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    use bees wax on your saw blades even car paste wax will work to keep them cutting in aluminum. even wd-40 will work.

  10. #10
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    Kerosene was the fluid used in the old shops for cast iron and aluminum. Beeswax works good and hangs in the teeth better than liquids do. another that works well is plain chalk, I use it in files and sand paper to keep it from loading and files from pinning. Most of the saws I ran had a cooant flow on them helping with cutting and the blades from loading up.

  11. #11
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    My first job with a regular paycheck was as part time with most of it running a 13" lathe.

    In a trailer out back, we stored our raw material and in that trailer was a power hacksaw with a recirculating water based coolant system.

    We cut all kinds of stock including 4" steel round bar.

    It was gravity feed and was not real fast, but it shut itself off when the cut was finished.

    I am sure my memory is letting me down, however I do recall setting it up to make big cuts in the morning, and then going out at lunch to set up another.

    It made many cuts in a row with no blade change. As a matter of fact, I really do not remember changing a blade because it was worn out more than once or twice. We would change the blade for different cuts, and if it was a little dull when it came off the saw we would toss it.

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    this one is a bit faster than that, probably 3 or 4 minutes for a one inch steel bar with a good blade. this one has a threaded piece on the very end where i stack weight plates for extra down force but ya can't see it in the video.. this one is strong enough to shear the 3/8 grade 8 bolts on the blade frame off like they were butter with the 20:1 gear box and 1/2hp motor on it, did this a while back when a piece of aluminum engine head that i was cutting to melt down cocked and got behind the bolts.. not going to stall it out that is for sure so it make it easy to take a heavy cut.. the 2 pieces of aluminum plate took probably about 15-20 minutes per cut to get a 5in square out of the plate. each aluminum plate is 1-1/2in thick 6061 and i had them stacked in the saw.. the problem with a lot of mechanical saws was that your only using a small portion of the blade, this one is set up where you can set the stroke anywhere you want with different holes in crank to attach the rod to get a full stoke on the blade, really speeds things up a bit..
    Last edited by Mauser 98K; 09-09-2017 at 09:23 PM.

  13. #13
    Boolit Grand Master

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    One plus to the power hack saws is that most of the heat goes into the chip. Cutting tool steels and drill rod you don't get the hardened area like the other saws. I always loved it when guys cut Air hard drill rod or steel on the abrasive chop saw, those edges would require carbide to cut and drill.

  14. #14
    Boolit Master Any Cal.'s Avatar
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    I had a heavy power hacksaw that I liked a lot. It did seem much easier on blades than a bandsaw.

    My two biggest issues with it were procuring blades and how heavily I had to set the vice to hold material.

    I now have a 4x6 bandsaw that weighs 1/4 as much, cuts much more quietly, and is easier to set up. It seems a little slower, maybe 10-15%, than the old one, but not too far off. Of course, I also burn through $28 bi-metal blades pretty often...

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    Quote Originally Posted by country gent View Post
    I always loved it when guys cut Air hard drill rod or steel on the abrasive chop saw, those edges would require carbide to cut and drill.
    or ya get the guy who uses the chop saw and who doesn't like the end to be hot and dips the end of the drill rod or tool steel in cold water.. not even carbide is gonna cut that. lol.. it is funny to see though, the guy try to lay carbide on it and it just starts grinding and popping with him standing there with a bewildered look on his face..

  16. #16
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    I had a chance to pick one up once.
    It looked about the same size.
    It was not a home made on, but I forget what brand.
    I think it was Craftsman, but not sure.
    It was just to big for me. Would have taken up to much space.
    I have a Delta band saw that I use to cut stuff.
    It sometime does not cut all that straight, but it beats a hack saw.

  17. #17
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    I liked the Doall rolling saws a lot also. you could do a lot of roughing work on them if you were carefull. we sw cut round to square in short lengths and roughed in angle plates with them. SOme of us even roughed in vee blocks. A good layout and leave .100 - .200 for clean up set it up and run. My good 4" vee blocks relief cut was done in this saw as it was only .065 wide cut. It made a much narrower relief than the mill would have.

  18. #18
    Boolit Master NoAngel's Avatar
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    Had one of those in a shop I worked in years ago. The blades make awesome knives. I made a filet knife from one, threw it on the surface grinder and cleaned it up and used a belt sander to shape it. Holds a wicked sharp edge. Nice and flexible too.
    When dealing with islam one should always ask themselves: "What would Leonidas do?"

  19. #19
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    I had a peerless 10x10 power hacksaw for a few years for $200. What a beast!!!! it was slow, the saw had been poorly repaired over the years, but it cut straight and cut anything I could fit in the vise, it was just slow. I remember I cut an 8" diameter piece of cold rolled, took about an hour. Anyway I would tinker with it an fix some of the bad repairs as I got to it but when I came across a Kalamazoo 8x16 with a bunch of blades for a good price, the peerless was sold.
    You can pick up power hacksaws for under $500 easily, the smaller ones like marvel, keller, and such bring better prices.
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