Harbor Freights Mini 2 inch bench cut saw

[brstevns]

Not for sure were to post this. Is the Harbor Freight mini 2 inch cut saw what you guys are using to cut off brass etc. Want to cut off some brass for bullet swaging etc.

[dbosman]

That's the one I've been seeing in the posts.
Don't forget the 20% or 25% off coupons in most of the HF ads.

[garym1a2]

I got one, its fast, messy, slings brass into orbit and does not seem to me it will last long. But I do not have a better way yet.

[John Allen]

I have one I use for cutting arrows. It is a cheap piece of **** but works great if you remember this and do not expect much.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Yep,
I use the collet end of a forester trimmer to hold the "Un-annealed" brass.
I also disassembled the HF mini chop saw and re-mounted it to it's base 180º from original, then to a block of wood that gets mounted to a work bench to compensate for the height of the forester.
Jon

[La Dano]

Yep,
I use the collet end of a forester trimmer to hold the "Un-annealed" brass.
I also disassembled the HF mini chop saw and re-mounted it to it's base 180º from original, then to a block of wood that gets mounted to a work bench to compensate for the height of the
forester.

Jon

I sure would like To see a pic. Sounds like your on to something good.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/JonB_in_Glencoe/100_1562.jpg

[Frank46]

JonB, I have to say that is a slick setup. Nice laminated work bench also. Frank

[La Dano]

That helps me a lot, great idea. going to trim down 9mm Luger to 9mm Makarov. Trimming 1mm off 1K rounds will wear on me. Hehehe, hopefully primers will come back before it gets cold again.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

JonB, I have to say that is a slick setup. Nice laminated work bench also. Frank
Benchtop was a large, old (1970s?) kitchen table from a antique/thrift/junk store, $20...I cut it down to a size that'd fit in my casting room and moved the legs to a reasonable location and also mounted it to the wall.

I saved the pieces I cut off for general use...as you can see from the way the HF saw is mounted.
Jon

http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/JonB_in_Glencoe/100_1641.jpg

[brstevns]

How well does it work on the steel cases?

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I haven't tried it with steel.

[Egturbo02]

it works great. Very fast. I use it to cut down my .223 brass to make 300 blk brass. Used it for over 1000 casing and no problems so far. I bought the extra warranty just in case.

[Alan in Vermont]

That helps me a lot, great idea. going to trim down 9mm Luger to 9mm Makarov. Trimming 1mm off 1K rounds will wear on me. Hehehe, hopefully primers will come back before it gets cold again.

You may have problems taking that small amount off cases. The blade won't be supported and will want to wander away from the "keeper" side of the cut, resulting in a cut way off square. The blade will end up being loaded from the side rather than the edge and you will likely get a lot of exploding blades, they just don't like side loads.

I think you would get better results if you rig a drill to spin your case trimmer.

[Egturbo02]

I noticed I get a better and smoother cut when I cut it fast. If I cut through the case slow it tends to be off a little bit and not as smooth.

[vonzep]

I made a jig that mounts in the saws to locate the brass for trimming. Just snap one in from the side, cut then push it out with the next case. Does 9mm cases or 357sig and 40 SW cases. If you cut quickly they work fine, go slow it seems to wander. Also steel cases will be a no go on these saws.

[Junior1942]

I like mine, but if you don't wear goggles you're asking for a trip to the ER. Make that a *painful* trip to the ER!

[Walter Laich]

sounds like you made that trip Junior

[Junior1942]

sounds like you made that trip JuniorNope. The warning was because chips fly everywhere.

[gnoahhh]

alas, Harbor Freight no longer sells these saws (or so they say). Other source? Alternatives?

[dk17hmr]

Do you have a dremel?

I made a jig with a door hinge and some scrap wood.

Here is a pic of the first one I made....its rough but worked great.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/dk17hmr/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20140208_171801_zps8defdfef.jpg (http://s48.photobucket.com/user/dk17hmr/media/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20140208_171801_zps8defdfef.jpg.html)

Short video of it in action cutting 223 down to 300 blackout length.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPU9jmseMPI&feature=share&list=UU_CgKSwHpKdGKkKCqcdE7qg&index=1

Here is the one I built after thinking about it and buying a 2x4. It has a 32" routered groove down the center to keep arrow shafts straight....after a quarter turn the arrows are perfectly square. I haven't used it on 223 cases yet because I cut over 1000 with my first jig.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/dk17hmr/IMG_20140405_172955_zps98c4f7f2.jpg (http://s48.photobucket.com/user/dk17hmr/media/IMG_20140405_172955_zps98c4f7f2.jpg.html)

I piece of plexi glass wouldn't be a bad idea for brass to help keep you from getting hit by chips. Dremel has a heavy duty reinforced cut off wheel seen above that will last about 500 cases.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

HF sells a similar saw one size up that should do the job just as well.

[possom813]

alas, Harbor Freight no longer sells these saws (or so they say). Other source? Alternatives?

I've been to the two HF's that are nearby and neither have them on their shelves anymore.

They do have a saw that's a little bit bigger that would probably work as well, just no more of the little saws.

I didn't think to check to see if they still sell the blades for the 2" saw, or if there's another source for blades.

[possom813]

http://www.amazon.com/Stalwart-75-11024-Cut-Off-Miter-Power/dp/B0041TDLCK/ref=sr_1_27?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1394160014&sr=1-27

http://www.amazon.com/High-Speed-Miter-Cut-Off-919/dp/B000VWHTUG/ref=sr_1_24?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1394160014&sr=1-24

http://www.amazon.com/Bench-Cut-off-Miter-Steel-Blade/dp/B00523AHRG/ref=sr_1_21?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1394160014&sr=1-21

[bbailey7821]

I got mine off of Amazon.

[gnoahhh]

I like the Dremel idea. I have one gathering dust that I shall build my own cutoff saw out of.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-in-cut-off-saw-61204.html

[drinks]

A suggestion, for 9mm para. to 9mm mak., just get a Lee trimmer for 9mm para. shorten the pin 1mm and spin one or the other, cutter or case, in a cordless drill motor.

[MaLar]

I looked at one of these tonight. The back hinge is very sloppy. No accuracy here!!!

[L1A1Rocker]

Here's mine with a wooden jig I made for cutting 300BLK.

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/3170/hpim1075u.jpg

[DCM]

Do you have a dremel?

I made a jig with a door hinge and some scrap wood.

Here is a pic of the first one I made....its rough but worked great.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/dk17hmr/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20140208_171801_zps8defdfef.jpg (http://s48.photobucket.com/user/dk17hmr/media/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20140208_171801_zps8defdfef.jpg.html)

Short video of it in action cutting 223 down to 300 blackout length.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPU9jmseMPI&feature=share&list=UU_CgKSwHpKdGKkKCqcdE7qg&index=1

Here is the one I built after thinking about it and buying a 2x4. It has a 32" routered groove down the center to keep arrow shafts straight....after a quarter turn the arrows are perfectly square. I haven't used it on 223 cases yet because I cut over 1000 with my first jig.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/dk17hmr/IMG_20140405_172955_zps98c4f7f2.jpg (http://s48.photobucket.com/user/dk17hmr/media/IMG_20140405_172955_zps98c4f7f2.jpg.html)

I piece of plexi glass wouldn't be a bad idea for brass to help keep you from getting hit by chips. Dremel has a heavy duty reinforced cut off wheel seen above that will last about 500 cases.

I love it when a plan comes together. Gonna build one this weekend!
Have all the parts laying around and some brass in mind!

[Viper225]

Here is what we are doing.

01. Resize the 223 case in a 223 full length Die.
02. Cut Off. Using the Harbor Freight 6 Inch Chop saw. Make a Trough in a block of wood or plastic. Make it plenty long. You will need a stop on the trough to set the length. We are using a long 1/4 Inch Roll Pin for the stop. You will want to feed the case from the right side. Then push them out of the way down the trough. Round one was left side feed. You have limited hand clearance under the motor from the left.
03. Chamfer the cut off case.
04. Size in a 300 Blackout Full Length Die.
05. Trim using a Drill Press. Use a Forrester Base for a drill press trimmer. Chuck a Little Crow 300 Blackout Trimmer in the chuck.
06. Chamfer again as required.
07. Check case with a Wilson 300 Blackout Gage.

We made an order with Dillon Precision for a 30 Luger/30 Mauser Powder Funnel for the 550B. Now you can bell the case mouth for seating cast bullets.
For Station 4 we got a Lee 300 Blackout Taper Crimp Die.

We are using Remington Cases for round one. Using Military cases you will need to swedge the primer pockets.

Bob

[woodsxdragon]

I dont know if you guys were still looking for them but they discontinued them before christmas. I called their customer service and asked if they had a replacement model available and what the lady ordered for me was:
1 61900-VGA 2 in. Bench Top Cut-Off Saw $32.99
It looks exactly the same and works the same with the jigs. She said they were changing suppliers. It took about a month to get here. I dont know if they still can but maybe this will help someone.

[woodsxdragon]

I just punched that number in on their website and nada....

Like I said that's the number they gave me on the order conformation when I called. Just give them a phone call.