How to cut HSS tools?
#11
I did try the air cut-off tool this morning and it did the job. I cut a little and stopped to let it cool then did a little more until it was done. It worked out very nice and I would do it that way whenever I need a short piece. 96 deg. every day is putting my shop time behind as I have a few projects to finish and can only work out there when it is cooler. Wife took a couple of days off work so back to my to do list for now.
Paul
pjf134, proud to be a member of MetalworkingFun Forum since Feb 2012.
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#12
The machine shop is my refuge in the hot weather. The building is two stories, cabinet shop above and surrounded by trees. I insulated the floor between thinking i may want to only heat one floor in the winter. The walls are 2x6 then strapped horizontally on the outside with 2 inches of fibreglass there as well. The strapping breaks the thermal bridging. Its been in the 30's here all week, maybe not hot to southern standards but warm enough, the shop was 20 Celsius today, 68 Fahrenheit for our southern friends. Feels cold when you first go in stays that way all summer. The only drawback is I can't open the big doors in this weather, if I do the cold machinery is instantly covered in condensation when the warm moist air comes in.
Free advice is worth exactly what you payed for it.
Greg
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#13
It doesn't take long to warm up the shop. Mine has A/C, the house doesn't.
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#14
It's been 97 or 98 deg. F. every day and even 89 at 10 PM at night, so I will wait till next week when it will be in the mid 80's to do my projects. Dew points were in the 70's and heat index was 105 and up today so I stayed indoors with the air on. I feel for the people in other states that lost power a week ago and still are out.
Paul
pjf134, proud to be a member of MetalworkingFun Forum since Feb 2012.
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#15
When I was living and working in Australia, I used to get at least one or two months a year when it never dropped below 30C even overnight, so we would work nights just to beat the heat as days in the shop would exceed 50C, 42C+ outside but under that tin roof...

I was at the local scrap yard and saw a rusted out window fit AC unit, it was a 3HP unit, so pretty big really, but the case and base was just a load of rusty scale so I took it back to the shop and made up a gal steel tray for all the bits and bobs to be welded down to and put a full shroud around the hot side heat exchanger, and then connected this to a duct fan that connected to 150mm 6" flexible ducting, scrap yard sourced of course, I put the whole thing on top of an old welder trolley that had been around forever and on really hot days I would point the cool air directly at me and roll the flex duct out the door, It was about three hours work and ugly as sin, but what a great device, when I started working in the UK I went into a local Homebase hardware store and there it was, exactly the same idea in a nice sanitised plastic case with remote controller, so I bought a couple and shipped them back to Oz with my tools, Oh and they were cheap too, £179 each on sale at the end of summer, where the window jobbies were twice that money in Oz at the time.
I gave one to my Dad and still have the other, it came back to the UK when I moved permanently. It's been used on three continents and had four different power plugs fitted over the years depending on where I was working at the time.

As you might have noticed I don't like working in the heat.

Rick

Rick
Whatever it is, do it today, Tomorrow may not be an option and regret outlasts fatigue.
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#16
the little 3" air cutoff tool i for the most part have found to be virtually useless and aggravating tool.

the only time i enjoy using it is when cutting something i need kept cool. ill just cut it under a stream of water. it lets you very quickly rough a severely damaged drill back to use.

thoroughly dry and oil tool afterwards. (even if its a $1.99 harbor freight one)
mikecwik, proud to be a member of MetalworkingFun Forum since Apr 2012.
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#17
I have used a cutoff wheel in my radial arm saw many times for cutting small pieces of steel and tooling.

You can clamp a piece of scrap (anything) to the fence to use as a stop and get consistent cut to length pieces.

Just a word of warning though..............


Be sure to clean up any sawdust laying around FIRST! Slaphead

Or at least keep a full bucket of water around.

Ask me how I know............Jawdrop

Best Regards,
Russ
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#18
(09-20-2012, 09:36 PM)mikecwik Wrote: the little 3" air cutoff tool i for the most part have found to be virtually useless and aggravating tool.

the only time i enjoy using it is when cutting something i need kept cool. ill just cut it under a stream of water. it lets you very quickly rough a severely damaged drill back to use.

thoroughly dry and oil tool afterwards. (even if its a $1.99 harbor freight one)

That's the nice thing about an air tool. No worries about getting electrocuted.

An air compressor is on my long list of needed tools.17431

Ed
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