Mudshark
fully equipped rock polisher
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. Will Rogers
Member since December 2008
Posts: 1,083
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Post by Mudshark on Jan 21, 2009 18:04:50 GMT -5
Hi, I posted a brief introduction in the visitor and member section and a few people asked for pics of my saw. The whole saw is made of half inch thick sheet PVC,including the vise.The motor is off an old table saw and the power feed motor is a small DC variable speed drive that I picked up at a flea market.I built the saw last winter over a weekend and just added the power feed a few days ago. It turns a piece of threaded rod and I made the splitnut from a spring clamp I got from Lowes. I was using a weight feed system and I'm still in the habit of running to the back of the saw after a cut to lift the weight up. The arbor came from Covington and the blade pictured (16 inch, I also have an 18) came from a seller on Ebay called BUTW. It has cut about six hundred slabs and is still going strong. I use mineral oil as a coolant. The red muck in the photos came from some crazy lace agate. This is where I got the name Mudshark from. I hope the pics show up as this is my first attempt at it.     |
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Post by beefjello on Jan 21, 2009 19:21:50 GMT -5
Mudshark indeed! Looks like you've put together one heck of a machine there. About how much did you spend in materials? Very nice saw, thanks for sharing the pics.
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Saskrock
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since October 2007
Posts: 1,852
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Post by Saskrock on Jan 21, 2009 19:30:47 GMT -5
Mudshark seems appropriate. Great job building that, it looks store bought. My stuff works but never looks store bought.
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SteveHolmes
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2009
Posts: 1,900
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Post by SteveHolmes on Jan 21, 2009 19:44:27 GMT -5
I can definitely see where "MUDSHARK" came from! It looks like it works like a mad storm. So where's all the Crazy Lace pictures/??
Steve
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Jan 21, 2009 19:50:08 GMT -5
Sweet! Swimming mud all right!
So, where do you get sheet PVC? Also interested in the total cost.
Chuck
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NDK
Cave Dweller 
Member since January 2009
Posts: 9,352
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Post by NDK on Jan 21, 2009 23:13:52 GMT -5
Sheet PVC is available from any local plastic merchant, or McMaster-Carr has it too.
Great job on the saw Mudshark! Sure looks like it gets the job done! Thanks for sharing.
Nate
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Mudshark
fully equipped rock polisher
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. Will Rogers
Member since December 2008
Posts: 1,083
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Post by Mudshark on Jan 22, 2009 18:54:51 GMT -5
I scrounged up just about everything the saw is made from.The PVC sheet was picked up years ago at an industrial surplus store really cheap.I dont think I would have considered it as a material if I didnt have it already because the price to buy it new would be outrageous.I think it goes for something like $200-$300 for a 4 x 8 ft.sheet.I paid about 10.00 for the powerfeed drive at a flea market and I've seen a lot of similar units on ebay for about the same price.The blade went for about $150 and the arbor $60.I used 3/4" pipe for the runners the vise rides on and thats easy to find.I already had a motor but I'm sure you could find one online under $100.The rest of the stuff would be hardware which is also easy to find cheaply.If i was gonna do it again I would use Plywood and coat it with fiberglass,I think that would be $100 or less.So I Would have paid maybe $450 or so total.I bought a cheap blade that turned out to be a winner but your choice of blade would be the highest cost variable.Building the saw was a really fun project and if anyone wants to build one I would be glad to help.
Steve,I'll have some crazy lace pics up by the weekend. Mike
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Post by Tweetiepy on Jan 22, 2009 20:58:06 GMT -5
I love that! Its beautiful despite the rock snot!
Could you seal it up so it doesn't leak so much? - that's gotta be a bear to clean that stuff off
Looks like store-bought - that's gotta be a compliment!
I wanna see all the slabs too!
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Jan 22, 2009 22:06:22 GMT -5
Thanks Mike! I may ask you for help one of these days!
Chuck
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Saskrock
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since October 2007
Posts: 1,852
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Post by Saskrock on Jan 23, 2009 0:22:42 GMT -5
Looks store bought was most definantly a compliment. Unlike my creations which work, it looks really good and works too. If you saw it new in a store you would think "thats a good looking saw". If you saw my stuff you would think "is that made of scrap lumber?"
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Post by Bikerrandy on Jan 23, 2009 11:59:50 GMT -5
That's the coolest!! Very nice saw, and I'll bet that being made out of sheet PVC makes it really quiet. Thanks for posting!!  |
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