meatrocks
off to a rocking start
Member since May 2018
Posts: 6
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Post by meatrocks on May 22, 2018 19:50:23 GMT -5
So I need help. I have little to no knowledge building things and I am looking to design a lapidary saw with 14" continuous saw blade. I am making slow progress designing the saw and am still in the early planning faze. It will primarily be used to cut various agates and jasper. I want to design a way to automatically feed the rock into the blade and I have been stuck on how many fast I should feed the material into the blade. Does anyone have any recommendations for the feed speed?
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Post by pauls on May 22, 2018 20:22:11 GMT -5
Most power feeds are driven by a little gear motor doing about 4-6 RPM, this feeds onto a screw thread usually some allthread with about 20 Threads per inch, gives about 1/16 inch a minute, a split nut clamped onto this gives you your feed. Most home made ones I have seen use a welding clamp with the halves of the split nut welded to either side of the clamp. I'm talking about those spring loaded clamps everyone has in their workshop.
Build your saw first, as a interim option you can just use a weight feed with the weight dangling beneath your saw.
There is a good build page on here somewhere. (Zarguy?)
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minerken
Cave Dweller
Member since August 2013
Posts: 466
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Post by minerken on May 22, 2018 21:01:19 GMT -5
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Post by pauls on May 22, 2018 21:42:10 GMT -5
One thing I left out was some kind of clutch arrangement on your drive shaft, obviously sawing into a big lump of rock will stall the works if it just keeps pushing regardless of the cutting speed.
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Post by johnjsgems on May 23, 2018 12:50:46 GMT -5
Or find a good used saw and refurbish. Spend your time cutting rather than designing. Masonry saws with lapidary blades another option. 14" "block saws" very powerful rock saws with correct blade. Maybe come up with a feed system.
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Post by grumpybill on May 23, 2018 15:45:19 GMT -5
If the idea is to save money, a used saw is the better way to go. If the idea is to have fun designing and building your own saw, then go for it. I'm not sure a thin lapidary blade in a masonry saw, even a little 14" one, is a good idea without a good vise and feed system. I have a lot of experience with masonry saws and the material easily gets out of alignment when hand feeding. With thick masonry blades the only problem is retrieving the material after it's been thrown out the back. With a thin lapidary blade it could become an expensive bent-blade experience. I'm currently cutting stones with a 10" tile saw I bought for low $$ when a local tool rental company was disposing of old stock.
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Post by pauls on May 23, 2018 17:27:38 GMT -5
Good suggestions. You have probably picked the most complex machine to build. Why not for your first build try your hand at something that is simpler, a rotary tumbler is a fairly quick and easy build, and a succesful build here will boost your confidence for the more complex builds. I'm not trying to rain on your parade, if you feel you have the skills and confidence and patience to build a saw go for it, nothing like diving in feet first.
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Post by johnjsgems on May 24, 2018 11:05:43 GMT -5
The "Agate Kutter" series of blades are made for cutting lapidary materials on high speed water cooled masonry saws. They are thicker generally than standard lapidary blades but thinner than masonry blades. With appropriate matrix hardness too. A vise that bolts down on a sliding tray type masonry saw would be fairly simple to build or available from MK.
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Post by grumpybill on May 24, 2018 12:05:54 GMT -5
The "Agate Kutter" series of blades are made for cutting lapidary materials on high speed water cooled masonry saws. They are thicker generally than standard lapidary blades but thinner than masonry blades. With appropriate matrix hardness too. I'll be ordering one of those critters from you when it's time to replace the blade that came on my saw.
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meatrocks
off to a rocking start
Member since May 2018
Posts: 6
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Post by meatrocks on May 24, 2018 13:44:28 GMT -5
Thanks a lot you guys have given me a lot of super valuable information. I'll make sure to keep you updated.
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vwfence
has rocks in the head
Member since January 2013
Posts: 564
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Post by vwfence on May 27, 2018 8:51:13 GMT -5
I have a set of plans for a 14 or 16 inch drop saw . I cant tell you about how it runs as I haven't built one yet as I have 2 many rebuild s that I'm doing right now
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