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Post by Deleted on Jul 23, 2022 12:06:51 GMT -5
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
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Post by jamesp on Jul 23, 2022 13:09:29 GMT -5
Uh, those are darn good cuts for a tile saw. Truth be known there is no fast and easy way to cut Mohs 7 stones Ashley. Even a 24 inch rock saw with oil takes a few minutes to cut one of those in half. Rock saw diamonds are small and remove material slowly. You can buy tile saw blades that have larger diamonds, some tile saws have small diamonds for cutting glass tiles and others have big diamonds for cutting concrete tiles. i.e. fine-medium-coarse diamond blades for the given job. The main reason for this is that a coarse diamond blade will leave unsightly chips when cutting glass. When sawing concrete tiles the chipping is not such an issue, the concrete has a rougher look to it anyway and the chips are a moot issue. Unless you are polishing the face of the slabs a coarse blade will do the job quicker for you. I can say that this company - Advanta - used to make coarse blades with both bigger diamonds but also sharper diamonds, not all diamonds are equal. Crushed diamonds are much much sharper than whole crystal diamonds. Sharp is the biggest game changer. PS Always use water or oil when sawing. Never saw with a dry blade. Dry sawing will sure dull the blade. You need a sacrificial alum oxide(say a 6 inch replacement 60 or 80 grit grinding wheel from Depot/Walmart)to saw into it to 'dress' your diamond blade. Rest assured your tile saw blade is plugged up after cutting that many rocks. Sawing a half dozen cuts into a grinding wheel will clean the diamonds of impacted debris. I just hold the grinding wheel against the blade when rotating so the grinding wheel is contacting the tile saw blade.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 23, 2022 13:13:00 GMT -5
jamespThanks Jim!  I will look into a “sharper” blade. That information helps. 😁
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Post by Rockoonz on Jul 23, 2022 13:21:08 GMT -5
Those are pretty good for cutting by hand, better than me after a lot of years practicing. a guide "fence" can help a little.
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Post by HankRocks on Jul 23, 2022 13:29:30 GMT -5
ashley Cutting rocks on a Tile Saw where the rock is thicker than the max cut depth on Saw is tricky. Hardness and the necessity to "turn the rock" to get the required smooth cut depth is a challenge until one gets proficient. I have done a couple on my Tile Saw but almost always use my 10 inch auto feed saw. So much easier to get parallel cuts. Of course a 10 inch does cost money and takes up space. I was fortunate enough to have mine given to me and I have a 3 car garage. The fact that no vehicles can park in the garage says a lot about the rock clutter I have managed to accumulate. Having said that I think you did pretty well with the ones you cut. As Jim said, those are all pretty hard and require a good blade and real steady hand.
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Post by jasoninsd on Jul 23, 2022 17:57:41 GMT -5
I think you did a pretty darn good job cutting those Ashley! It's tough cutting slabs on a small trim saw! Great job!! |
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jul 23, 2022 18:02:32 GMT -5
You did a great job on those, especially for your first time! I can't freehand slab a rock to save my life.  |
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Post by liveoak on Jul 24, 2022 6:34:05 GMT -5
I was able to attach a vice onto the fence of my 7" tile saw. I'm with @hankrocks that the 10" saw is nicer, especially for larger stuff. But a vice gives you control AND IMHO safety ( you could ask jasoninsd about the safety aspect). Patty |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2022 22:58:46 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2022 23:00:19 GMT -5
HankRocksThank you! It is the turning and “rolling” the rock that caused the worst cuts. I guess it will work for now.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2022 23:01:11 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2022 23:02:09 GMT -5
hummingbirdstonesThank you! I really thought they were horrible but you guys are making me think maybe they are ok lol.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2022 23:03:27 GMT -5
liveoakThanks Patty! Do you have a picture of that so I can get a visual, might give that a try.
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I took some to the tile saw to cut a few slabs to try some cabs out of. I learned that tile saws are not the best for cutting slabs for beginners. It’s a lot of work. And I don’t enjoy it lol! I did get some slabs. Some were decent others were not an even cut. (See pictures) Any tips for that? I think my saw is just too small to get good cuts on the bigger material. I think I will cut the rest for tumbling and just buy slabs in the future.
