Cutting Aluminum on a band saw

[TFrosst]

Hey guys. i'm planning on buying myself a Ryobi 9" bandsaw and have a couple of questions. Do I need a special blade to cut aluminum? Does the speed on the band saw have to be able to change or can I just turn it on a cut away?

 

[Jedirick]

Depends on thickness of aluminum. IIRC blades made available for that saw are for wood. I'd check the manufacturers recommendations. A small saw like that is not real stable weight wise and where a chek in wood may simple cause a slight jerk, a couple aluminum burrs grabbing the blade could cause loss of control of the machine and injury.

I have cut up to 1/8 alum on my Dremel jig tablesaw but got some spiral diamond blades to do the cutting.

 

[shotts63]

They do make a special blade for cutting metals and aluminum.When cutting aluminum I use wax on the blade to keep the teeth from getting cloged up.

 

[THX1138]

Originally posted by shotts63@Feb 28 2006, 07:39 PM
They do make a special blade for cutting metals and aluminum.When cutting aluminum I use wax on the blade to keep the teeth from getting cloged up.

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Spraying PAM cooking spray on the area being cut or even WD-40 also works great to keep the teeth from clogging up and keeps the area cool.

- Jim :fettrotj