I just can't quite understand this. I understand that the blade's job
is to have the teeth bite (and not wear through the item via friction
heat) but it just seems to me that oil will make it nearly impossible
for the teeth to grab hold of the item.
Can anyone shed light on this?
I've used WD-40. Cools the blade, cuts faster.
MJ
Hacksaw teeth will bite into metal just fine even if the cut is saturated with
oil. The purpose of the oil is to keep from wearing the teeth out, and to
reduce friction so that the blade doesn't heat up so much it loses its temper
(toughness and hardness).
Try it sometime on a piece of scrap steel, say about 1/8" thick. Make one cut
without oiling the blade, then another cut with oil on the blade. You'll find
that with oil, it cuts faster and smoother with less pressure, less noice, and
less heat.
>
I don't use oil, I use something called 'cutting fluid' as sold by
engineering supplies. Sure makes the drillpress bite better in
hard/slick metals, I'm not going to give page-long testimonials for the
efficacy with a hacksaw, but it seems to help. It also acts as a coolant
for the cutting edge.
It does contain some light oil, not sure what else, I haven't looked at
the blurb for a couple of decades. Also heard of people using kerosene
for the purpose.
-P.
> You'll find
> that with oil, it cuts faster and smoother with less pressure, less noice,
> and
> less heat.
>>
Sounds like a good, all purpose definition of lubrication.
Well, by your reasoning, no cutting tool--drill bit, milling cutter,
broach--should cut if immersed in oil. But they all are when used in
industrial cutting machines, so I guess the oil is good for the tool and
good for the cutting operation.
For one thing, it helps flush chips away, as well as cooling things down.
--
I am a Canadian who was born and raised in The Netherlands. I live on
Planet Earth on a spot of land called Canada. We have noisy neighbours.
- harvested from Usenet
> A friend of mine insists that you should use [any] oil (he uses
> olive
> oil) when using a hacksaw. He says that it keeps the blade from
> wearing out but does not impede the cutting.
>
> I just can't quite understand this. I understand that the blade's
> job
> is to have the teeth bite (and not wear through the item via
> friction
> heat) but it just seems to me that oil will make it nearly
> impossible
> for the teeth to grab hold of the item.
----------------------------------------------
"oil" provides a means of carrying away heat and "sloth" from the
teeth of the blade.
Check out "cutting fluid", "cutting oil", etc.
Makes cutting metal a whole lot easier.
Lew
A cutting edge is basically a wedge--the lubricant keeps the pieces it's
wedging into from seizing to it and lets them slide more freely against it,
not to mention the cooling effect, which is important with metals.
Oil with a hacksaw? Where's he trying to PUT it? <gasp!>
--
This episode raises disturbing questions about scientific standards,
at least in highly political areas such as global warming. Still,
it's remarkable to see how quickly corrective information can now
spread. After years of ignored freedom-of-information requests and
stonewalling, all it took was disclosure to change the debate. Even
the most influential scientists must prove their case in the court
of public opinion�a court that, thanks to the Web, is one where
eventually all views get a hearing. --Gordon Crovitz, WSJ 12/9/09
>
>> Can anyone shed light on this?
>
>I've used WD-40. Cools the blade, cuts faster.
Smokes, does it? Do you feed your arm Viagra before cutting?
HINT: If you use a sharp blade to start, it won't get very hot in the
first place.
Unfortunately, I went 54 years before learning that simple lesson.
C'mon, guys. Cutting speed with a hacksaw is too slow to require
coolant.
IMHO the lube is going to cut down on friction between the side of the blade
and the material being cut. When first starting the cut you probably will
not notice any appreciable difference when using a lubricant.
Will the lube keep the blade sharp? No, probably not but it will probably
aid in keeping the teeth clean and that will in turn give the effect of the
blade staying sharp longer.
> It does contain some light oil, not sure what else, I haven't looked at
> the blurb for a couple of decades. Also heard of people using kerosene
> for the purpose.
My dad taught me to use kerosene to rinse glass cutters and lubricate and
clean the surface when cutting glass. We cut a lot of glass in our hardware
store during the many years we had it open.
You are machining the metal. A lot of metalworking machines spray oil
or an oil/water mixture onto the cutting tool during machining.
Oiling the blade is a simplified version of that with the hacksaw.
With that said, I'll admit I seldom use oil unless I am cutting a very
large or thick piece of stock. Then it does seem to speed up and
smoot the process.
RonB
Same principle as using wet sandpaper. It carries the "swarf" off and
keeps the gullets open.
-Zz
>On Sat, 19 Dec 2009 22:29:05 -0500, the infamous "J. Clarke"
><jclarke...@cox.net> scrawled the following:
>
>>David Nebenzahl wrote:
>>> On 12/19/2009 4:35 PM Thomas G. Marshall spake thus:
>>>
>>>> A friend of mine insists that you should use [any] oil (he uses olive
>>>> oil) when using a hacksaw. He says that it keeps the blade from
>>>> wearing out but does not impede the cutting.
>>>>
>>>> I just can't quite understand this. I understand that the blade's
>>>> job is to have the teeth bite (and not wear through the item via
>>>> friction heat) but it just seems to me that oil will make it nearly
>>>> impossible for the teeth to grab hold of the item.
>>>
>>> Well, by your reasoning, no cutting tool--drill bit, milling cutter,
>>> broach--should cut if immersed in oil. But they all are when used in
>>> industrial cutting machines, so I guess the oil is good for the tool
>>> and good for the cutting operation.
>>>
>>> For one thing, it helps flush chips away, as well as cooling things
>>> down.
>>
>>A cutting edge is basically a wedge--the lubricant keeps the pieces it's
>>wedging into from seizing to it and lets them slide more freely against it,
>>not to mention the cooling effect, which is important with metals.
>
>C'mon, guys. Cutting speed with a hacksaw is too slow to require
>coolant.
Ever touch one just after a cut?
Metal cutting tools such as lathes, bandsaws etc. have cutting fluid
circulating systems. Metalworking, woodworking, two separate worlds.
Ldb
Wood cutting benefits from oil too. The trouble is that the oil soaks into
the wood and can't be cleaned off, so there's a downside that outweighs the
benefits.
FWIW, Bosch used to sell a blade oiler for their jigsaws, intended for metal
cutting.
> Can anyone shed light on this?
Light? You want Light and Oil?
I use both when cutting and drilling and they make the work go better
and the cut straight(er).
Try it, you'll like it.
Because something is hot to touch does not make it too hot for the
metal. We as humans have a very limited range of comfortable
temperatures. A metal hacksaw can go quite a bit farther without
damage.
> Because something is hot to touch does not make it too hot for the
> metal. We as humans have a very limited range of comfortable
> temperatures. A metal hacksaw can go quite a bit farther without
> damage.
I've had them 'blue' and be hot enough to burn wood when I set them
down.
Same answer. The thermal tolerance of wood is in no way related to
the that of steel.
If you can blue a manual hacksaw by hand, you're our hero. More often,
good blades have enough set to keep from binding in the cut and cool
considerably during the stroke and the backstroke. Since I started
using Starrett blades (the only Starrett thangs I can afford) I
haven't noticed a blade hot enough to burn me after cutting angle
iron. The stock itself is a heatsink, ferchrissake.
So, I still say "Put a new, sharp blade on that damned thing,
phorbin."
--------------------------------------------
-- I'm in touch with my Inner Curmudgeon. --
============================================
> So, I still say "Put a new, sharp blade on that damned thing,
> phorbin."
Come now, C-less ... that's not the point!
A 'caviler in the usenet wild' MUST take exception to ANY minute detail
not specifically in lock step with a Google/Wikipedia source so that you
can be publicly corrected whilst showcasing said caviler's 'superior
than thou', hard won, Google expertise/knowledge.
You may also want to make a note of that other noted 'caviler in the
wild' characteristic: never showing photographic evidence of anything
personally accomplished.
--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)
Waxing the blade works, too. Doesn't make as
much mess. Candles or sticks of canning wax
won't leak all over your toolbox.
....................................yeah! What he said.
But "blue" is temper colopur. If you get steel hot enough to "blue"
you have affected hardness/temper and damaged the blade. Absolutely
NOTHING wrong with using coolant/lubricant on a hack-saw - and if you
are attempting to cut aluminum it is a EXCELLENT idea as it keeps the
teeth from "loading up"
>Larry Jaques wrote:
>
>> So, I still say "Put a new, sharp blade on that damned thing,
>> phorbin."
>
>Come now, C-less ... that's not the point!
Erm, OK.
>A 'caviler in the usenet wild' MUST take exception to ANY minute detail
>not specifically in lock step with a Google/Wikipedia source so that you
>can be publicly corrected whilst showcasing said caviler's 'superior
>than thou', hard won, Google expertise/knowledge.
>
>You may also want to make a note of that other noted 'caviler in the
>wild' characteristic: never showing photographic evidence of anything
>personally accomplished.
Ah, got it. Oh, all this revelling (or is it reviling?) with those
pesky cavilers has me tired. G'night, Chet.
--
REMEMBER: The sooner you fall behind,
the more time you'll have to catch up!
> You may also want to make a note of that other noted 'caviler in the
> wild' characteristic: never showing photographic evidence of anything
> personally accomplished.
I can't count the number of times I've not had a camera around to prove
that I've done something a bit unusual or stupid.
I'm sure the same applies to just about everyone.
Shrug...
You either believe me or you don't.
>
>A friend of mine insists that you should use [any] oil (he uses olive
>oil) when using a hacksaw. He says that it keeps the blade from
>wearing out but does not impede the cutting.
>
>I just can't quite understand this. I understand that the blade's job
>is to have the teeth bite (and not wear through the item via friction
>heat) but it just seems to me that oil will make it nearly impossible
>for the teeth to grab hold of the item.
>
>Can anyone shed light on this?
My guess is that as in a power hacksaw, the oil would help carry chips/shavings
away from the blade and make a smoother cut with less chance of jamming?
mac
Please remove splinters before emailing
MAC!!!!! Happy New Year!
>> My guess is that as in a power hacksaw, the oil would help carry chips/shavings
>> away from the blade and make a smoother cut with less chance of jamming?
>>
>> mac
>>
>MAC!!!!! Happy New Year!
Thank you, sir... back at ya...
In power hacksaws, speed is an issue and oil becomes a coolant as
well.
--
It's a shallow life that doesn't give a person a few scars.
-- Garrison Keillor
> My guess is that as in a power hacksaw, the oil would help carry
> chips/shavings away from the blade and make a smoother cut with less
> chance of jamming?
I have a lubricant used for bandsaws. I got it from a woodworking
supply, but it's made for metal-cutting bandsaws.