Saw Recommendations

[Highpower]

(09-15-2015, 09:20 PM)NealC Wrote: I was looking for something that would not make a mess to keep the clean up to a minimum.  Can anyone recommend a good band saw or cold cut saw that does not throw steel chips everywhere.

Neal, to the forum.

I can't think of any saw that isn't going to make a mess to some extent, by virtue of the fact that they all remove metal chips from the work and deposit them somewhere. I have one of the band saws that Ed linked to above and I believe he does too. They do make excellent cuts but you still get a mess of metal chips that build up on the machine over time and has to be cleaned up. The piles of chips are much more localized than a chop saw that throws them a farther distance though. I find the cooling/lube system to be a big help as well in extending the life of the saw blades, and making smoother cuts. And you have a (limited) option of using it as a vertical band saw also. Much quieter in use than a chop saw for sure.

If throwing chips is your main concern about your chop saw, have you thought about adding a vacuum system to collect them as you are cutting? I would think a shop vac and bit of metal flexible tubing and perhaps a DIY cyclone collector to keep the sparks and hot chips out of the shop vac would take care of the majority of the mess.



And I agree, that is a VERY nice looking table/bench you have built there.