More Doall Cutting

[barracudajoe]

Thats nice work!
Back in the 70's & 80's we had to do a lot of hand burning with O/A torches. Unless you liked grinding a lot you quickly learn the tricks and techniques to make a smooth, clean cut. A few of my co-workers and I could make parts more accurately than the CNC burning tables we had at that time but not nearly as quick. I remember new employees, some recently graduates of welding schools, were amazed by what we were able to do as far as accuracy and the cleanness of the edge. Most of them didn't even know how to set the regulators or adjust their torch! I still have my collection of torch tips and use them in my shop on occasion though I usually use my plasma now a days. After 42 yrs working there, I was working in sales when I retired and the shop foreman told me that he didn't have anyone left in the shop that could actually burn out a part from a piece of plate or sheet! That's sad! When the burn table goes down, everything comes to a halt. They can't get by for a few days by having anyone make parts by hand while the burning machine is repaired!
Anything over about 1 1/4" can be tuff by hand and takes a bit of time so on anything heavier we just used a track burner in combination and a circle cutter attachment if there was a curve on the part. The heaviest plate I remember cutting by hand was 3" thk. and I was glad I only had to make 2 cuts.
As far as the heat affect zone, yes, a torch will always have that issue.

[J Tiers]

Dooz is correct. When you can, there is no harm and may be considerable benefit from doing a better job than "required".

However, you do have to make allowance for the actual job. If a flame cut piece is already better than needed, and time is short, by all means use the torch. Some things just don't need the "finish quality", and DO need to get done fast.

There is no sense taking extra time on a part to be correct to "tenths" if the tolerance is +- 20 thou. If you have time, sure, you can do it for practice. But if time is short, don't waste is on practice.

[Doozer]

I have cut French bread for dinner guests on my DoAll bandsaw.
Any excuse to use it is a good one.

-Doozer

[Stepside]

Some things to consider in the choice etween the torch or the bandsaw. 1) Slower to cut but very little time to debur/clean-up 2) No HAZ on the leftover stock. 3) Electricity is cheaper than torch gases. 4) It is more attractive as a finished part. 5) It was good practice using the saw so when you need the skill level you are aware of what you can or cannot do.

[Sparky_NY]

I have cut French bread for dinner guests on my DoAll bandsaw.
Any excuse to use it is a good one.

-Doozer

Cheap bastard, buy some fresh bread and you won't need the bandsaw

[Edwin Dirnbeck]

Wow Doozer! I tend to agree with you 100%!
Now, to beat the dead horse, that’s the way I feel about my lawn!!! (Stripes and all)

Sid

ps. I love the clean band cut over the torch/plasma.

OH NO ,THE LAWN STRIPES.AGAIN OH THE HORROR.( Paraphrasing Col. Kurtz in Apocalypse Now) Edwin Dirnbeck

[tom_d]

Pride in Workmanship says allot about a mans character...

Yep. We used to call it "putting a bow tie on the job".

[sid pileski]

Cheap bastard, buy some fresh bread and you won't need the bandsaw

That is the nature of fresh French bread!
crisp outside/tender inside

[mattthemuppet]

I have cut French bread for dinner guests on my DoAll bandsaw.
Any excuse to use it is a good one.

-Doozer

I'd have been more impressed if you had cut a good Stilton on your DoAll instead. I can cut fresh French bread with a mean look and a harsh word.

Nice work TTT, sometimes taking a little longer on one step (the cut) saves you a bunch of time on a later one (finishing)

[sarge41]

TTT doesn't have a home shop. He has a very well equipped farm shop. Because of TTT's fabrication skills I bet he is pretty good with a torch. I could cut that with a torch and hit it on the belt grinder or big disk grinder in TTT's case and you would not know the difference between it being cut on the bandsaw. Pride in the work doesn't have anything to do with my question.

From what i have seen, I would wager that TTT's "farm repairs" are nothing to be ashamed of. Nice work.

Sarge41

[Tundra Twin Track]

Thanks Guys,I will leave the French Bread discussion for another time lol!. Tiers mentioned the small blade,the .035 thickness is the ticket for a 3/8” blade which keeps me buying the Doall blades as I’ve tried other brands that are .025 and are very flimsy in comparison.BF was wondering about torching the plate which have done numerous times in past with decent success,what I’ve found since having a Vertical with power feed is I can have the job half done by the time heavy plate cools enough to handle.I enjoy designing and fabrication but very slow at it,better doing it in off season.I’m kinda scrambling with this project as it was not planned till last week as Nitrogen Dry Fertilizer Prices are nearly 40% higher than NH3.Took a 8 hr drive to Saskatchewan last week and purchased this Used 52’ Cultivator that’s set up for NH3,it arrived Tuesday night just before dark as Semi Hauled it accompanied with Pilot Truck as was 26’ wide folded up for transport.

Here a couple pics of Drawbar ready for welding,the one on edge shows my weaving a bit with the cut lol!

[strokersix]

One thing to remember: Many who see your work won't have a clue if it meets the technical requirements. However, most will know whether it looks good or not.

[bborr01]

Because machinist vs. fabricator.

Never use a sheet metal screw when a machine screw will do.

I hate that people always want to do thing the quickest, cheapest way.
If it is your stuff, you want to make it nice. People that just slap things
together think they are setting the world on fire, and just to the minimum
to get things done. No pride. Like sloppy electricians and plumbers.
They think their work is buried in a wall and no one sees it, so why
be neat about it. Short cut city. Eff it, it's not mine is the modicum of the
world. You don't have to screw the other guy to make a way for yourself.
People have it all wrong. Nice neat electrical or plumbing (OR MACHINE)
work does get noticed and does get you RECOMMENDATIONS to do
other work, because neat work MEANS YOU GIVE A SHlT. It is nice to
see neat work, because if nothing else, it means the tradesman took time
on the details of the job, if the whole presentation of the job looks neat.
Does it take a little more money and time to do a neat job? Yes sure.
But it always pays dividends to have a reputation as someone who's
work looks good.
Torch cut or bandsaw cut tractor drawbar ??? A bandsaw is higher on the
scale of precision and alters the thermal properties of the steel in NO way.
It is classy to have a better cut on a part than a burned out part.
It puts pride in your ride. It shows the world that you put forth the effort and
expense to own a bandsaw in your shop because you value cut quality
over speed and sparks. It advertises your capability to do precision work.
It is a step above. Each job is a reflection of the man who did the job.
People today are quick to forget that. Get the cash and get on down the road
is most prevalent. It used to be, give them a little extra, and they will come back
the next time. Crazy thought, right ??? Well it used to be the normal.
Bandsawing a tractor drawbar represents all of the above.
Some people don't explain it like I did. Most would say, You either get it or you don't.
It is one of those values that you either live by or you don't. You don't just casually
give effort sometimes. You give it all the time. Remember the saying, if a job is worth
going, it is worth doing right ? It is a lifestyle choice. When I started my career
in high school at a lawn and garden store, I would put together implements.
Light duty fertilizers and roto tillers and stuff. When I first opened my toolbox
that first day on the job, I had a decision to make. Do I use a pair of pliers and a
Crescent wrench to do this job, or do I use a 7/16 wrench and a 7/16 socket and ratchet?
That decision point was pivotal in my career to come. I chose to leave the pliers and
Crescent wrench in the toolbox. That was 30 years ago.

-Doozer

I'm so glad to see that I'm not the only one that "get's it".

[bborr01]

Wow Doozer! I tend to agree with you 100%!
Now, to beat the dead horse, that’s the way I feel about my lawn!!! (Stripes and all)

Sid

ps. I love the clean band cut over the torch/plasma.

One of my friends likes to tease me about the stripes in my lawn. "Make sure to get your stripes straight". And I do make sure that they are straight. That's why when I was a teen working on a lawn maintenance crew I was the one riding the tractor and my the owners brother was the one with the push mower. The owner told me that some of the customers asked to have me cut their lawn because they looked like a baseball field when I got done. I think it has something to do with being type A behavior.

[QSIMDO]

If you have a machine that will do that cut , fine, but it doesn't have to be preferential over a torch cut.
That's just ignorant and insulting to many fine craftsmen who have been using cutting torches for years and turning out top work.
It's a step in a process, nothing more or less..