Sabre saw for chopping rods?

[BCRider]

....hacksaw....power source spends most of its time these days sitting behind a desk working remotely....so is probably inferior to yours!

....The other thing is that the wall behind me tends to get in the way of my elbow. .....

I'll see your remote working and raise you with being a 68... soon to be 69.... year old retiree. And certainly not one of those retiree marathon runners either ! ! ! !

If you can't hacksaw something held in your bench vise without feeling crowded or hitting your elbows on something with the back swing than you can't effectively use a file either. And that would be a major problem for me. I know you have a very cramped shop area but not having room to run a hacksaw or a file without hitting the wall behind you is one of those things to add to the reno list up near the Home spot.

[EddyCurr]

Yes, investing in a good hacksaw frame makes a big contribution to successful outcomes. The frame, together with a selection of blades in good condition and possessing the appropriate tooth count for the size of stock to be cut, goes a long way to minimizing demand on the "power source" - no matter how severely affected by atrophy. Besides, your Portaband is close at hand for the jobs that warrant it.

Is it feasible to position a secondary vise or similar clamping fixture somewhere else that is more amenable? A vise is pretty weather-tolerant, you see them riding the rear bumpers of welding & utility trucks all the time. A simple canvass cover would be an easy little luxury accessory to add protection.

[Cenedd]

I swing a mean short file ....but a junior hacksaw (that I've seen)? I'll pass!

EddyCurr I've been setting up for outdoor work - deployable saw horses with an MFT style table between and so on. Trouble is that I can't have anything out permanently - the office took a good chunk of a pretty small garden - and lugging everything out, setting it up, having it start to rain on you and carting it all back in again gets old very quickly. What I need is - as always - what I can't have; more space. Not without a lifestyle change (moving house and going further out) that isn't so compatible with a kid in school. Once we know which secondary school he goes to, that might change.

[Tundra Twin Track]

I’ve had great success with these Lenox blades in steel especially if cutting oil can be added and blade speed slower,adding oil efficiently is just about 2 person job.I’ve cut through the hex head on 7/8” high grade bolts with these.It’s tough to beat a bandsaw but sometimes there’s no room for them.

[BCRider]

Cenedd, you posted earlier that you might get even a little relief by moving some stuff up into an attic or other area? It's often amazing what getting even a little room can do for things. It still demands careful planning but hopefully you get even a little more room for even a smidge of space relief. And then reorganize to get the absolute most from it. Earlier I suggested that for short work that your Portaband could be mounted and stored fairly low and for quick cuts you simply bend over and use it quickly. The same is possible for some other tools. A bench grinder is one such. Most of the time my grinding is done quickly in well under a minute. If you're the same then bending over a little to do a quick bit of grinding won't be a back ache deal. And if the grinder is on a sub plate of nice plywood it can be released from where it's held firmly and clamped to the normal work top for longer work so you're comfy the whole time. That's the sort of things I'm thinking that can help a lot with planning how to use a small area the best.

[Cenedd]

Funny you should mention that as I've only today been reposting these in a sidebar.
I know, I definitely need to get round to a decent replacement table as the one you can see is broken and also bad....but you expect this from a grinder!

[ChazzC]

Getting back on topic, I have to agree that while a saber saw could be the answer from small stock & tubes, my PortaBand in a SWAG Off Road vertical table does everything I need. However, it does take up real estate, albeit on top of a roller cabinet with my Craftsman 10" 3-Wheel bandsaw.

What Cenedd needs is a "Twin Cutter Saw:"



OK, it looks new, and almost is, but 17 years ago I was already a tool junkie and it was on sale! This baby will cut through:

1-1/2" OD x 1/8" wall galvanized tube (1-1/4" Sc 40 pipe)
1-1/2" square (or 1-1/2" x ? tube) x 1/8" wall mild steel or aluminum tube
1-1/2" x 1/8" wall mild steel angle/channel
1/8" mild steel/aluminum plate
Corrugate sheet material (1-1/2" x 1/8")
2 x 4 pine
1-1/2" PVC pipe

Maximum OD/cross-section is limited by the blade size and wall thickness by the capability of the saw, which uses a pair of custom counter-rotating carbide tipped blades (actually listed on eBay NIB for $55; I got my spare set for free according to the receipt, which is amazingly still readable). Used saw kits are also available on eBay, ranging from $66 — $105, including s/h (you can also get the "universal" version for $65 —$70).

The kit includes a nice blow molded case, which doesn't take up much room:



I've only used mine a couple of times, always outdoors with the stock held in my "Vintage" WorkMate because it makes more swarf than a sheet metal nibbler and it flies everywhere. It does cut smoothly & fast and I'm sure it will outstrip a PortaBand in a lot of cases.

[Noitoen]

I think that the work envelope of the portaband is smaller than a sabre saw or even a manual hack saw

[boslab]

I tend to use a rebar cutter up to 3/4 ( though it says 16mm max) quiet bit chewed but not that much, it wasn’t an expensive one, Chinese, unnamed.
works faultlessly.
mark

[ChazzC]

I think that the work envelope of the portaband is smaller than a sabre saw or even a manual hack saw

My DeWalt DWM120 can handle up to 4-3/4" x 5" stock per specs and verified with a rule:



Lengthwise it can go through anything I can support, but is practically limited to about 2' when mounted vertically (table is only 13-1/2" wide and the blade is 4-1/2" from the right edge) unless I position it in the middle of the the shop and provide extra support, and it would be easier to unmount the saw and take it outside.

My 12" hacksaws have 4-1/2" deep frames, and in theory you could cut something that is 9" —10" wide, but practically only about 6" so you can get a decent stroke.

My reciprocating saw can cut through any depth, but the 6" blade only has 5" of teeth, less the cutting stroke of 1-7/8" = 3-1/8" thick material. I do have 9" blades (8" teeth = 6" ± thickness), but I would only use these for demolition work where you could run into nails. Practically I don't think I'd try it for any metal thicker than 3" and deeper than 5" or 6", otherwise you could get binding.

[EddyCurr]

What I need is - as always - what I can't have; more space. Not without a lifestyle change (moving house and going further out) ...

.
Perhaps Colin Furze's "Iceberg Shed" might provide some inspiration
.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-...shire-61851694
Colin Furze: YouTuber allowed to build tunnel under garden
BBC 2022.06.20

.
Searches will return articles from several years ago featuring the bunker that the tunnel described above provides access to.

[Cenedd]

I've been watching that series and it'd be nice. I think we're on clay so it'd be a horrible dig and problematic with ground water. Very cool though and very jealous!

[boslab]

Tunnel = sewer or culvert drain to the planning lords, building regulations are the kings of the underworld over here
mark

[Bented]

You can cut virtually anything by hand given enough time and beer.

I prefer the easy way.

[ChazzC]

Cenedd Sorry, I was watching these and when they sent me an offer that was ridiculously low I countered even lower and they accepted – you know I had to buy them:



I'll try to show more restraint in the future