Cutting holes in 5mm mild steel.

[ukracer]

P.S. I've had my P30 for 3 weeks now and it is a pleasure to use cutting 3, 5, 6, & 8 mm and is a doddle on 10 & 12mm plate, .

Interesting P-30 is only rated to 8mm is it not??

So a P-30 should be good enough for most normal beings then?? lol

 

[ukracer]

i have a hardened and tempered silver steel pilot i made in one of mine and just drill `with an ordinary hss drill
.1st if i have a few to do its more accurate and no run off . it saves using expensive pilots for drilling as well

Accuracy is not important to be honest its going to be covered with a welded piece of pipe anyway.

 

[ukracer]

makers mention of drilling a few holes on the kerf line to clear the swarf,

If I knew what that meant it might be useful. lol Whats a kerf line.

 

[brightspark]

If I knew what that meant it might be useful. lol Whats a kerf line.

for better swarf clearance on the cutting edge of the teeth

 

[ukracer]

I cut 22 x 73mm holes in 5mm mild steel plate using a Starett hole saw when building my boiler heat exchanger, like Brightspark said use a cutting compound and take it slow.

Suggestions for decent cutting compound or oil??

 

[Maker]

Accuracy is not important to be honest its going to be covered with a welded piece of pipe anyway.

But it's good practice for when accuracy is important.

If I knew what that meant it might be useful. lol Whats a kerf line.

A Kerf is the thickness of a saw cut.

 

[brightspark]

rocol , templars trefolex and halls cutting compound .paste will be better than soluble oil on this application

 

[sparkysy]

Tuffcut or rocol or trefolex are the main ones I use!

 

[sparkysy]

Beat me to it BS

 

[brightspark]

i scored a gallon tin of rocol from an auction for 10 quid

 

[Gareth0123]

Interesting P-30 is only rated to 8mm is it not??

So a P-30 should be good enough for most normal beings then?? lol

The P30 is rated for clean cut on 8mm, but I am getting a clean cut (but steady) on 10mm. It's a severance cut on 12mm, and I have done 1 piece of 16mm about 750mm long straight line, slow and steady did it, but there was some clean up required with a grinder................... all on a 13 amp fuse!

 

[ukracer]

But it's good practice for when accuracy is important.

A Kerf is the thickness of a saw cut.

Ah right so the swarf drops out through the hole i drill...i see..

 

[ukracer]

i scored a gallon tin of rocol from an auction for 10 quid

Yeah I doubt I will get one of those on ebay.

 

[Paul.]

If I knew what that meant it might be useful. lol Whats a kerf line.

Like this

 

[ukracer]

The P30 is rated for clean cut on 8mm, but I am getting a clean cut (but steady) on 10mm. It's a severance cut on 12mm, and I have done 1 piece of 16mm about 750mm long straight line, slow and steady did it, but there was some clean up required with a grinder................... all on a 13 amp fuse!

Is it possible to cut two sides of say 12mm even if it had to be cleaned up.

 

[ukracer]

Like this
View attachment 56653

Ah I would have straddled the cut line Thanks for the pic.

 

[Paul.]

I have a few sheet metal templates made up for the common sizes I use, then you only need to locate the centre and centre punch through, no marking out required

 

[Maker]

Ah I would have straddled the cut line Thanks for the pic.

That would leave small semicircles on the finished hole.

 

[ukracer]

That would leave small semicircles on the finished hole.

Yeah but I am welding pipeover the hole and i have a decent margin for error

 

[Mr shiney]

I have a home cutter attachment on my plasma. Would do that job clean in under a minute.