cutting 22mm thick limestone pavers straight..

[DJS1994]

Laying my patio currently, soon I am only going to have the cuts to do around the edges and so I am now thinking what the best tool/method would be to ensure I cut these pavers straight and with a good finish.

Currently I have a 4 inch grinder with a diamond cutter blade, now I am thinking its going to be quite tough to cut a nice straight line like this. I have read bits and pieces about sanding limestone for a smooth finish.. what sandpaper would I need for this?

I am fairly new to DIY but so far my patio is looking great, I have laid about 20 sq meters. I am just cautious when it comes to the cuts as I don't have an infinite supply of slabs and I want to job to look good.

Any advice is appreciated.

Dan

[KAgantua]

Is it smooth or a riven finish you need on the edges? Sorry not seen the actual pavers for context.

[DJS1994]

Hi,

nice smooth straight finish on the cut edge would be nice. The top of the paver is a riven finish but the sides (cut edges to 650x650) are dead smooth, I would just like to reproduce the same finish as I cut the pavers down to fill the gaps thats all.

Can post a photo of pavers later, I am currently at work.

Dan

Edited by DJS1994 on Monday 4th May 12:16

[Blakeatron]

I have used a 4” grinder but was hard going, a 9” grinder is easier and a 14” stone saw the easiest.

Lay something straight and long and then score a line with a scribe/ trowel and then carefully score and then full depth cut.

I have sanded edges with 80 grit paper, cant say it made much difference!

[DJS1994]

Would a mitre saw with a diamond blade be an option for cutting these pavers?

[Alucidnation]

Whatever you cut them with, will more than likely expose the composition of the slabs on the raw edge.

Anyhoo, do it properly and rent a petrol saw for the weekend.

[DJS1994]

Alucidnation said:

Whatever you cut them with, will more than likely expose the composition of the slabs on the raw edge.

Anyhoo, do it properly and rent a petrol saw for the weekend.

£20 for a weekend, will rent a 300mm petrol saw.

Cheers.

[timmymagic73]

I cut mine with a diamond blade in an old circular saw. I clamped on a straight edge as a fence and got mm perfect cuts every time.

My slabs were smooth polished 22m sandstone, but I expect the saw base is large enough to slide over the riven surface. I finished the cut edge with a file to replicate the factory finish.

The only issue was lack of dust suppression - so hopefully you can find suitable PPE at the moment! It wasn't worth me renting a tool as the job took forever on my own...

[pozi]

Use a cheapo tile cutter, they are surprisingly capable and will go through paving slaps.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/performance-power-ptc45...

[ChocolateFrog]

Blakeatron said:

I have used a 4” grinder but was hard going, a 9” grinder is easier and a 14” stone saw the easiest.

Lay something straight and long and then score a line with a scribe/ trowel and then carefully score and then full depth cut.

I have sanded edges with 80 grit paper, cant say it made much difference!

I've done the same, doable with a 4in grinder but not much fun.

[guindilias]

I used a grinder with a diamond blade to cut two council type pavers out the front of the house a few moths ago - not long after it had rained, to "keep the dust down".
It didn't and the neighbour's car was still wet as well - turns out the dust sticks to wet cars pretty effectively. Glad it was his company car, which he really doesn't give a shit about!
I ballsed up the cut too, but luckily it was only for the bin so didn't matter...

[21TonyK]

I cut a couple of limestone slabs with a 12" diamond blade. Very easy to cut, clamped a bit of timber to the slab as a guide.

Then used a tile file to even up the cuts and finished up with 600 and then 1000 grit wet and dry.

Edit: make sure you support the cut portion as it will snap off under its own weight. And, don't cut full depth in one go, Lots of long cuts along the whole slab. Oh, and watch out for the dust!

Edited by 21TonyK on Monday 4th May 15:00

[wolfracesonic]

Is this natural sandstone? Riven finish ones usually have hand fettled edges to them; pics would be good.

[DJS1994]

wolfracesonic said:

Is this natural sandstone? Riven finish ones usually have hand fettled edges to them; pics would be good.

Hi mate, their Limestone as per title. Will post pics shortly. Dan.

[James-06gep]

I just finished my 20sqm patios. They were 22mm Indian sandstone.

I used this blade in a large corded electric cutter, like a 9” angle grinder.



I found the best way was to mark the line with a thick builders pencil, then score the line a few mm deep dry, then cut spraying the blade with a spray bottle. Work really well.

[Brads67]

What is a paver ?

[21TonyK]

Screwfix or toolstation for discs.

[guitarcarfanatic]

You can get a sliding tile saw thing - I borrowed one off a mate to do my hearth. He had just did his patio with it.

The blade moves across a rail over the slab.

[stevemcs]

pozi said:

Use a cheapo tile cutter, they are surprisingly capable and will go through paving slaps.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/performance-power-ptc45...

I used one of these but built an dmf frame around it for larger tiles, the blade is the most important, I used a discfrom ats tool, it was so much better than water screwfix sold. I was cutting 800x400x20mm porcelain slabs

[sparkythecat]

To keep the dust down when cutting slabs I use a hosepipe trickling onto the slab towards the cutting blade. You get splatter like you do when using a wet tile cutter, but it's easier to direct and contain, and less antisocial than big clouds of gritty dust