Tools you wish you'd bought sooner...
Discussion
eskidavies said:
I’m getting one of these,was looking at full size for cutting my scrap copper pipe ,but this looks good will cut 50 mm ,thickest I’ll be chopping is 28mm ,should do the job
https://www.lidl.co.uk/en/p/diy/parkside-metal-cho...
Just bought a metal shear for sorting my copper. https://www.lidl.co.uk/en/p/diy/parkside-metal-cho...
eskidavies said:
I’m getting one of these,was looking at full size for cutting my scrap copper pipe ,but this looks good will cut 50 mm ,thickest I’ll be chopping is 28mm ,should do the job
https://www.lidl.co.uk/en/p/diy/parkside-metal-cho...
Be warned that the parkside stuff is dreadful. Destroyed a brand new recip saw cutting the roof off a single car. The draper which replaced it has taken 20x more abuse and still going strong - including finishing off the roof!https://www.lidl.co.uk/en/p/diy/parkside-metal-cho...
Having experienced several square headed fasteners in my time, like drain plugs, I've managed to get by easily with a spanner but I've recently come across one that must be tackled with a torque wrench and therefore a socket. I've discovered the 8 point socket, which is a must for such items apparently. A bit tricky to find but I found a set of 8 which are on their way to me.
s.I wish I’d bought a track saw earlier, I wish I’d bought one at all.
Used a jigsaw the trim 50mm off a desktop yesterday and clamped a solid straight edge to it to use as a guide - the cut is all over the place! Blade slightly wandered right (vertically, like it wanted to cut a chamfer) and kept going further as I went. Tried another blade and cut a little more off but the same thing happened.
Luckily it doesn’t matter, if I had enough handsaw I’d have used that but I’ll be buying a track/plunge saw with a guide for the next time I might need to cut something like that!
Used a jigsaw the trim 50mm off a desktop yesterday and clamped a solid straight edge to it to use as a guide - the cut is all over the place! Blade slightly wandered right (vertically, like it wanted to cut a chamfer) and kept going further as I went. Tried another blade and cut a little more off but the same thing happened.
Luckily it doesn’t matter, if I had enough handsaw I’d have used that but I’ll be buying a track/plunge saw with a guide for the next time I might need to cut something like that!
AlmostUseful said:
I wish I’d bought a track saw earlier, I wish I’d bought one at all.
Used a jigsaw the trim 50mm off a desktop yesterday and clamped a solid straight edge to it to use as a guide - the cut is all over the place! Blade slightly wandered right (vertically, like it wanted to cut a chamfer) and kept going further as I went. Tried another blade and cut a little more off but the same thing happened.
Luckily it doesn’t matter, if I had enough handsaw I’d have used that but I’ll be buying a track/plunge saw with a guide for the next time I might need to cut something like that!
Jigsaw is the wrong tool for that kind of job, the blade is too thin and is meant for cutting around corners and that sort of thing. Track or circular saw is what you needUsed a jigsaw the trim 50mm off a desktop yesterday and clamped a solid straight edge to it to use as a guide - the cut is all over the place! Blade slightly wandered right (vertically, like it wanted to cut a chamfer) and kept going further as I went. Tried another blade and cut a little more off but the same thing happened.
Luckily it doesn’t matter, if I had enough handsaw I’d have used that but I’ll be buying a track/plunge saw with a guide for the next time I might need to cut something like that!
A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
bristolracer said:
Jigsaw is the wrong tool for that kind of job, the blade is too thin and is meant for cutting around corners and that sort of thing. Track or circular saw is what you need
A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
I think I knew that about 3 seconds into my job A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
I’ve got plenty of handsaws but they’re all for rough cutting timber, and my circular saw is also too rough for this one.
If I had a finer one I would have used it, but I didn’t thi knot would go as badly as it did!
Anyway, I wanted a track saw and now I’ve got a genuine reason for buying one so I’m happy enough.
AlmostUseful said:
bristolracer said:
Jigsaw is the wrong tool for that kind of job, the blade is too thin and is meant for cutting around corners and that sort of thing. Track or circular saw is what you need
A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
I think I knew that about 3 seconds into my job A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
I’ve got plenty of handsaws but they’re all for rough cutting timber, and my circular saw is also too rough for this one.
If I had a finer one I would have used it, but I didn’t thi knot would go as badly as it did!
Anyway, I wanted a track saw and now I’ve got a genuine reason for buying one so I’m happy enough.
AlmostUseful said:
bristolracer said:
Jigsaw is the wrong tool for that kind of job, the blade is too thin and is meant for cutting around corners and that sort of thing. Track or circular saw is what you need
A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
I think I knew that about 3 seconds into my job A hand saw is a good tool to own, for something like a chipboard desktop you wont even break sweat and they only cost a fiver so are disposable when they go blunt. You can also cut plastic pipe, sheet insulation and when they have gone blunt they are useful for cutting plasterboard.
I’ve got plenty of handsaws but they’re all for rough cutting timber, and my circular saw is also too rough for this one.
If I had a finer one I would have used it, but I didn’t thi knot would go as badly as it did!
Anyway, I wanted a track saw and now I’ve got a genuine reason for buying one so I’m happy enough.
but seriously with the correct blade and and a slowish consistant feed rate (let the saw do the work) there is no reason why it wont cut straight and true. Have you played around with the orbital setting?dickymint said:
I get the reasoning for buying a track saw but seriously with the correct blade and and a slowish consistant feed rate (let the saw do the work) there is no reason why it wont cut straight and true. Have you played around with the orbital setting?
Jigsaw blade was a 10/11 you and the cut is beautiful and smooth, it’s just in no way straight. The saw itself was perfectly restrained and didn’t wander at all, but the blade started to bend (it stayed straight) and just got worse. This was in a piece of maybe 5/8” thick laminated chipboard. but seriously with the correct blade and and a slowish consistant feed rate (let the saw do the work) there is no reason why it wont cut straight and true. Have you played around with the orbital setting?I’ll have a closer look next time I’m in the shed and see how/why the blade is able to go anywhere but up and down.
Stigproducts said:
Having experienced several square headed fasteners in my time, like drain plugs, I've managed to get by easily with a spanner but I've recently come across one that must be tackled with a torque wrench and therefore a socket. I've discovered the 8 point socket, which is a must for such items apparently. A bit tricky to find but I found a set of 8 which are on their way to me.
Wouldn't a more readily available 12-point socket do the trick ? Or a Metrinch ?Lily the Pink said:
Stigproducts said:
Having experienced several square headed fasteners in my time, like drain plugs, I've managed to get by easily with a spanner but I've recently come across one that must be tackled with a torque wrench and therefore a socket. I've discovered the 8 point socket, which is a must for such items apparently. A bit tricky to find but I found a set of 8 which are on their way to me.
Wouldn't a more readily available 12-point socket do the trick ? Or a Metrinch ?Edit because i needed a calculator
12 points give you 120 degrees whereas 8 point give you 90 degrees which is what you want on a square head. 4 point is the best but in a limited space is tricky to get on the fastener. Triple square sockets work good too Edited by dickymint on Sunday 1st November 21:36
12V 3/8'' 65Nm Electric Cordless Right Angle Ratchet
Looks cheap because it is, £25
Works brilliantly, can't believe I've only just bought one
Saves so much time, works in tight spaces, much easier, quieter and more nimble than the equivalent air tool
I expect everyone reading this already has one though
Looks cheap because it is, £25
Works brilliantly, can't believe I've only just bought one
Saves so much time, works in tight spaces, much easier, quieter and more nimble than the equivalent air tool
I expect everyone reading this already has one though
Jigsaw footplate needs to be absolutely perfectly aligned if you're going to be cutting along a clamped straight edge. Otherwise the cut will start to move sideways, the blade will bend as the cut forces it off centre so the cut then starts to chamfer slightly and it will gradually get worse until it stalls the saw and the whole lot starts to flail around. I've never managed it with any jigsaw no matter how expensive the saw or how good the blade. If you're cutting any decent length then even single degrees off straight will jam the saw up after a metre or so.
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