Nothing in real life is truly perfect, but my miter saw (Makita LS1011 10" sliding compound) is plenty square enough in itself, tested and proven with my woodworking projects. I haven't tried cutting cardstock tubing with it, but I'm thinking that the main source of error would be flexing of the tube rather than the saw itself. YMMV, depending on the quality of your saw.Has anyone ever cut cardboard tubing (LOC type or Estes type) with a miter saw (an electric compound miter)? Would a paneling blade be best? Could you get the blade square enough to cut through a circle perfectly?
Has anyone ever cut cardboard tubing (LOC type or Estes type) with a miter saw (an electric compound miter)? Would a paneling blade be best? Could you get the blade square enough to cut through a circle perfectly?
I have always wanted to build one of these since I first saw it posted.
It really depends on what you are cutting.
I also use a jig like Micro's. Mine was made from a piece of 3x3" aluminum angle, with a chunk cut off for a stop. I put a line of tapped holes in one side, and a slot in the stop. A thumbscrew goes through the slot into the base to hold the stop in place. A flat strip of metal clamps a single edged razor blade to the end. Simple, and works great for thin wall tubes up to 4" or so. I've also used it to cut casting tubes and liners, though phenolic takes more time and patience.
I recall that Micro posted a method to sharpen razor/hobby blades a while back (old TRF?), does anyone have the link? Or Micro, would you mind reposting your tip? I keep changing blades to keep a sharp one.
That's the key, right there.
For LOC-type tubing, which is thick walled, which is part of what the original question was about, a miter saw works beautifully. Been there, done that, works really, really well.
For thinner-walled Estes tubing, which the original post also asked about, it's horrible overkill. A sharp knife or razor blade works very well on that type of material.
-Kevin
You can get a small Jeweler's Rouge from Tandy Leather:
https://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/search/searchresults/3323-00.aspx?feature=Product_1&kw=rouge
I used their's years ago when I was doing leather work. It's about 1" x 2" cylinder, much smaller than the 1/4 lb. piece that Micromeister mentioned.
In the Tandy store they sold small leather scraps. For stropping I had a 2" x
4" leather piece. The leather was wetted and the rouge rubbed on.
Certainly not as nice as Micromeister's pictures, but it got the job done.
I'm curious what is the best way to cut big tubing? Eight inch sonotube for example. I'm making a tube launcher for a scratch project and need some clean cuts. I cut a 2 foot diameter tube for a rocket playhouse for my kids with a jigsaw with mixed results. How do you high power guys cut big tubing? Ted
I'm curious what is the best way to cut big tubing? Eight inch sonotube for example. I'm making a tube launcher for a scratch project and need some clean cuts. I cut a 2 foot diameter tube for a rocket playhouse for my kids with a jigsaw with mixed results. How do you high power guys cut big tubing? Ted
Thanks for the tips guys! I was thinking about cutting off a small section and splitting the ring to use as a straight? edge.
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