I couldn't imagine not being able to cut my own plastic. I hate to shear cut any plastic, but I still do it sometimes. I have 12", 24" and 36" shears with plastic cutting blades that I change often, but if you use a good saw, you will get much better quality edges on your cut stock. I buy all my plastic in full sheets. My safety saw will only cut up to 27" wide material so if I need to cut larger sizes, I just cut it out on an engraving machine. I have multiple bevelers that get used a lot everyday, but if you have ever tried to bevel a really large sign, you know it is easier to cut it out on an engraver with a beveling cutter. If I had more room in my shop, I would buy the largest table top Varga saw or something similar. I think the Varga makes something like a 42" cut, but I would love to have something like it that could rip a full 48" sheet of plastic. I use my regular table saw when I have to, but I really prefer the Varga type saws that you can't easily cut your fingers off with. With the regular table saw, I use the saw blades from Quality One. They are expensive, but they do a great job.
You can cut thin, non ferrous metals on the safety saws also, but I prefer to shear cut those. I only have 12" and 24" metal cutting shears. If I need to cut larger or thicker metal, I go to a nearby HVAC company and use their larger shears. |
Philadelphia, PA (Really Bensalem)
