Hacksaw blades

[Mikes82GT]

I was cutting some mild steel today, and found my blade was dull. Started looking for blades and saw there's dozens of options. Cheap to mucho $$.
Is it the more $$ a blade costs, the longer life and better cut it has?

What brand/blade works best for cutting .120 wall 1.5 x 1.5 mild steel tube?

 

[Daveco]

For sure the better blades are worth it.
Or more correctly, the cheap blades do not save you money.

A good hacksaw frame also pays for itself.

Next is good technique.

For the material you are cutting just look on the packaging for information on picking the right tooth count.

I’ve always had good results with Lennox blades.


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[Shootinok]

Good timing for this thread.
I’m thinking I hadn’t changed my hacksaw blade in a couple years. (Not that I use it often) But when the HJE days sale came up on July 3rd one of the things I ordered was new hacksaw blades from Bahco. I installed one immediately upon receipt and even then, reluctantly tossed the old one.
I needed to cut some solid cold rolled round stock. That new Bahco blade cut through so fast I hit my hand on the vise on the first two cuts on the final stroke.

A good quality blade is so nice!


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[rlitman]

I only put bi-metal blades in my hacksaw. Let's start with that. Plain high carbon blades aren't worth my time.

I mostly use Starrett blades, but Bahco and Lennox mentioned above make good stuff too.

 

[Mikes82GT]

Looking at the blades, description of some says fine finish cut or medium cut. I think I need the medium cut but what's the fine finish cut used for?

 

[rlitman]

Looking at the blades, description of some says fine finish cut or medium cut. I think I need the medium cut but what's the fine finish cut used for?

Could be related to the tooth set, but we need more details.
Metal cutting blades often use a wave set, rather than simply alternating tooth sets.

 

[gorilla]

General rule for bandsaw blades is three teeth per metal thickness. 1/4" material would need a 12 tooth blade.

 

[JackOfDiamonds]

I am a heavy hacksaw user. I usually have 3 saws with 3 different pitches.

For me I still think Starrett has a slight edge, but Lennox is very good too and more commonly available. All of them get dull eventually and I change them before they get any visible damage to the teeth. It's more important to have a fresh blade than the brand of blade as long as you are getting good bi-metal blades to start with.

 

[Mikes82GT]

Thanks guys. I purchased some 18 tpi Dewalt blades that did the trick.
It was the only blades available at Home Depot, otherwise, I'd have gone with some other brand.
Any new blade outshines old dull blades.

 

[matt_i]

Looking at the blades, description of some says fine finish cut or medium cut. I think I need the medium cut but what's the fine finish cut used for?

Think of cutting EMT conduit vs. solid round. The fine tooth would be better for the thin wall, less jamming and a smoother cut.

 

[rlitman]

General rule for bandsaw blades is three teeth per metal thickness. 1/4" material would need a 12 tooth blade.

First, 12 is not a standard hacksaw pitch. Second, with 1/8" wall 1.5" tubing, the cut varies from as narrow as 1/8", to as deep as perhaps 3/4".

Thanks guys. I purchased some 18 tpi Dewalt blades that did the trick.
It was the only blades available at Home Depot, otherwise, I'd have gone with some other brand.
Any new blade outshines old dull blades.

For someone who's arm is not accustomed to using the hacksaw a lot, I'd suggest 18 tpi. As you develop the muscle memory, you may find that 14 tpi is faster cutting.

I keep two hacksaws hanging from a nail on my workbench. One with a 14 tpi blade, and the other with a 32 tpi blade. The 32 is reserved for very fine stuff.

 

[Gotcha640]

How much are you cutting? My arm hurts just thinking about a hacksaw. Grinder, Sawzall, bandsaw, I would find any excuse not to hacksaw.

I just had surgery for rotator cuff, labrum, and biceps tears, so I don't get to play in the garage until Valentines anyway...

 

[liliysdad]

I got lucky a couple of years ago, and stumbled into a whole box of brand new, 80s vintage US made Starrett and Lennox blades at a Salvation Army thrift shop in Galveston. I think I paid $5 for about 30 blades. Hopefully my kids will have blades.

 

[Mikes82GT]

How much are you cutting? My arm hurts just thinking about a hacksaw. Grinder, Sawzall, bandsaw, I would find any excuse not to hacksaw.

I just had surgery for rotator cuff, labrum, and biceps tears, so I don't get to play in the garage until Valentines anyway...

I wanted to do it very quietly as I live in an hoa neighborhood, plus, I had the time .
My arm and shoulder are fine.
I made a bracket to hang transmissions from, hence the .120" wall 1.5x1.5" steel.
I cut 4 V notches and bent it around into a U shape and welded a piece of 2" black steel pipe to fit into an engine stand.
Worked out well....and before the pics or it didn't happen people get their ******* wadded up, I don't have any at the moment of the finished product.

 

[Mikes82GT]

For someone who's arm is not accustomed to using the hacksaw a lot, I'd suggest 18 tpi. As you develop the muscle memory, you may find that 14 tpi is faster cutting.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

 

[Mr.N]

For someone who's arm is not accustomed to using the hacksaw a lot, I'd suggest 18 tpi. As you develop the muscle memory, you may find that 14 tpi is faster cutting.

I was lucky, and my dad had my muscle memory with a hacksaw set by age 14.

 

[rlitman]

I was lucky, and my dad had my muscle memory with a hacksaw set by age 14.

They say it takes 10,000 repetitions to build muscle memory. It sounds like a lot, but it really isn’t all that much. Maybe a few dozen blades. It’s something you can do in a weekend of cutting up shelving uprights for example.

 

[nadogail]

The sorriest hacksaw blade I ever bought was also the cheapest.