Indeed, when you have a powerful reciprocating saw in your hands, works like demolition, renovation, or remodeling will smoothly handle with better results. It is a must-have power tool that every amateur to professional loves to keep in their workspace. Significantly, if anyone is involved in heavy cutting projects such as metal cutting, he must acquire all the relevant information about the tool and its usage.
Without getting professional knowledge on this special cutting project, no one will be able to cut bolts, rods, rebar, pipes, profiles, and nails. Excellent metal cutting results come when you install strong metal cutting blades in your tool. Besides, users have to ensure the entire focus of the work, and they should know the basic information of how to cut metal with a reciprocating saw.
Every step to cutting metal will look easy if anyone follows the professional ways. Considering this point, we would like to present all the important and easy steps in detail today. Without talking further, let’s get started.
What is a Reciprocating Saw?
A reciprocating saw is a name of heavy-duty power tool that comes with a sharp carbide or diamond coated teeth blade. It owns a powerful motor and can cut different types of materials faster than imagination. No matter how soft or hard materials you wish to cut, install the suitable saw components and start your efficient cutting journey.
The secret of its powerful cutting lies in its sharp and disposable blade. Significantly, it has a wide number of special cutting blades available throughout the world, and surprisingly they cost comparatively lower than other saw categories. A heavy-duty reciprocating saw runs on high 13-amp motor power. With this, anyone can cut small to larger materials within the shortest possible time.
Moreover, this ideal saw applies to many projects, including construction, household, DIY projects, etc. It is a compact power tool but makes deeper strokes on every material. Because of its rough cuts, people call it by different names like saber/sabre saws or sawzall. If you know the proper ways to cut particular materials with a reciprocating saw, you will get satisfactory results all the time.
What is The Best Reciprocating Saw Blade for Cutting Metal?
Yes! It is true that anyone can use the reciprocating saw for many different cutting objects. But every particular work will demand a special blade so that you can make the best combination throughout your work. Cutting metal is not as easy as cutting trees. For this, you have to bring and install a special metal-cutting blade with higher Threads per inch (TPI) format.
Moreover, those blades are made of bi-metal, or carbide tipped. Depending on what type of metal you are going to cut through, you have to decide on the ideal blade at that moment. For example, if you wish to cut light metals, you must set a size between 18-24 Threads per inch (TPI) for bi-metal blades. This thin metal cutting ideal blade range will easily slice sheet metal very quickly.
On the other hand, if your materials are heavy metals, you should set a size between 14-18 Threads per inch (TPI) for bi-metal blades. When you perfectly get the size, you can cut through steel pipe, angle irons, or tubing with great finishing.
But cutting sensitive metals like aluminum always needs extra attention on the blade. There you should pick the blade size between 8-10 TPI blades. Notably, all types of blades of reciprocating saws are very cheap, and they are widely available all over the world. So, users should stay tension free and enjoy their best experience with it.
Advantages of Using a Reciprocating Saw
With a powerful reciprocating saw, not only you can cut trees or metals but also you can apply it to cut different materials like plastics, PVC, masonry, plaster, stucco, drywall, fiberglass, composite materials, etc. Simple to hard every cutting work looks amazing with the reciprocating saw.
Indeed, a reciprocating saw will offer precious cuts at every end, but you have to know the ideal ways to use it with perfect blades. Now, we will share some of the advantages of using a reciprocating saw one by one. So, keep your concentration here.
Easy to Handle
The first and main advantage of using the reciprocating saw, you will notice the easy handling facility. Due to its compact size and lightweight design, this amazing power tool proudly offers a smooth and easy operating system for all types of users. From non-professionals to professionals, everyone will enjoy its user-friendly gripping in the adjustment shoe as well as in the bottom handle too.
Moreover, it is easy to carry and easy to store, so you will always enjoy a full-time portability experience.
Functional Flexibility
When you use the reciprocating saw, you will get the functional flexibility advantage. Functional flexibility actually allows you to enjoy the freedom of control and varieties of functional support in the work. Especially if you look at the blade section of a reciprocating saw, there you will enjoy easy access to the disposal blade, which means you can change your blade anytime in your needs.
Furthermore, a reciprocating saw always makes the cutting work more enjoyable by offering high-end support like a safety switch, the trigger switch, the adjustable shoe, and the extra dotted handle grip. Needless to say, this wide range of functional flexibility is sufficient enough to increase your skills at a high rate.
Versatility
When you take the reciprocating saw in your hand, you can handle soft, medium, and hard projects with a professional touch. Indeed, there are lots of power cutting tools available which can complete all types of work individually. But, if you talk about the reciprocating saw, it is like the single solution for all cutting works.
Works like home renovation and remodeling projects are very simple and easy if you use the reciprocating saw with ideal blades. A perfect reciprocating saw with ideal components always makes great results in any cuttings.
Fewer Upper Body Energy Required
Working with a reciprocating saw is very entertaining, and it offers you much more facilities than you ever imagined. While taking it and using this amazing power tool, you won't feel any heavy pressure on your hand as well as on your body too. Especially if you look at the manual pruning shears workers, they put their upper body force to make complete cuts on materials. This actually feels heavy pain in the body and requires massive power all the time.
But if you take an ideal reciprocating saw in your hand, you won’t feel heavy pressure like the pruning shears. Here you just need to position your left hand on the adjustable shoe holdings and the right hand on the rear handle of the tool. When you get the proper grippings in your hand, you will smoothly handle the tool for a buttery cutting experience in your work.
Free of Kick-back
The most shocking and annoying part while using a regular saw is they often kick back during continuous work. This problem frequently occurs when you do not install the tension of the chain correctly in your saw. To avoid this problem, you should change your old saw to a new reciprocating miter saw.
Indeed, a reciprocating saw is a safe and intelligent power tool, and it does not make severe kickbacks in its working sessions. That means you can always enjoy a smooth and hassle-free work experience all the time.
But you need to set the saw correctly first to avoid this irritation. Frequent kickback problems occur during the cutting operation, which is more dangerous than you thought. If you don’t know How to Tension Chainsaw Chain, you should ask for professional help. Reciprocating saw will always be at your service, but you have to check the components properly all the time.
Affordable Saw Material
Another important advantage of picking the reciprocating saw as your daily driver is the saw components of a reciprocating saw cost very low, and users can find their components in any local power tool shop. So, changing and repairing the tool’s components is much easier, and it also makes less hassle at the installation time. Always remember, a fast and effortless process of adjusting saw blades on your reciprocating saw will save your working time and make you more confident all the time.
Before you enjoy this facility, you must gather proper knowledge on your reciprocating saw model and then find out the specific saw blade to match your work perfectly.
Drawbacks of Using a Reciprocating Saw
No doubt, a reciprocating saw always offers much more facilities in comparison to other power tools. It is a lightweight gadget and feels very premium in hand. But we all know that a particular product does not come with 100% exclusive features from the user's point of view. Every product has some negative aspects, and consumers should be aware of this before they make the final purchase.
At this moment, we will share some drawbacks of using a reciprocating saw one by one:
Can't Make Dense Cuts
The main advantage of using a reciprocating saw is that it can perfectly make thin cuts on soft to hard materials. But for some particular reason, people love the dense cuts more than the thin ones. At this point, the reciprocating saw fails to trim large trees and branches into dense shapes.
When you forcefully try to make thick cuts through it, the saw blade will bend without any reason, making your work more troublesome.
Not Suitable For Newcomers
A reciprocating saw is designed specifically for skilled individuals. If you know different techniques of using the saw, you can make excellent results anytime. It has lots of functionalities, and with this, you can create different shapes and unique designs in any material.
But if you are new to this creative work, you should not take the reciprocating saw as your main weapon. Indeed, using and applying the reciprocating saw needs professional knowledge and experience in cutting works as well. Thus, beginners are not able to gather such high skills and manage professional work with little experience.
That is why they should do several experiments with it and then concentrate on the main activity.
Limited Power on Corded Version
Although many reciprocating saw models are available across the online and offline market, it is necessary to choose the ideal one always to get good results. Most people like to choose between the corded and cordless units in their works. If you choose the corded version, we would say it will have limited ability to serve you.
The reason behind this corded saw version is the direct electric power connectivity. Though direct electric power will generate massive power for your work, the problem is that it will limit your entire working area to limited space. That means you can't work in remote areas; Rather, you should focus on home-based or DIY projects.
13 Professional Steps To Cut Metal With a Reciprocating Saw
We know you eagerly await to make your journey on cutting metals with your favorite reciprocating saw. We don’t want to hold your excitement for long. In this part, we will share all the professional steps to cut metal with a reciprocating saw in just 13 simple steps. It is noteworthy that every step is practically applied through our professional team, so you can always rely on them to get an amazing experience.
Let’s start reading the points one by one:
#Step No: 1- Organize Your Tools and Unplug Power Supply
Before you focus on your main work, you must maintain some precautions to prepare well for your desired job. Notably, all of these preparations always bring betterment to your work and make you competent for your next journey.
First, try to ensure that you do not connect the device directly to the power supply during the installation process. When we take the new saw out of the packet, we tend to make some silly mistakes with overexcitement. If by chance, we set the saw blades to saw first, the risk level will be higher than expected. It is always better to check all the risk levels first before you put your hand on installing your new device.
Especially if you are going to use a corded electric reciprocating saw, you should not connect the cord to the electrical socket first.
#Step No: 2- Pick The Right Blade
You should always gather the right knowledge about your job and then match the right power tool to your job requirements. Although the task may sound simple, the real implementation is difficult. The first task to set your saw is picking the right blade for your desired saw. There are lots of high-quality saw blades available from different brands, but you should pick the right one for better output.
For choosing the right blade, you should check its length and concentrate on what materials it can cut ideally. For example, suppose you are going to cut metal; you must choose a high-powered and sharp metal-cutting blade to get the most out of your particular job.
The ideal length of your desired blade should be 2-3 inches longer in comparison to your metal objects. This professional advice always helps you choose the right blade for your job indeed.
#Step No: 3- Open The Chuck
When you select the right blade for cutting metal, now it is high time to open the chuck of your saw accordingly. We will share some information about this now for those who do not know what the chuck is. Actually, it is a cylindrical metal piece that is situated at the tip of the tool. It helps to position the blade correctly to the saw. Some reciprocating saw models can come with manual twist control, or sometimes, it can be with an automatic entry and exit button system.
You can discover it on the side panel of your favorite reciprocating saw. It usually comes in red and black colors. If you select the automatic button chuck system, you should press the button to make space in the chuck area. Then put the blade correctly, and it will automatically hold the blade tightly.
#Step No: 4- Position The Blade
Now, in this stage, you have to position the saw blade in the right direction. It is always better if you set the blade in a straight line towards the handle. Make sure you insert the blunt edge of the blade just in the cover side of your chuck. Then push the blunt edge slowly to the chuck cover, and once it reaches the correct position, the chuck will hold it perfectly.
In some cases, you may face difficulties while positioning the blade into the correct chuck position. At that moment, you should not lose your temper too early; instead, you should try continuously placing the blade with proper attention. While doing this, wear protective gloves and safety goggles to be safe from breaking the blade.
#Step No: 5- Adjust The Shoe of The Saw
When you perfectly adjust the shoe of your favorite reciprocating saw, you will get an aligned and stable blade position. Notably, the adjustable shoe is made of pure metal and is located on the underside of the saw. It helps the user to get ideal control over the saw and its usage.
To set the shoe on the saw, you have to press the side button on the shoe panel. Then position it carefully as long as it expands out from the saw. Before releasing the blade, users should set the blade at least one inch longer in comparison to the metal thickness.
When you complete the mentioned task, now, you can put the cover back into its position. This simple task may seem difficult to some users, but when they apply it practically, they will not find anything inconvenient. So, keep patience and focus on the process.
#Step No: 6- Mark a Line on Prefered Cutting Area
Do you want to get straight and clean cuts on heavy metal objects? Then it would be best if you made a layout plan before you start cutting with your saw. For this, you can use a pencil or marker. After selecting one of them, now, you should start drawing deep lines on the surface of the metal object.
While marking lines on your object, you can use some other tools to get a better layout on it. For example, you use a linear scale to draw straight lines on the object. This will help you to get 100% accurate results every time. But if you wish to create curve shapes on materials, then you should take the curve template tool, or sometimes you can use the compass for better results.
#Step No: 7- Tightly Attach a Clamp to The Metal
If you are new to this profession, this step is ideal for you to get better stability in your work. To do this unique hack, you will need a C-clamp in the workspace. Here it would be best if you clung the C-clamp tightly to the metal object. Remember, both the C-clamp and your workpiece should face the work surface.
Indeed, the C-clamp hack is always effective in catching your desired cutting object tightly at a proper position. If you notice the clamp is not holding the metal object tightly, you should replace it immediately.
#Step No: 8- Put on Safety Outfits
Do you want to enjoy a hassle-free and protective work environment? Then you must follow all the user manuals of your power tool carefully and put on safety kits to stay protected from various accidents. Remember, wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) fully covers the body ideally and boosts your confidence level high as well.
Moreover, common people are exposed to noise pollution during this cutting work, especially for them, we would always recommend wearing ear protection to be safe. In some cases, most people can’t take a breath due to massive sawdust inside the workspace. To avoid this problem, they are asked to wear a dust protection mask so that they can secure themselves from dust allergens.
Remember, a bit of getting unfocused during work can cause severe damage to your materials as well as your life too. So, secure your tool and maintain all the safety laws tightly.
#Step No: 9- Hold The Blade Strongly
Now, you have to hold the saw and the blade strongly. To do this, you must put your left hand on the adjustable shoe handle and then keep the right handley precisely to the front handle. Firmly hold your hands in the correct position.
Never press the adjustable shoe trigger until you fix your overall position for cuttings. If you accidentally do so, your reciprocating saw will start spinning the blade, making irregular cuts on your metals. Take your time, and then flatly position your weapon and yourself as well.
#Step No: 10- Press The Trigger
Softly push the adjustable shoe trigger with your forefinger to drive your favorite reciprocating saw. If you want maximum speed and power from your reciprocating saw, you must hold your finger on the trigger button. Slowly and steadily, it will increase its strength and start making smooth and efficient cuts in metals.
Remember that high and effective speed from a reciprocating saw is always ideal for making quicker cuts on thin metal objects. But it is not suitable for thicker metals. For cutting thicker metals, you should adjust the power settings at a slower rate so that the power tool can work without any difficulties.
#Step No: 11- Follow and Cut The Marked Line
While pressing the trigger of the adjustable shoe, you should maintain a perpendicular position with the cutting object. Keep your full attention on the work, and follow the pattern marked on the metal object. In the beginning, maintain a steady speed on the reciprocating saw and make sure you hit the metal object constantly.
Once the cut starts accordingly, you must increase the speed and power rate to an appropriate position. Never think of cutting objects at high speed early because it may hamper your work and sometimes call in unexpected accidents as well. Slow and steady work always brings a better experience for all.
#Step No: 12- Maintain It Collaterally to The Surface
With the help of a top-notch reciprocating saw, you can easily make plunge cuts on metal objects. To do this, you must hold the saw parallelly against the metal. Now, press the shoe trigger and bevel the saw at your favorite angle. Here you can move the saw to a 30 or 45-degree angle. If you keep beveling the saw to your favorite angle, you can always get the shape you want. To get better results, you can use a perpendicular scale.
#Step No: 13- Power off and Clean The Saw
If you follow all the proper ways to cut metal with a reciprocating saw, you will get smooth and precious cuts all the time. Remember, each job has its own policies, and the work asks the user to follow them properly for a better experience. So, it won’t be different here as well.
After finishing all the cutting work, you have arrived at the last stage, where you should turn off the saw, clean it, and store it completely in a safe place. If you are using an electric corded reciprocating saw, remove your forefinger from the trigger button. Once your device runs out of remaining power, unplug the cord from the power socket.
In the case of a battery-powered reciprocating saw, you have to wait until the power tool stops automatically and then take out the battery pack from the power outlet. We always suggest our users remove the saw blade from its main mechanism, which keeps the blade more protected and helps extend the blade's lifespan at a high rate.
Once you carefully release all the components from the main tool, you must store them in a cool place. Keeping them in a safe and calm place makes them always ready for the next immediate task.
Professional Tips to Maintain a Reciprocating Saw
In fact, a reciprocating saw has a wide range of benefits and can cover all types of cutting with a professional hand. That is why users should adequately maintain the saw regularly as a reward for its amazing service. Maintaining the saw is the only way to make the reciprocating saw more efficient and increase the performance rate always.
As long as you take good care of your daily power cutting tool, it will respect your efforts and provide excellent cuts on every edge. Now, we will share some special tips on how to maintain a reciprocating saw properly.
Check The Blade and Replace It: The most important object of a reciprocating saw is its saw blade. It is the main object of cutting different materials into unique shapes. So, every user should take proper care of it. When you feel your saw blade gets bent from its ideal shape, you should replace it with the new one as soon as possible.
Generally, the longevity of a standard saw blade lasts between 12 and 120 hours of continuous use. When you cross its general lifespan, it becomes slow and can't make accurate cuts on materials. As a professional person, it is always better to check the blades on a routine basis and replace them in need to get stable and better performance in work.
Dry The Wet Saw Before Preservation: As we all know, a reciprocating saw offers many cutting services, so users should maintain it properly before and after its usage. After finishing daily work, users must dry the saw before preservation. Indeed, cleaning and drying the reciprocating saw in a proper way keeps good health on the tool and makes it stronger for the next projects as well.
For example, your reciprocating saw naturally gets wet too quickly when you work in a humid environment. This actually risks your saw blade with rust problems, and it slowly and continuously starts obstructing the main mechanism. No doubt, this problem is a massive threat for your work.
To get rid of this problem, users should check the tool frequently and use a soft cotton cloth to make the device dry. When you start following a routine check-up for your favorite reciprocating saw, it will definitely refine sharpness and maintain a quality performance all the time.
Use Stain Remover to Maintain a Shiny Look: The shiny and sharp look always makes a powerful tool more elegant and impressive. Everyone loves to adopt a new and advanced power tool in their workplace. But it is not possible for all to bring new devices for new work. For this reason, users can ideally use a stain remover to maintain a shiny appearance on their power tool.
While using the remover, you should not spray it directly on the main saw blade and other parts. Instead, you should use a cotton cloth and spray the stain remover on it. Then you can use the cloth to clean the desired part of the tool. When you work continuously for long periods of time, it is very common that the reciprocating saw will quickly heat up and begin to misbehave.
At that moment, you can apply saw oil to lubricate the reciprocating saw to stay calm all the time.
Remove Sawdust with Blower or Vacuum Cleaner: As a craftsman, you know that working with a reciprocating saw will produce a lot of sawdust. It actually makes the work environment messy and deprives you of making accurate cuts on materials. This problem is so dangerous that it can disrupt your normal breathing process and make you suffer from dust allergens.
Considering this matter, you should always use a blower or vacuum cleaner to clean the workspace and maintain a healthy work experience.
Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
Answer: Choosing between cordless and corded is not the point. Rather, the point is you have to generate massive power to get satisfactory and precious cuts on metal. In order to make this true, you have to install a suitable metal-cutting blade in your favorite reciprocating saw.
When you have the ideal blade with a proper saw, you can cut through nails, screws, and different fasteners very quickly. For example, if you put a wider demolishing blade in the saw chuck, your reciprocating saw will become stronger, and it will make smooth cuts at every end.
Answer: Of course, yes. If you are not so confident about your skill and focus on the work, then you must follow the drawing line method to make perfect cuts. It is recommended by professional people all over the world. Not only this method help to make clean cuts on the materials, but it also increases the cutting accuracy level high as expected.
Most artisans started their journey following this particular method. It is quite easy and practically proven on different materials. For drawing lines, you can use a marker or pencil. Then put the temporary layout over your materials and draw the expected lines.
Answer: When you work in a heavy-duty workspace, your life hangs at a risky stage. A simple mistake or misleading cuts can damage your materials as well as could cause serious accidents at any time. Indeed, we can not guarantee to avoid facing those unexpected events in our life, but we can follow some safety laws while cutting metals with a reciprocating saw.
For example, users should wear protective gloves to secure their hands. Next, putting on a dust protection mask is always effective in staying safe from dust allergens. Then, one should keep construction goggles to keep his eyes protected from ferocious materials. In some critical cases, users should wear a safety shield to cover their entire face from unexpected injuries.
Answer: Actually, the amperage rate of the reciprocating saw defines the quality of cuttings, and it helps to make thick cuttings on different materials. That means if you do not select an ideal amperage rate for your desired reciprocating saw, you won’t be able to make smooth and efficient cuts on materials.
Generally, a reciprocating saw with 10 to 12 amperage motor power makes great cutting results for a thinner design. But if you want to use a reciprocating saw to cut metal objects, you must choose 15 amp motor power to get valuable cutting.
Answer: A reciprocating saw is undoubtedly one of the best power tools to cut metals with great accuracy. It is always on target and quickly makes rough cuts on different hard materials. But applying a reciprocating saw is not easy and effective if you do not install the right saw blade in it.
For cutting trees, you should always prefer the pruning blade as it is widely used to cut small trees, branches, brushwood, and timber. Usually, the length of this type of blade is high enough to make thin cuts on every strike. On the contrary, if you want to make hard cuttings, then you must put a metal-cutting blade to get precious cuts every time.
Final Overview
Never use the reciprocating saw for cutting metal objects unless you know how to cut metal with a reciprocating saw properly. Knowing all the information about the tool increases your awareness and lets you handle it with professional hands. We hope we have discussed all the relevant information correctly in our article today.
Now, you should implement the essential steps in your real experience to enjoy a satisfying result every time. That’s all for today. Catch you soon on another topic. Till then, stay safe and enjoy your work.
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