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Re: Cutting 3mm aluminium channel

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 9:19 am
by Job and Knock
Alloy ally wrote:It reminds me of magnesium.
Fortunately aluminium doesn't oxide (burn) anywhere near as easily as magnesium, and fires can be quenched with water (try that with magnesium and it'll make things worse). Mix aluminium dust with iron oxide dust, though and you have the beginnings of thermite, a highly combustible material used in some explosives and for welding railway lines in-situ. Aluminium dust, like any other metal dust, is harmful - which is why industrial set-ups for cutting and grinding metals all have to have extraction on them these days (I think I mentioned extraction earlier on). If you are sawing, though, as opposed to sanding, grinding or polishing the particle size won't often be small enough to become airborne - still best to wear eye protection and consider a mask, though, if processing in volume.

Re: Cutting 3mm aluminium channel

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 10:20 pm
by Alloy ally
It was a bit of a tongue in cheek comment but yep, take your point.

YouTube suggested one or two interesting videos based on previous searches, this first one really illustrates the problem with some blades even straight out the box. Incidentally, although the blade is 355mm its very similar to the stock one fitted to my Rage 3 - I hope he unplugged the machine during maintenance.



..remember the orange peg problem, not an issue if mounted to a stand - see 1.35minutes in where the table is rotated to any point - is this an oversight by the manufacturer ?