Info

Saw Blades

Ringinator saw blades are custom made in the USA. They start off as a thin sheet of high strength steel. Then a high powered laser cuts it into small discs. They are heat treated, cleaned, and then the teeth are cut into them. Finally they are inspected to make sure they meet our rigorous specifications.

A microscope view of a sharp vs dull blade. 

"A microscope view of a dull vs sharp blade."

How long will they last?

Depending on the material being cut blade life will vary. For optimal blade life you need to use the correct RPM and cutting speed for a given material. For instance: Aluminum cuts at 1100rpm , but trying to cut steel that fast would only yield a few rings before the blade is dull as a coin.

Using the correct speed and lubrication for the given material a blade (on average) lasts:
Aluminum: 30+ pounds
Titanium: 5+ pounds
Steels: 5-10 pounds
Copper based alloys: 20+ pounds
Niobium: 8+ ounces

This means that with a fresh blade, I can expect to cut this much material before it gets so dull that I need to use a new blade. Your mileage may vary due to the hardness/temper of the alloy you are using, along with your coil feeding technique. 

Another important factor is lubrication. A blade is heat treated to stay very hard and sharp. Raising the temperature of the blade ruins that treatment, and makes it go dull extremely fast. It can also cause material to weld to the teeth. To avoid this the Ringinator uses a pump to provide a constant flow of lubricant or coolant to the blade. This keeps it cool and helps it cut better by removing the heat, reducing friction, and clearing away the cutting dust.

 

Due to Post Office regulations on shipping liquids and oils, we do not sell or ship cutting fluids or lubricants. 
However, here is a selection of items to choose from on Amazon. Disclaimer: Use the following links and I get a tiny commission.

http://amzn.to/1Po8Kvs
http://amzn.to/1NJmYFG
http://amzn.to/1NJn1Be

The most user friendly for people making jump rings is the water soluble cutting oil. After all your rings are cut you can just rinse them with water and all the oil washes away. This is great for people that don't own a tumbler, and it keeps the mess to a minimum. Most fluid comes as a concentrate that is diluted 20:1 with water. A 1 gallon container of concentrate makes 20 gallons of fluid, and that will last you a long time.

 

 

Alternatives that customers have successfully used include liquid dish soap, candle wax, bars of soap, and vegetable oil.

Which way should they point? 

The teeth must face the coil while its turning and cutting.
     <<<--feed direction---
Like: /| /| /| /| /| /| ====coil=====
Not: |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\  ====coil=====

There is also a little arrow printed on the blade showing the proper direction. 

Coils

Coils are just long pieces of straight wire wound into round springs. Because they are springs this can cause small problems when cutting. As the coil is cut it wants to unwind, to release torsional stress that built up from being coiled. This unwinding can push the blade aside, and make an off-center cut. For the straightest and best possible cut, you need to let your coils "age" for a few hours after you make them. This lets all the residual stresses in the metal equalize. 


Saw cutting metal produces fine metal dusts.

Metal dust can be toxic to your health. It is a severe respiratory irritant when breathed in. And very painful if it gets in the eyes.
Always wear a respirator and safety glasses when saw cutting metal.

Using liquid cooling, almost all dust is captured in the liquid. Following the simple rule of wearing a dust mask and safety glasses will keep you safe. Your safety is in your hands.


Making Coils

There are many ways to make coils, I will not cover them here. Search the internet and you will find them. 
However, this is a good starting point: 

Dear Ringinator,

This method is practicable in rod/coil lengths up to three feet. You need a little room to maneuver in, both front and back. 

Let your viewers know that while the method works with both end-slot mandrels and notch-and-washer mandrels as I drew, that you would not be using both wire-anchoring methods at once. I got asked about that a time or two; I just threw that in there to give some idea of the possibilities.

Anchoring in the end slot builds the coil up in the opposite direction from anchoring the wire end at the drill chuck, and this gives the opposite "screw-pitch" to the coil. Goes around the other way, even though the mandrel rod is turning in the same direction. By flipping the drill into REV, you can make the pitch go the same way -- though it helps then to feed the wire from the other end of the feedblock, from the righthand end. Not too many people take this kind of trouble. the method works with both end-slot mandrels and notch-and-washer mandrels as I drew, that you would not be using both wire-anchoring methods at once. 

I throw around a little acronym with that drawing: the GROPP, the Golden Rule Of Painless Powerwinding, which goes: 
Never touch wire when the drill is turning

Warmest regards, and best of luck on your endeavor, 
KtR
http://www.mailleartisans.org/gallery/gallerydisplay.php?key=900

 


Calculating Pulley Speeds

In order to achieve precise speeds in order to cut a large range of metals, the use of pulleys is the easiest way. There is a simple way of determining the speed if you know the speed of the motor and the diameter of the drive pulley and the driven pulley. You simply take the motor speed, or RPM's (rotations per minute) and multiply that by the diameter of the pulley mounted on the motor, or "drive pulley". Then divide the product by the diameter of the cutter pulley, or "driven pulley":

(Speed of drive pulley • Diameter of drive pulley) ÷ Diameter of driven pulley

Example: My motor is 1725rpm, and has a 2" pulley mounted to it, and that is running to a 5" pulley. How fast is the 5" pulley rotating? To find out we use the above formula.
1725 • 2" = 3450
3450 ÷ 5" = 690
The 5" pulley is rotating at 690rpm.

Calculating Blade Speed

The blade rim speed, in ft/min (feet per minute), is determined by the blade diameter and the rotational speed, RPM (rotations per minute) of the blade.

Formulas:

ft/min = (blade dia. • 3.14 • RPM) ÷ 12

Example: 1 1/2" blade, 1400rpm
(1.5 • 3.14 • 1400) ÷ 12 = 550 ft/min

RPM = (12 • ft/min) ÷ (dia. • 3.14)

Example: 1 1/4" blade, want 100 ft/min

(12 • 100) ÷ (1.25 • 3.14) = 306RPM


Cutting speeds for Jewelers slitting saws.

Metal
Speed (ft/min)
Unalloyed Titanium
60 - 75
Med. Strength Ti Alloys.
40 - 55
Hi Strength Ti Alloys 25 - 40
Regular Stainless Steel 60 - 75
Hi Strength Stainless Steel 25 - 40
Galvanized Steel 100 - 150
Regular Carbon Steels 80 - 100
Niobium 80 - 120
Silver
80 - 100
Copper
80 - 100
Brass
100 - 150
Bronze
100 - 150
Aluminum
450 - 600

Quick reference table of suggested rpm speeds. Use detailed table farther below for exact speeds.
(SFM = ft/min)

Material 1. Mild Steel
2. Brass
3. Bronze
1. Medium Tensile Steels
2. Cast Iron
3. Hard Brass & Bronze
4. Copper
1. High Tensile Steel
2.Unalloyed Titanium
1. Tool Steels
2. Medium Strength Stainless Steel
3. Medium Strength Titanium Alloys
1. High Strength Stainless Steels
2. High Strength Titanium Alloys
1. Aluminum & alloys.
2. Plastics
3. Woods
Diameter
of Saw
SFM 100 - 150
SFM 80 - 100
SFM 60 - 75
SFM 40 - 55
SFM 26 - 40
SFM 450 - 600
RPM RPM RPM RPM RPM RPM
1.25" 380 275 205 145 100 1600
1.50" 320 230 170 120 85 1330
1.75" 275 196 145 105 72 1145
2.00" 240 172 130 90 63 1000
2.25" 212 155 115 80 56 890
2.50" 190 135 100 72 50 800
2.75" 175 125 92 66 45 730
3.00" 160 115 85 60 42 665
4.00" 120 85 65 45 32 500

The speeds given above are for the brand of saw blades we sell. Depending on the quality and manufacturer of your blades, results may differ.


How to use this table:
Find the desired ft/min figure you want in column 1. Find the outer diameter of the blade you are using in column 2, 3, 4, 5. Scroll down to see what RPM you need to have in order to get that ft/min with your blade.
Example: To cut titanium at 100ft/min, with a 1.5" blade, it needs to turn at 255rpm.

ft/min 1" 1.25" 1.5" 1.75" 2" 2.25" 2.5"
10 38 31 25 22 19 17 15
20 76 61 51 44 38 34 31
30 115 92 76 66 57 51 46
40 153 122 102 87 76 68 61
50 191 153 127 109 96 85 76
60 229 183 153 131 115 102 92
70 268 214 178 153 134 119 107
80 306 245 204 175 153 136 122
90 344 275 229 197 172 153 138
100 382 306 255 218 191 170 153
110 420 336 280 240 210 187 168
120 459 367 306 262 229 204 183
130 497 397 331 284 248 221 199
140 535 428 357 306 268 238 214
150 573 459 382 328 287 255 229
160 611 489 408 349 306 272 245
170 650 520 433 371 325 289 260
180 688 550 459 393 344 306 275
190 726 581 484 415 363 323 290
200 764 611 510 437 382 340 306
210 803 642 535 459 401 357 321
220 841 673 561 480 420 374 336
230 879 703 586 502 439 391 352
240 917 734 611 524 459 408 367
250 955 764 637 546 478 425 382
260 994 795 662 568 497 442 397
270 1032 825 688 590 516 459 413
280 1070 856 713 611 535 476 428
290 1108 887 739 633 554 493 443
300 1146 917 764 655 573 510 459
310 1185 948 790 677 592 527 474
320 1223 978 815 699 611 544 489
330 1261 1009 841 721 631 561 504
340 1299 1039 866 742 650 577 520
350 1338 1070 892 764 669 594 535
360 1376 1101 917 786 688 611 550
370 1414 1131 943 808 707 628 566
380 1452 1162 968 830 726 645 581
390 1490 1192 994 852 745 662 596
400 1529 1223 1019 874 764 679 611
410 1567 1254 1045 895 783 696 627
420 1605 1284 1070 917 803 713 642
430 1643 1315 1096 939 822 730 657
440 1682 1345 1121 961 841 747 673
450 1720 1376 1146 983 860 764 688
460 1758 1406 1172 1005 879 781 703
470 1796 1437 1197 1026 898 798 718
480 1834 1468 1223 1048 917 815 734
490 1873 1498 1248 1070 936 832 749
500 1911 1529 1274 1092 955 849 764
510 1949 1559 1299 1114 975 866 780
520 1987 1590 1325 1136 994 883 795
530 2025 1620 1350 1157 1013 900 810
540 2064 1651 1376 1179 1032 917 825
550 2102 1682 1401 1201 1051 934 841
560 2140 1712 1427 1223 1070 951 856
570 2178 1743 1452 1245 1089 968 871
580 2217 1773 1478 1267 1108 985 887
590 2255 1804 1503 1288 1127 1002 902
600 2293 1834 1529 1310 1146 1019 917
610 2331 1865 1554 1332 1166 1036 932
620 2369 1896 1580 1354 1185 1053 948
630 2408 1926 1605 1376 1204 1070 963
640 2446 1957 1631 1398 1223 1087 978
650 2484 1987 1656 1419 1242 1104 994
660 2522 2018 1682 1441 1261 1121 1009
670 2561 2048 1707 1463 1280 1138 1024
680 2599 2079 1732 1485 1299 1155 1039
690 2637 2110 1758 1507 1318 1172 1055
700 2675 2140 1783 1529 1338 1189 1070
710 2713 2171 1809 1551 1357 1206 1085
720 2752 2201 1834 1572 1376 1223 1101
730 2790 2232 1860 1594 1395 1240 1116
740 2828 2262 1885 1616 1414 1257 1131
750 2866 2293 1911 1638 1433 1274 1146
760 2904 2324 1936 1660 1452 1291 1162
770 2943 2354 1962 1682 1471 1308 1177
780 2981 2385 1987 1703 1490 1325 1192
790 3019 2415 2013 1725 1510 1342 1208
800 3057 2446 2038 1747 1529 1359 1223