Hi,
I'm looking at purchasing a horizontal band saw to cut 6061 Aluminum round bar from 1" up to 3" (and possibly 4") diameters. Currently I am using a lot of 1.75" for some parts I make, and I spend $25 / 12ft bar to have it cut for me to 1.6" lengths.
I have a vertical band saw that I cut all my flat bar without any issues, but the round bar I need cut very straight to sit in the jaws properly. So I can't afford much blade drift. The place I have it cut at now specs +/- .032" which works fine for me.
I am just not sure what will work well. I have looked at the cheap harbor freight ones for around $250, and some at around $500.00.
I guess my biggest question is will one of these cut nice and straight, and about how long would it take to cut through a piece of 2" aluminum round bar without coolant. And am I just setting myself up for a lot of headaches if I go this route with a cheap bandsaw?
With my vertical band saw, I cut thousands of pieces of flat bar from 1/4 to 1/2" thick and 2" to 3" wide. Been using the same blade for a long time and it cuts each piece within a few seconds. The cuts are not very straight, the blade drifts a lot, but for this stock, it makes no difference at all since I have about .1" tolerance I leave on the stock.
Thanks for any info.
Terry