What is a hacksaw used for

Before knowing what is a hacksaw used for, at first let me make you clear about what is a hacksaw.

What is a hacksaw?

Hacksaw is equipment for cutting hard substance mostly metals. A hacksaw can also be used for cutting materials like wood. It is a fine-toothed saw having a thin, wide and straight blade under tension in a C or also can say U shaped metal bow frame, which is adjustable for tightening to cut according to the need of operation and to accommodate blades of different sizes. According to the cut needed blade can have different teeth set like 14, 18, 24, 32 teeth per inch. Some hacksaw can also have a frame which is adjustable according to the need for blades. A hacksaw usually has one handle but some hacksaws are exceptional, they have two handles for holding the hacksaws comfortably while working. A handle of hacksaw is also called a closed pistol grip handle.

How many types of hacksaws are there?

There are two types of the hacksaw. They are Automatic cut off saw and Sawing Machine:

1. Automatic cut of saw

The automatic cut off saw is programmed to cut a workpiece of various sizes. There is a control memory in an automatic cut off saw where several programs are stored. According to the need of new dimensions of efficiency and accuracy in an automatic cut off saw changes can be made by using the controllable system and touching keys on the pad of the automatic cut off saw. For heavy-duty works in the workshop for reducing the time of cutting this type of saws are mainly used.

• Sawing machine

Sawing machine is designed for cutting bars of materials to their desired length and size. It is faster and easier to use.

Sawing Machine can be of three types. They are:    

Band saw

Circular saw

Reciprocating Saw

There are also other types of hacksaw. They are described below:

Panel hacksaw: Frame of a panel hacksaw is made up of deep thin sheet which is aligned behind the kerf of the blade. As a result without the length of the cut being restricted by the frame, the saw can cut panels of sheet metals.

Junior hacksaw: Junior hacksaw is the small version of hacksaw with a blade having half size. Junior hacksaw’s quality of the blade is restricted and it is made up of simple low alloy steels.

Power hacksaw: Power hacksaw is powered by an electric motor or by connecting it to a stationary engine. These types of saws are not commonly used in metalworking industries but once they were being used.

What are the types of blade used in the saw?

Hacksaw blades are available of teeth from the range of 14 to 32 teeth per inch. On a blade, the way of positioning teeth is called ‘sets’. The set of teeth is of three types. They are-

1. Regular
2. Raker
3. Wavy.

These types of blades of hacksaw are discussed below:

• Regular: In this blade, the teeth are set in a way that they are touching each other. These blades are used for cutting soft materials that don’t have iron on it.
• Raker: In this type of blade teeth are placed in three sets. These blades are used for cutting thick materials.
• Wavy: In these kinds of blade teeth placed from left to right in a wavy pattern for smooth and fine cuts. These types of blades are used for cutting hard and thin metals.

What is the frame type of this saw?

Hacksaw contains both fixed and adjustable frames. Only one length of the blade is accepted by a fixed frame but 10-inch to 12-inch length of blades can be handled by the adjustable frame of a hacksaw. Some blades can also handle ranges of the blade from 8 inches to 16 inches. There is a hole at each end of hacksaw that fits on the frame post. There are four positions of these posts, they are up, down, left and right.  

What is a hacksaw used for?

We have talked a lot about hacksaw, its type, blade, and frame. A hacksaw is a handy cutting tool which is very useful which comes handy to a house owner or for small garage shops. Now let us know about what is hacksaw used for:

1. It is mainly used to cut steel and other metals such as bars or pipes or rods into the desired length.
   1. It also can be used to cut plastics.
   1. It can also cut wood, but it is not normally used to cut woods.
   1. It is generally used for cutting and sawing, it is mainly suitable for cutting hard materials like stainless steel and alloy
   1. A hacksaw is better for cutting thinner materials. Cutting thick materials may become difficult and may damage or break the blade of the saw.
   1. They are mainly used for household work purpose and industry work purpose.
   1. Hacksaws are often used by plumbers and electrician for cutting plastic pipes and plastic conduit.

How to use a hacksaw with safety?

For installing a blade the adjuster on the handle or frame is to be turned until there is slack and into the spigots, the holes at each end of the blade can be inserted. The teeth should be pointed away from the handle. And then the adjuster is to be tightened. For using a hacksaw safely, place the workpiece into the vise firmly. The line to be cut of the material is to be placed in the central teeth of the saw and the saw has to be pushed in short stroke to start the cut. Now the cutting needs to be continued carefully. The cut on the material using hacksaw can be done by push stroke or by pull stroke by reversing the blade to cut. Pull store gives better result while cutting using a hacksaw. But whatever the orientation of the blade is, the cut on the materials must be done very slowly and carefully. As metals on metals can produce tremendous heat and the blade can be quickly damaged, so while cutting metals, one stroke per second is to be given. To reduce friction and to keep the temperature down, oil can be used on the blade.

Some Precaution before using:

1. Make sure the blade of the saw is clean. You can use light oil on the blade to restrain it from being damaged and from overheating.
2. The blade of the hacksaw is to be used correctly for cutting any materials.
3. The blade of the saw is to be secured carefully with the teeth pointing forward.
4. The blade is should be kept firm and rigid and the frame of the saw should be kept properly aligned.
5. Strong, steady and slow strokes are to be used while cutting. And the strokes are to be directed away from the user
6. Always read the user manual before using a hacksaw.

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