Should I buy this saw?

[Notarealsignguy]

Agree with notareal on the stomp shear. The other pluses with a shear is you do not lose any material and get really nice clean cuts that are ready to use. Depending on the shear you can cut at least .040 aluminum and 3mm ACM no problem, some will cut thicker. The drawbacks are the wider the cut and the thicker the material, the harder it can be. I just about have to jump on the bar when I'm trying to cut 48" wide on thicker stuff.

With a panel saw, and we have one (a Safety Speed Cut), you do lose some of the material. So for example you cannot get exactly two 24" pieces out of a 48" piece... you will get two 23-7/8" or so depending on the blade thickness.

We'd needed 2 people to cut 16ga steel, 063 alum full width took some weight and oomph.
We bought a hydraulic shear a few years ago, it's great for this. My wife can use it with no help which is a plus. It's nice that you can butt 6 24x36 signs together and have it cut down in 2 minutes, it's only 5 cuts. We print .2" crop marks in the corners and 1/4" bullseyes for the holes so no need to measure anything. Round the corners and the crop marks get chopped off.

 

[somcalmetim]

I use a handheld metal shear or concrete shear for thicker stuff...you lose a 1/4 on the cut line but both edges are crimped and the smoothest I have seen on ACP...you can rundown a clamped straight edge or even do longer curves...
https://www.homedepot.ca/product/makita-fibre-cement-board-shear/1000777165?eid=PS_GOOGLE_D25T_Corporate_GGL_Shopping_PLA_Power-Tools_Power+Tools__PRODUCT_GROUP_pla-558122111691&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwp8OpBhAFEiwAG7NaEqC6Y4D71OfhUi6f4mgPxTZwW65pEu_KcnhGqwzaHlXY6XcBojHlcxoCeyMQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
This is one I got from Home depot

 

[Decal Removal Expert]

Buy the saw for sure. If you can get it under 900. Good saw. Will last a lifetime and the saw is easy to replace or up grade. We use SteelDemon blades for cutting all ferrous and non ferrous metals. Buy the correct blade for what you are cutting. To make the blades last longer we start the saw then spray WD40 on both sides of the spinning blade. Cut up to .040-1/4" Aluminum all the time. WEAR GLASSES. Even with vacuum its messy. The noise increases as the blade gets duller. For Thinner material we bought the thin material hold down accessory or like was mentioned you can sandwich between 2 thicker materials to reduce chatter. Almost an essential tool for a diverse sign shop. Shear and finger brake also a huge step forward for sign capabilities also. For a finger brake i wish we would have gotten one with foot clamp capabilities to aid with accuracy and expediency.

 

[Brandon708]

Nice saw. If you want to cut ACM and aluminum with perfect clean edges get a stomp shear or pneumatic shear.

I have a pneumatic shear and use it constantly. It just doesn’t cut .080 aluminum that well. It does but it struggles. I mostly use the panel saw to rip material.

 

[caribmike]

I hope you get it!

 

[gabagoo]

I have the same one and it works great, although as mentioned they are messy and you need to clean up after using it or you will find ACM bits everywhere.

 

[Brandon708]

Nice saw. If you want to cut ACM and aluminum with perfect clean edges get a stomp shear or pneumatic shear.

I have a pneumatic shear and use it constantly. It just doesn’t cut .080 aluminum that well. It does but it struggles. I mostly use the panel saw to rip material.

 

[TopFliteGraphics]

Absolutely! I bought a similar used one about 5 years ago and wondered why I never bought one earlier once we started using it! Great investment for any sign shop

 

[Evan Gillette]

Let us know if you got it! We have a model 6400 or something like that, they are awesome tools and cut acp very well but are messy. Safety Speed Cut is located in Ham Lake MN and are easy to work with for parts and questions. These have come way down in the last couple years. I flipped an H5 model a couple years back and now I see them regularly for half or less of what I sold that one for. If you don't get it I can watch for deals around the twin cities. We use mostly Frued blades and have a specific blade for ACP/Aluminum, acrylic/polycarb, and wood. Ours is the worm drive 8" blade but that one should have even cheaper blades and more available options.

 

[Stacey K]

I won!

I should be getting it tomorrow! My bid of $551 was the highest bid.

 

[Gino]

Another happy ending !!!

 

[Notarealsignguy]

 

[GaSouthpaw]

Congrats. A panel saw is worth any clean-up (though our vacuum sucks up almost all of the chips/debris).

 

[gnubler]

Nice! Let us know how you like it.
I bought a track saw when I moved into a bigger shop. Probably the best investment I made for cutting substrates.