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cutting slate

Stone Conversations : Archive 9 : Message 00423

From: Karen Bereza <humbledesigns@zzzzzzzzzzz>
Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2005 09:42:59 -0600
Subject: cutting slate

Good Morning Everybody,
I'm getting back into my shop after a bit of time away, and am trying to saw
some reclaimed slate (painted and used as dividers between bathroom stalls
in an old building) into workable pieces. It is black and about 1" thick,
but that's about all I know about it. I've heard people say they use jigsaws
on slate, so tried that first. I got an assorted pack of blades and went to
it to see which worked best. Barely made a dent. Next, my father'n laws
circular saw with carbide blade that he uses to cut away cement. Limited
success - sparks flying and incredibly loud! We wondered if we should be
cooling the blade with water, but when we tried it, the blade began to bind.
Do I need to go to a diamond blade for slate? The one thing I do find that
seems to work on any stone I've tried it on is a diamond coated wire hand
saw. But I'm afraid my husband might get a complex if my arm gets more
muscular than his, so can't see doing all the cutting I've got to do with
that!!
Any advice on my situation would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Karen Bereza
Traditional Stone Carving
pics at http://public.fotki.com/KarenBereza/

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