Diamond saw blade?

[J_J]

Are your stones small enough to push through a tile saw? Maybe brick saw.

You could make yourself a nice stone cutter by using an 8 in long, 5/8, or 1 in ball bearing arbor, and drive that with a 1/2 to a 1 HP electric motor, and even add water. Use what ever blade size that will fit your arbor. Diamonds blades are cheap enough. I have a Stihl 760 14 in, and that bad boy will cut just about anything.

 

[Uncle Doug]

You might be able to pick up a used circuler saw at a yard sale or pawn shop. That would keep you from trashing a good saw. While I have never cut stone with one I do have 2 saws, one I have used to cur sheet metal by turning around a plywood blade. Makes lots of noise but cuts throught it.

 

[polo1665]

I guess I wasn't too clear. These are not "square" type flagstones. Nope... the wife wanted NOTHING to do with square/rectangle of any shape. These are 100% irregular pattern which means fitting them with nice tight seams (as she insists) is just about impossible becuse when I need a seam with a 90 degree angle in it... I only happen to have rounded stones. When I later need a rounded fit...I only have pointed stones.

I know your pain I just got done with about a 500 square foot patio and 11,000 lbs of the same material. I found out that I am not very good at jigsaw puzzles.
To answer your question: Yes those blades will cut your flagstone. I bought a 7" masonry blade for $20 because I had some block to cut and ended up using it for the flagstone as well. Ended up going through two blades.
I didn't trim too much of the stone, I tried to fit it together as well as I could. Be prepared for a lot of dust. I strongly suggest a decent respirator. I've included a pic of my project. It turned out pretty well. Now I'm starting phase II of the operation.

Mark

 

[Q-Saw]

I used to work for a mason, and he had an old worm-drive skilsaw with a diamond blade in it that he used for cutting concrete.

He had someone fabricate some small (maybe 1/8" ??) copper tubing into water jets that were aimed at both sides of the blade (the ends of the tubing were flattened to produce a fan-type of spray pattern). The copper tubes were joined and then connected to some (about 3/8" x 10') vinyl tubing that had a garden hose connector on the end. Somewhere in there was a very small needle valve to adjust the flow rate.

I was concerned about electrical shock when I first saw it, but he assured me that it was okay because he used a double-insulated motor (no ground prong in the plug). I think I would still want a GFCI unit to plug in to.

Anyway, it worked very well and kept the dust non-existant. We would sometimes use a wet/dry vacuum along with it to suck up the slurry as it was produced. That kept everything pretty clean, but we needed a separate electrical circuit for each tool to avoid tripping breakers.

Perhaps this might give you some ideas.

- Marty

 

[Egon]

I've used a 4 1/2 in angle grinder wit a dry cut rock blade on granite stones.

I also have a 14 in. dewalt circular saw with dry carbide rock blade. It has cut through 5 in granite.

I assume you are cutting as deep as you can for the full length of the piece that has to be removed and then using a wide chisel on the backside to break off the piece. When doing so do you have both sides of the cut supported full length and off the ground so the rock can break properly? The long side support should be as far from the cut as possible.

Do you make one cut and then turn the stone over to cut the opposite side?

Pictures Not flagstones but granite rocks that have been split just to show saw cuts.The saw cuts are quite hard to see but they will be on the side where the drilled holes start.

 

[Steve C]

I'm putting down some flagstone for a sidewalk. I have a DeWalt 4" grinder that I have a diamond blade attached to. I use this to help cut/fit the flagstone when I need to.

Sometimes, this entails cutting a 1/2" strip off the stone that might be 24" long. This makes for a lot of grinding with the little 4" grinder.

I then thought about a larger blade.

I have a Milwaukee 7" circular saw.
Milwaukee Tilt Lok Circular Saw - 6390-21 at The Home Depot

Sucker is essentially brand new so I am not keen on trashing it with a bunch of rock dust BUT... for time savings, it might be worth a tradeoff.

I've looked (via internet) on Home Depot's website for a diamond blade and thus far...do not see anything. (perhaps just not looked in right location)

Do they make a blade like that?
Am I asking for trouble trying to mount a blade like that and using it on this saw?

Is getting one of these, one of my rare moments of brilliance?

I've spent over an hour on a single stone, "machining" it to fit my need (notched for a 6x6 post and some other shaping)

I'm trying to NOT cut them as much as I can avoid it but with 2" stones, this little 4" , though better than nothing.... isn't terribly fast.

Thoughts?

Rent or buy a gas powered 14" or larger saw with a diamond blade. (looks like a chain saw with a round blade instead of a chain) You will be able to cut your stones in a matter of seconds. I used one to cut thru cement pipe, it cut like it was butter. It does make a bit of noise and a lot of dust but it gets the job done in a hurry. It is the tool you need for the job at hand. You can have a helper spray down the stones with a misting sprayer on a garden hose to help keep the dust down while you are cutting. Lay out your stones and mark them for cutting before you rent the saw. You will be able to cut them all in 20 minutes or so.

 

[TheKid]

Don't trash your good saw. You can get cheap one at HF for $30 or $40. For a few bucks more you can get the extended warranty in case it lets the smoke out. As long as you're plugged into a ground fault outlet you can run some water to keep the dust down.

I used water when I was cutting some 2" thick quartz counter top with an 8" angle grinder and didn't have any problems.

 

[hilld]

As others have said, use the right tool for the job, most rental yards have this one for rent.

Cutquik? Cut-Off Machines - Professional Cut Off Machines, Concrete Saws, Masonry Saws - STIHL USA

Hope this helps.

D.

 

[sawdust_maker]

I strongly suggest a decent respirator.

Definitely use a decent mask of some sort. You don't want stone dust in your lungs.

John

 

[JohninCT]

I cut a bunch of 18 x18 x 2 inch thick concrete paver blocks with a circ saw and it worked fine. Don't take the blade guard off. It will make more of a mess and be more dangerous. Make a foam filter sleeve to keep rock dust out of the saw motor. You can try to rig up a shop vac hose near the bottom of the blade guard to suck up some of the dust. Definately wear safety glasses/goggles and a mask!