Cutting 3mm steel - jigsaw or angle grinder?

[Rollerball]

And in addition to the title question, depending on the tool what blade or disc type should I use ?

I guess a hacksaw would be an option if not for the fact that I have to cut quite a bit of steel .........

 

[ETAF]

i have used multitool - special blades for heavy metal

BUT just a DIYer - i'm sure others will reply

What is it you are cutting , sheet material , stainless steel, pipe work ?????
for jigsaws i tend to go for bosch

Bosch T118A Sheet Steel Jigsaw Blades 92mm 5 Pack - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Fully hardened, high grade HSS blade material is appropriate for cutting non-perforated metal sheets. Milled, wavy-set teeth are ideal for cuts without special requirements FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

BUT note max is 3mm thick

4mm thick

Bosch T118EFS Sheet Stainless Steel Jigsaw Blade 83mm 5 Pack - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Bi-metal, fully hardened HSS tooth strip and highly elastic carbon steel body to cut stainless steel sheets. Milled, wavy-set teeth. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

or a grinder - and use some thin cutting blades

Just a DIYer and had to cut various pipe and sheet in the past - but not a lot

 

[blup]

A grinder but if the location is an issue e.g want to avoid sparks a good quality jigsaw or recipocating saw.

Blup

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

As above, a grinder would go through it like the preverbial knife through butter, Dewalt blades from Screwfix are pretty good.

 

[Rollerball]

Thanks. Not sure of the type of steel but it's angled. It's 'loose', not currently near anything, so other than chopping my fingers off there's nothing that I can damage by cutting it.

 

[robinbanks]

Erbauer Stainless Steel Cutting Discs 4 1/2" (115mm) x 1mm x 22.2mm 10 Pack - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. For cutting stainless steel. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

Screwfix's blurb implies they're for stainless steel but they're for all metal including stainless

I don't think I've ever used a hacksaw since buying my first pack of these.. Normally bulk buy them from Aldi/Lidl when they have them in (but note that they're often 125mm and some angle grinders will only accept a 115mm variant unless the guard is tweaked a bit

If you have a lot to cut, consider a stihl saw if you need to carry the saw to the work, or a chop saw with a metal disc in if you can take the work to the saw

 

[foxhole]

Grinder , Lidl had a pack of metal discs for a £5 recently .

 

[thomp1983]

If it's angle stock then clamp a few lengths together in a vice and cut them all in one go with a grinder with slitting discs.

 

[opps]

I guess that if you were doing a lot, you would use a cut off/chop saw.

Chop Saws | Saws | Screwfix

Buy Chop Saws at Screwfix.com. High power, portable abrasive cutting. Get accurate cutting for most materials. Top brands. Hundreds of stores nationwide.

www.screwfix.com

I have never used one though.

 

[Tigercubrider]

We have a metal chop saw at work.
If a couple of pieces, a hacksaw would do it.
If a batch, a slitting disc.
eye protection!

 

[Bodgedbuild]

Erbauer Stainless Steel Cutting Discs 4 1/2" (115mm) x 1mm x 22.2mm 10 Pack - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. For cutting stainless steel. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

Screwfix's blurb implies they're for stainless steel but they're for all metal including stainless

I don't think I've ever used a hacksaw since buying my first pack of these.. Normally bulk buy them from Aldi/Lidl when they have them in (but note that they're often 125mm and some angle grinders will only accept a 115mm variant unless the guard is tweaked a bit

If you have a lot to cut, consider a stihl saw if you need to carry the saw to the work, or a chop saw with a metal disc in if you can take the work to the saw

Using 125mm discs in a grinder designed for 115mm is inherently unsafe, not just because they won't fit inside the guard but due to the higher rotation speed of a 115mm grinder (circa13,000 rpm) vs a 125mm (circa 11,000 rpm. I know it doesn't sound like much but the energy when a disc breaks is incredible so please be very careful and please only use the correct discs, with the marked maximum speed higher than the machine it is being used for.

 

[robinbanks]

Useful point, though I couldn't find any grinders or wheels on Scrwfix that matched those numbers; the 125mm discs were 12250rpm and the fastest grinder was 12k

Perhaps the industry has been generally more careful to make sure that erring on the side of caution is implicit..