When you think about framing, two types of studs come to mind. Either the wooden ones or more popular metal studs. Being super budget-friendly, easier to store, lightweight to use and straight enough, these are far more preferable than the wooden component.
But trouble begins when you don’t know much about the tricky points of cutting a metal stud. Yes, it sounds quite intimidating at first. But don’t worry, today you’ll know the straightforward points of how to cut metal studs.
How to Cut Metal Studs: Basics of Chop Saw, Safety Measurements, Cutting Guide & More…
Chop saw is basically a popular metal cutting saw that helps you to make accurate and fast cuts. Of course, with the tool, you’ll be able to use quite limited angle cutting. Also, the size of metals is going to be something considerable. However, it’s still one of the best choices to cut thin and long metals.
Let’s Start Today’s Topic!
Know Your Saw Better First
If you have used miter saw before then you’ll find it much easier to understand. Both chop saw and miter-saw use the overhead cutting technique. However, flexibility is a point where both saws differ. Chop saws are limited to cut straight down with a ninety-degree angle.
It’s one of the finest choices for beginners. Since chop saws are great to avoid basic mistakes that novices make.
Care About Your Safety
DIYing has a very major part that hardly anyone pays attention to. And it’s called Safety! Trust me, this is somewhere you won’t ever want to take a chance. A power tool like chop saw have pretty dangerous and sharp blades. You should be highly aware of them.
However, we are all prone to make mistakes as a mere human. And so, taking precautions before a mishap happens is the best answer and solution. So please, be smart enough to follow certain rules of safety. Here’s some of them:
- Avoid wearing long sleeves, they might get caught in the chop saw’s blade. Even if you do, roll them up before using the saw.
- Don’t wear clothes that are too loose. The same goes for jewelry such as a loose bracelet or dangling necklaces.
- Tie up or pin your hair especially if they are long.
- Wear a proper safety glass that keeps your eyes good.
- To avoid noise and disturbance, use some sort of earbuds or plugs.
- Make sure to unplug the saw when not using it.
- Keep your hands far from the blade’s path. The distance needs to be six inches at least.
A running blade might not be the most powerful thing for woods, but it’s beyond dangerous for your skin. Keep That in Mind.
Make Some Measurement
- Start with measuring the length accurately that you want to cut. Don’t ever underestimate the popular saying that it’s better to measure twice and cut once.
- Use a simple pen or pencil to mark the length you’ll be cutting. This erases any chance of mistakes. To mark you’ll also need a flat edge or ruler. Create a decently straight line that’s perpendicular to the metal stud material.
Fence Setup is Next
- The metal studs need to be in place for you to make a straight cut. And to do that, the best way is using chop saw fences.
- Place the metal studs firmly against straight fence. Use dialing at the protector fence angle after that. This way you’ll be able to make the right length adjustment and cuts will be more accurate. Use the chop saw base’s handle for this.
- Make sure the dial is at correct angle by slowly moving blade down onto mark without any operation. You’ll be able to see the exact cut line this way.
Turn On & Cut
- Time to turn on the blade and let it rotate. Use one hand to firmly hold the metal stud while lowering chop saw’s blade downward.
- You need to do this with a seamless and slow motion. There should be no aggressive forcing for cutting the metal stud. Let the blades do its job while you keep guiding cut.
- Keep the material still until gentle push makes metal stud cut into pieces. Once it’s done, let the chop saw blade come back to its position.
- You will turn off the saw and get metal stud pieces out of fence now. And You Are Done With Having Perfectly Precise Pieces!
Tips & Tricks
Make the workbench be parallel with your waist height or a bit lower. This will help you to work with enough leverage and control saw.
Sometimes the power tools create tiny shards of metals. These are pretty hot and sharp that makes ugly marks on walls. You should place a plywood piece against the wall and it’ll work as a protective barrier.
Before you touch or work with the freshly pieced metals, make sure to let it cool down completely. I know you’ll be wearing gloves but still those hot pieces will be quite difficult to work with.
Your workplace needs to be somewhere free from the crowd. You can’t let children or random people marching around. They are going to get themselves hurt eventually while you are focused on the cutting. You’ll probably not even notice and a metal shard will enter someone’s eyes causing problems. So, work somewhere quitter and free from people.
Conclusion
Your garage’s most staple tool must be a chop saw. Using it for cutting metal studs will surely give you fast, accurate and pretty cuts.
I hope now you know exactly how to cut metal studs. Just make sure you use the precise saw tool with the tactics I mentioned. And hopefully, you’ll be able to manage some really great pieces for your project.
You can check this tutorial that shows the cutting process beautifully. Have A Good Day Ahead!
