Q: 16” Demo Saw Blade Life

[Citroënbender]

Yes, I’ll actually buy a used one - don’t own ATM.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

Yes, I’ll actually buy a used one - don’t own ATM.

Good, I've noticed new ones have come down quite a lot in price recently.
You might go through a few (3-4) blades on hardened concrete depended on how much water you keep up to the blade and reo bar in the walls.
Good sledgehammer and large prybar wouldn't go astray either.

Hiring one is reasonable but you will be charged for the blade damage anyway so be better off owning one yourself.
What are you paying for the blades $250 each ??

[Citroënbender]

Yes, seen plenty of slab cutting in the past, just haven’t done more than 4-5m at a time myself. Cut into blocks, use the bar to widen a gap in the middle and pry up. Only change is I’m no longer game to work solo with handling the blocks. Almost 10 weeks of being incapacitated then only light duties has re-shaped my attitude there.

Blade example:
https://sydneytools.com.au/product/e...zenesis-blades

Because I’ll probably be cutting 3-3,5 tonnes each workday, between hire cost and blade wear it points you to ownership instead. Plenty of interesting stuff in 16”, eg: https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/hinc...saw/1308316380 versus: https://www.kennards.com.au/for-hire...m-16-in-petrol

[Citroënbender]

I suppose one of the salient points of my original post is that someone with knowledge of pool concrete or structure might chime in and say the results favour one direction or another because of (say) aggregate type, or steel fabric, or placing technique.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

Yes, seen plenty of slab cutting in the past, just haven’t done more than 4-5m at a time myself. Cut into blocks, use the bar to widen a gap in the middle and pry up. Only change is I’m no longer game to work solo with handling the blocks. Almost 10 weeks of being incapacitated then only light duties has re-shaped my attitude there.

Blade example:
https://sydneytools.com.au/product/e...zenesis-blades

Because I’ll probably be cutting 3-3,5 tonnes each workday, between hire cost and blade wear it points you to ownership instead. Plenty of interesting stuff in 16”, eg: https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/hinc...saw/1308316380 versus: https://www.kennards.com.au/for-hire...m-16-in-petrol

I've used them for cutting large long granite blocks, turning them into fireplace hearths, helped by gad pins (plugs n feathers) but of course they do not have steel inside.
Did use them occasionally onsite, cut the doorways through on the Contemporary Arts Musuem at Circular Quay. Lower plinth walls are 4ft (1200mm) thick of poilshed Balmoral granite and firebricks. Top section easy to do by hand being Bondi stone.
Concrete at least it will bite easier than a poilshed surface.
Have you got a hand trolley you can slip the squares onto for moving them off ?
Most are rated at 250kg.
Lots of water on the blades will cool the diamond cutting tip down so they should keep reasonably sharp but I would say 200m into blocks will take 3-4.

[Citroënbender]

They say nothing handles like a rented car; nothing cuts like a hired demo saw.

In cutting 30 blocks I probably used half a blade with plenty of water flow, the pool is rendered over pump concrete that’s been a really hot mix - got lime burns from the slurry where it caked thickly on my arms and legs. Also some N12 bar or similar in here around the top perimeter. Machine running time was about 2:45 over a three-and-a-hair hour period onsite. So, good productivity but yes, heavy wear costs over the whole of job.

Credit to Kennards for “tidying” the invoice down to four hours and also not charging extra on the blade wear. Lot of equipment in the shop today, as if business is down a bit for them.