[cutntrim]

It took most of the a.m. to make two 45' cuts on either side of an asphalt drive this morning and remove the material. I used 12" abrasive blades (switching between three of them) to do it. The asphalt was about 3" thick. Does that seem a real long time to you? It felt like it to me. I know the difference between abrasive blades and diamond blades is night-and-day for concrete cutting, is it the same with asphalt? Time to invest in a blade?

[TrickyDick]

I did a similar (maybe a little longer) cut earlier this year with 14 inch diamond blade and I don't think it took more than half an hour.

[Stonehenge]

Asphalt gums up even a diamond blade pretty quick. You should toss the abrasives just for the lost productivity of changing the things every 10 cuts.

But for cutting asphalt with a diamond blade, when the cutting gets slow, run the saw through a concrete paver once or twice - seems to clean off the blade and make it ready for more asphalt cutting.

[mrusk]

Abasive blade?? You gotta be kidding me! Call up Joe Wizard from Garden State Diamound blades and he'll hook you up with the best diamound blades at the best prices.

[cutntrim]

I guess I didn't mention it, but I have a 14" diamond blade for concrete. I haven't used an abrasive blade for concrete cuts since the first job I ever did, but I do not own a "asphalt" diamond blade, although I know they make specific ones for that.

I'd say it took 3hrs (2min/ft.) to cut (and remove) the asphalt along both driveway sides using the abrasives. I figured my diamond blade would get gummed up if I tried to use it instead.

Needless to say, my back was not happy with my decision and is asking me to go lay down in bed now...goodnight.

[mrusk]

Use the diamound blade for the asphalt. Heck i use my diamound blade for EVERYTHING. pvc, rebar, etc.

[dan deutekom]

I am with Mrusk. The diamond blade and gas saw is the landscapers Jack Knife.

I would only figure that it would take about an hour and a half for one guy to cut 90 feet of driveway edge and load up the pieces onto a truck. Jeff is right about just cutting a paver to clean up the blade.

The only time I use an abrasive blade is if I am cutting a lot of steel while fabricating something,

[Fine Edge]

Diamond blade for rebar and metal? Interesting. I wonder how many others do this?
I just figured that there are abrasive blades that would be just as quick for metal cutting since I really didn't think the diamond was manufactured to cut steel on a regular basis.
Maybe I'm missing something.

[PaverDrew]

Originally posted by mrusk
Use the diamound blade for the asphalt. Heck i use my diamound blade for EVERYTHING. pvc, rebar, etc.

I hope your workman's comp is paid up. Just because you are running a diamond blade doesn't mean you have the right tool for all of those materials. There are diamond blades available for all of the above mentioned materials, but their construction can vary significantly. Segments, matrix compounds, diamond rating and sizing all can have an affect on the usage and performance of a blade. Catch a large segment on a piece of steel and you'll be lucky if you only ruin the blade.

We are all professionals here. Why skimp on this and endanger yourself or employees?

cutnrim - check with your local dealer and buy task specific blades. The time lost on a job for one man to swap blades is nothing compared to the savings of efficient cuts. Not to mention the costs involved in an injury settlement.

Just my .02

[Stonehenge]

If we're cutting a few pieces of rebar, we'll use our diamond blade for it. No different than cutting out a concrete slab reinforced with the stuff.

We've even used it to cut out 4" diameter tree roots. Not very fast, but faster than digging all the way around the root and hand sawing or hitting it with a chain saw. Just drop the saw into the root and let it grind.

As for throwing segments (I'm assuming that's what you were hinting at, PD) - I've only ever seen one blade throw a segment, and it was while cutting the concrete it was designed to cut. And that was almost 10 years ago. Not saying it can't happen, just that it seems unlikely.

[dan deutekom]

Like Jeff I will use the diamond blade for just about everything if it is only a couple of cuts. I will use a proper blade for the material if I am going to be doing a lot of cutting but usually it is 1 or 2 cuts on rebar, one aluminum downspout, 1 piece of wood etc. I keep an old blade for cutting sod when doing a large sod job.

I have only seen one segment fly off a blade as well and it was while cutting lockstone. It was a brand new blade and was replaced under warranty. I couldn't believe how far it went and if someone had been in it's path it would have been just like a bullet. That being said it is important not to let any one be in rotational path of the saw. The operator is protected by the saw guard but exploding blades seem to exit the front of the guard.

[cutntrim]

My equipment mechanic (and Shidaiwa dealer), had mentioned he had a line on getting diamond blades for a good price. If I can pick up an asphalt-specific diamond blade for like $99 or so, I'll likely do that.

I guess I set some sort of world record then for slowest asphalt cutting...

Oh, and it's nice to have gone back and forth on a technical thread. There've been too many jibber-jabber threads lately, and I admit I've been in on a few of them too.

[lasting impress]

Im probably a little late on this thread but I agree with mrusk. We use dimond blades for cutting everything. I use DSI and Krafters. Asphalt, rebar, abs, pvc, aluminim edging and pavers, we use the same blade.

[bladerunner]

a true measure of a blades value is achieved by matching the blade to the material (soft bond for hard material, harder bond for soft abrasive material) also the diamond size, diamond quality, concentration and proper horse power saw at the right rpms will deliver the most cost effective results.

[worlddiamond1]

Hi cutntrim. My name is Mike and havebeen in the blade/cutting tool business for 19 years. If you get a good asphalt blade, it should outlast anywhere from 60 to 80 abrasive blades. Plus you should see a cutting speed of at least 2:1. Another factor that some people overlook is that you will always have a consistant depth. The abrasive gets smaller where the diamond stays the same. Hope it helps you out for future jobs.