Do-it-yourself portable foam and synthetic cutter

DIY thermal knife for SIP panels

Construction from SIP panels using Canadian technology provides a lot of advantages to the happy owners of a new home. However, everyone wants to add elegance and style to their project, not limiting themselves to faceless rectangular structures. This requires cutting panels and forming parts of complex configurations.

If the project is ordered from a contractor company, there will be no problems. But if the construction is carried out independently, you will need special equipment, in particular, a thermal cutter.

Panel cutting

The SIP panel is quite easy to modify. When construction is carried out independently, cutting occurs as follows:

two surfaces of OSB panels are cut using a jigsaw or circular saw;
Along the cutting line, part of the panels that go to waste simply breaks off.

The most important problem remains: forming a groove for mounting the strapping beam.

To do this, they often use a grater, plane or cutter, which simply removes the required amount of SIP panel filler in small portions.

At the same time, doing it yourself is not difficult, but the construction site becomes littered, filling with fine “snow” of filler particles, which are constantly moving and difficult to remove.

How to make a groove in SIP panels

To make a groove in SIP panels, there are two methods:

industrial, using a machine-type cutter that removes filler with knives, with forced removal of waste;
Using heat treatment, a cutter is used that gently melts the filler and allows you to immediately form a groove of the desired depth.

Today there are enough models on sale; you can buy a thermal knife that will be regulated in power, temperature, and allow the formation of a groove of the desired depth. However, such a tool can be made with your own hands. The design of the knife is not complicated, so it can be easily replicated in a handicraft product.

How to make a thermoknife yourself

The temperature impact knife must have the following functionality:

temperature adjustment of the cutting part;
The thermal knife must allow you to adjust the depth of the groove;
the design must be such that the knife can be used without preliminary work after cutting SIP panels.

Important to know: Standard sizes of SIP panels

Despite the apparent complexity of the task, making such a thermal knife is quite easy. With its help, cutting SIP panels with your own hands will be simple and fast. To create a device you will need:

two strips of rigid steel or fiberglass laminate of small thickness. Their strength depends on the required depth of the groove that needs to be obtained;
nichrome wire, which the knife will use to melt the filler;
a plate that will act as a limiter, setting the thickness at which cutting will be done.

It is easy to use a powerful battery charger as a power source, which allows you to regulate the voltage on the filament. Naturally, to make a thermal knife with your own hands, you will need a comfortable handle that will hold the side plates of the cutting part.

Assembling the thermal knife

It is very easy to assemble the structure with your own hands. Voltage from the power supply can be supplied to the nichrome wire by soldering it to the contacts where the voltage supply wires fit. And with a small thickness of steel plates, power can be supplied to them, while the wire can simply be screwed into the lower part; you only need to drill two holes.

The initial rigidity of the structure is determined by the handle block. Each side plate is attached to the corners with two bolts located vertically. The limiting bar increases the rigidity.

For example, these could be simple bolts and U-shaped brackets placed on the side parts.

Conclusion

Despite the simplicity of the design, a thermal knife for processing the filler of SIP panels works very effectively, even if made by yourself. Thanks to the small thickness of the side plates, you can get rid of the need to form a side cut, especially since you can sharpen the edge of these parts if they are made of steel.

Important to know: Are SIP panels harmful to health?

Using a voltage regulator, the nichrome thread has the desired temperature (selected experimentally) for quick selection of the groove. As a result, such a cutter can guarantee fast work and cleanliness on the construction site. In addition, such a thermal knife will cost literally several tens of rubles and can be assembled using existing equipment.

What types of fabric cutting equipment can we offer?

DIY fabric crafts: step-by-step instructions with photos for beginners. beautiful decorations, toys, fabric crafts

Conventional scissors, knives and blades can be used as equipment for cutting textiles, but much better, especially for some types of fabrics and hair cutting, are hot fabric scissors and knives that are heated by electric current due to their special design.

Electric fabric scissors look like regular ones, but they plug into an outlet. Through a special heating element, the cutting blades are heated to a certain temperature, which can be in the range from 100 to 600 degrees Celsius and is adjusted by a thermostat. They are used for sealing the edges of fabric at the site of its cut and for other purposes.

The thermal knife looks like a flat soldering iron. The principle of its operation is similar to hot scissors: it, like them, copes better with even and accurate cutting of certain types of materials. In addition, it can be used to cut out details and figures in the form of stars, houses and animals according to pre-prepared forms and drawings.

It is worth paying attention to heating scissors, since they are most often used in the textile industry and in home processing and cutting of fabrics

Foam cutting

The scope of application of polystyrene foam is very wide. This material is used to make parts for aircraft modeling, it is used in the manufacture of toys and furniture, three-dimensional letters or sculptural elements for advertising are cut out of it, etc. We are interested in a very specific area - construction.

Types of cutting

In construction, foam plastic is used as insulation for roofs, walls, floors, ceilings, foundations and other structures. In the vast majority of cases, thermal insulation consists of sheets of foamed polystyrene, which are sold in stores and have standard sizes.

In construction, standard sheets of the same size are used, which are cut on site.

During installation of sheets, they constantly need to be trimmed, and here the following cutting options are possible:

Longitudinal. This refers to the case when you need to cut a sheet of foam along its plane, for example, into two parts. For example, to make two sheets 25 mm thick from one sheet 50 mm thick: neither a knife nor a hacksaw will help here;
Transverse. When you need to cut a piece of the desired shape from a sheet, that is, you will cut perpendicular to the plane of the sheet itself. In this case, you can use a knife, saw and other similar tools;

The foam cutter is good for cross-cutting straight lines.

Through. Often it is necessary to make holes in the thermal insulation layer to enter an electrical cable, pipe or other communications. If you have some skill, you can get by with a knife, but there are more effective tools, which I will tell you about;

Smooth through holes can be made using a pipe.

Curly. It is used when the edge of a sheet needs to be cut according to a clearly defined pattern with curved lines and a complex profile. An ordinary knife will not work here, and a special tool will be required.

Machine for shaped cutting of foam plastic.

Cutting tool

Cutting foam can be done with a variety of tools. Most popular:

Construction knife. During insulation work, a knife is most often used to trim sheets. It can be a construction, stationery or shoe knife. The main thing is that it is well sharpened. The knife is carefully drawn along the cut line; strong pressure is not necessary. If the sheet is not cut through, it is broken along the slot;

A construction knife is the most common tool for processing foam.

Hacksaw. To cut thick sheets, it is convenient to use a hacksaw for metal or wood with a fine tooth. Special saws for foam plastic are sold;

The saw is convenient for cutting thick sheets of foam.

Nichrome wire. A piece of thin nichrome wire is heated by passing an electric current through it. A hot string, fixed in a certain way and stretched, cuts foam like butter;

A hot nichrome thread is what can be used to cut foam plastic so that it does not crumble.

Thermal knife In essence, this is a soldering iron, the tip of which is made in the shape of a knife blade. The blade heats up and perfectly cuts any plastic, including foam;

A hot thermal knife will cut the foam efficiently.

Laser ray. You can cut polystyrene foam using a laser. This technology is used when making sculptural elements or in large industries to cut out a wide variety of shapes.

Laser cutting of foam plastic is used mainly in production. In construction, cutting of even, rectilinear shapes is most often required, which a knife can handle quite well. In this case, a thermal knife is an ideal option.

If you need longitudinal cutting to thickness, a nichrome string is best.

What types of fabric cutting equipment can we offer?

Standard thermoscissors with switch

Theromonknife

Important! This knife can be used not only for cutting textiles, but also plastic and foam rubber. With its help, the seam and cut will be smooth, without defects, and the final product and its edges will not have to be processed additionally

It is worth paying attention to heating scissors, since they are most often used in the textile industry and in home processing and cutting of fabrics. Thermal knife in the form of a jigsaw

Thermal knife in the form of a jigsaw

How to cut plastic with a special knife

You can use a special knife for cutting plastic if the thickness of the material being processed is up to 3 mm. Thicker sheets are cut using other methods.

Place a ruler along the line and draw a knife along the guide so that a groove is formed on the surface of the sheet.
Then the knife is passed several times along the recessed surface.
Afterwards, a sheet of plastic is placed on a hard surface with the cut facing up so that it is located along the edge of the tabletop.
To fix the position of the sheet, it is recommended to use clamps.
It is necessary to quickly and evenly drive the hanging section of plastic down, thus deepening the groove along the entire length until a crack appears that runs through the entire thickness.

As a rule, the result is a straight and almost smooth edge. The process is identical to the glass cutting process. The difference is that you can mark a cut line on the surface of the plastic several times.

How to do it yourself

The need for a cutter can arise at any time if you do some household chores quite often. Perhaps someone has encountered the need to make a part using a special mold for casting with epoxy resin.

And to do this, you will need a piece of foam. For example, you can use foam from TV packaging. It is necessary to draw on it using a ruler, compass and ballpoint pen the places where holes will need to be made in the future.

This is where the need for an electric cutter comes into play. After all, it will be difficult to perform this action without spoiling the foam sheet without such a tool. Let's consider one of the options for how to make a device of this type at home.

A homemade cutting device can be of various designs. It is on it and the type of cutting that will depend on how exactly the cutter copes with its goals.

Before you start making a cutter, you should decide for what purpose you need it, because depending on the purposes, they are divided into several groups:

with metal work plate;
for linear cutting;
for shape cutting.

Step-by-step production of a thermal cutter

You can make a thermal cutter using a burner or soldering iron and an old jigsaw. Let's consider the manufacture of such a device step by step:

Sleeve. Initially, you need to make the main and most difficult thing - the bushing. So, to do this, the plate must be bent and turned. Next, you need to make a hole in the sleeve; the thread will be inserted there in the future.
Burner. You need to cut off the wire that leads to the hole, take suitable connectors, and then solder them to the break point.

After everything is done, you can connect the thermal cutter. Cut an old jigsaw in half. A pre-prepared claw plate must be attached to the upper part with screws. But we attach the bottom to the base using self-tapping screws.

Insert the sleeve into the foot

Now, with special attention, you need to use a plumb line or a square to mark the point under the hole of the sleeve from the hole. Next, drill a hole in the base.

The diameter of the hole in the base should be about 5 mm.

Thermal cutting machine So, when everything is ready, you need to straighten the nichrome wire. To do this, you should turn on the burner at full power and touch the nichrome with the wires from it. Everything must be done in such a way that there is a distance between the wires equal to the height of the device. If the thread does not heat up, but the burner begins to hum, find a thinner wire. This is necessary because the one you selected does not have enough resistance.

Operation of the device. With a pre-installed guide, you need to cut foam dies to a given thickness, or you can make the shape curly.

Assembling a hand cutter on nichrome thread

To make the device, prepare:

nichrome wire 0.8-1 mm thick,
a couple of ice cream sticks,
a couple of metal strips from a children's construction set,
bolts and nuts with a diameter equal to the holes in the metal strips,
block for a pair of AA batteries,
a couple of AA batteries,
small button.

Attach wooden sticks to the battery pack. Apply hot glue to their edges and attach them to the battery pack from the side where the metal terminals are located.
Drill holes in the strips for the cable. Stepping 5 mm away from the battery pack, drill holes in the wooden sticks with a diameter of no more than 2 mm.
Pass one wire from the battery pack through both holes to a parallel wooden strip. Pin the button. Cut a piece of wire at a distance of 1 cm from the power supply.
Solder a button on one side of the wire, and a piece of wire on the other. Glue the button to the bar. Use the same hot glue to insulate the soldering areas.
Drill holes at the top of the wooden sticks. Bolts are inserted into them to secure the metal strips. Screw the bare ends of the wires from the power supply onto the bolts.
Thread nichrome wire through the holes of the metal strips. Secure its ends with a screw, nut and washer. Remove excess. Insert batteries into the power supply.

What is a foam cutter?

A foam cutter is a special device that allows you to give a certain shape and dimensions to future products made from this material. The tool is useful because cutting foam plastic is carried out without unnecessary effort on the part of a person, which eliminates any unevenness or roughness on its surface. In this case, you will not need to search for and purchase special polystyrene foam, since foam plastic from any household appliance (refrigerator, TV, washing machine), which is supplied with it in the vast majority of cases, will be suitable.

Professional equipment

To cut a part of the desired shape and size, it will be enough to draw on its surface, using standard stationery, places for the cutout and holes. At the same time, it is worth understanding one simple truth: if you work with foam plastic regularly, then in this case it will be advisable to purchase industrial cutting equipment. In all other cases, a homemade device will do.

Line cutting cutter

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To create such devices, you should prepare a workspace. Usually a table is chosen for such purposes. Two vertical risers are attached to it. Each of them must have an insulator. It is necessary to stretch a nichrome thread between the insulators. A freely hanging load is suspended from it. The nichrome thread is connected to the contacts connected to the step-down transformer.

The operating principle is quite simple. The nichrome thread heats up when connected, which makes it easy to cut foam. Thanks to the suspended weight, the thread remains taut. A weight is necessary because when heated, the thread begins to sag.

The moving foam is cut with nichrome thread quickly and evenly. How thick the processed sheets will be depends on the height of the thread above the working surface of the table. The main thing is that the foam is fed at the same speed throughout the entire cutting period.

To cut sheets vertically, you will need to use a cutter of a different design. In it, the cutting wire is tensioned in a vertical position. In this case, the working surface is made of chipboard. You need to attach a frame to it. It is better if this element is made of a metal profile. However, wooden blocks will also work well.

The frame is equipped with a paw-holder, on which the nichrome wire is suspended. A weight is attached to its end. The wire is passed through a hole made in the working surface. To prevent it from touching the wood, the hole is protected from the inside with a metal hollow tube.

When using thermal cutters, foam plastic is not only easily cut into specific blocks. From large slabs you can cut out various geometric shapes, such as a square, a semicircle, a triangle. Before work, just run a marker along the surface of the slab, marking the cut line.

Methods for sharpening a disc for woodworking

The following methods ensure efficient and safe sharpening of circular saws.

Grinder - step by step instructions

Special machines for sharpening circular saw blades are expensive and require certain skills to operate, so angle grinders, that is, “grinders,” are an effective and affordable alternative.

To fix the disc, a special smooth stand is used, which is designed taking into account the fact that the tooth must be perpendicular to the grinder disc and have a minimum deviation from it.

For sharpening using a grinder, the following algorithm is used:

The grinder is equipped with a grinding disc, and the disc to be sharpened is attached to the platform.
The grinder is held by hands or using a holding device.
The cutting edge of the circular tooth is processed with a grinder. In this case, a light, uniform movement is performed.

Evidence that the edge has been sharpened will be a visual update of the edge - it will no longer be darkened.

It is forbidden to turn on the grinder if the disc is placed in the throat between the teeth of the disc being sharpened.

File

If a file or needle file is used as a tool, then all sharpening activities are the same as when using an angle grinder. In addition, to maintain the sharpening angle, a special template is required, which is used as a guide plane between the tooth and the file.

But at the same time, the work will take much longer, since circular saws use carbide attachments.

Special machine

Machines for turning circular saw cutters are complex engineering and technical devices, which, in addition to mechanisms, are also equipped with automatic electronics.

These machines allow you to perform the most effective restoration of cutting edges in compliance with all the necessary configurations. The efficiency of the machines is explained by the following criteria:

Possibility of automating the sharpening process.
Saving sharpening angle parameters for each cutter.
All cutters are sharpened identically with minimal error.
Possibility of complete restoration and restoration.

For sharpening on a machine, the saw blade is placed in a special support and secured.

The sharpening parameters are selected, which are provided by special mechanisms for tilting the disc being sharpened or tilting the sharpening disc in the machine.

The disc to be sharpened is placed in the working area of the device.

The machine starts up and sharpening is carried out automatically.

Homemade machine

To operate effectively, homemade machines must include the following components:

Angle grinder (grinder) as a direct sharpening device.
Support for securing the saw blade of a circular saw.
Mechanisms to allow the support to tilt to adjust the sharpening configuration.
The entire mechanism is fixed to a frame, which can be a channel or an I-beam.

The operating process is similar to using the original sharpening machine with the only difference - the circular blade is fed to the working area of the device manually.

Where to buy a thermal cutter for tapes

If you don’t have the opportunity to assemble a thermal cutter, then purchase it responsibly, namely:

You can buy thermal cutting machines in our group on VKontakte - “Kanzashi Club”. We have already asked all of the above questions to the manufacturer who assembles thermal knives and his answers satisfied both us and our clients.

Go to product

Do not forget that cutting tape with a hot knife requires compliance with safety precautions:

There should be no flammable objects near the operating thermal cutting machine;
the surface of the device should be kept clean, especially if there is a hole on top for ventilation into which tape residues may fall;
The tape should be cut using metal templates or tweezers, otherwise you may get burned;
The thermal knife should be turned off after 20 - 30 minutes of continuous operation. Let it cool a little.

Step-by-step production of a thermal cutter from improvised materials

For one-time use of a hot knife for cutting plastic or other materials, the purchase is not economically rational.

The most primitive thermal cutter can be made from a guitar string and 5 large flashlight batteries. Connect the batteries into one cell. Connect a string to the ends of this block, creating a closed electric arc that will heat up. When the heated string comes into contact with the surface, the material will melt, breaking into halves with smooth edges. This device can easily handle cutting a sheet of plastic or 2-3 blocks of foam, and then you need to replace the batteries.

Source

In what area is a thermal fabric knife used?

DIY fabric flowers

Those who work with synthetic fabrics, padding polyester, foam rubber, polystyrene foam, as well as “loose” and delicate materials such as lace, satin and chiffon, know how difficult it can be to cut out parts and make an even, neat cut. Thermal cutting comes to the rescue in such cases. It facilitates the work process, speeds it up and makes it much more enjoyable.

What is it? A thermal knife for fabric is an electrical device based on a thin metal blade or a tightly stretched wire. When an electric current is applied, it heats up to a temperature of 400-600°C and easily cuts the artificial material, simultaneously soldering the edges and preventing them from fraying. Due to the very high incandescent temperature, the cutting process occurs at high speed, which eliminates the formation of soot and the appearance of dark marks on the parts being cut.

Basic forms and characteristics of triggers on homemade knives

Beginners, as a rule, having a blank and all the necessary tools, cannot decide which trigger is the most versatile. At least for a kitchen knife. But don't worry, there are a few of the most common types of descents that we will now look at:

The most common, and is made from the butt itself, is wedge-shaped. It is usually used in the kitchen.
Another quite popular type is also wedge-shaped, it comes from the butt itself and goes into the cutting edge. But if you sharpen it, it will automatically go into type number 1; during sharpening, a cutting edge will be formed separately from the trigger. Or sharpen the entire trigger, which is quite problematic.
Quite a characteristic shape for many knives. The blade is flat, and the descent begins from the middle or slightly higher to the butt. Sharpening is quite easy.
A very interesting option, and quite often used wedge-shaped bevels and cutting edge, the knife is quite durable and the cut is good. The slopes and edges are very harmoniously located.
The cutting edge is formed by a double wedge. The slopes are wedge-shaped, but the material between them and the cutting edge is removed. It cuts dense materials very well, but is difficult to sharpen, one might say, for professionals.
Lenticular concave slopes. The cutting edge is like a continuation of the edge between the blade and the bevel towards the tip. They can start almost from the butt itself. The second name for sharpening is “razor”, it is used for straight razors.
One-sided sharpening acquired the name - chisel sharpening. Sharpening is quite easy. A knife can only be wielded with one hand. In this case, the bevel should be on the side of the working hand.
The shape resembles trigger number 3, but there are none as such, a straight blade and an immediate cutting edge. More suitable for chopping products.
Convex lens-shaped slopes, smoothly turning into the cutting edge. There are two names for sharpening: “bullet-shaped” and “ogive”. It is difficult to cut with a blade, it gets stuck in the material, but it has excellent cutting characteristics. Difficult to manufacture, also an option for professionals.

Basic forms of triggers on knives.

To begin with, you can try on any unnecessary workpiece, make descents No. 1 and No. 3. They are simpler than others and will find use in your home, as an option in the kitchen. And once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can begin to tackle more complex types of sharpening.

Step-by-step instructions for making your own machine and cutting foam plastic

Step 1. Preparing the tabletop.

You can take any piece of chipboard of the required size as a tabletop for a machine for cutting foam plastic with your own hands. The surface on which the foam will move must be smooth. Holes for the racks are drilled in the tabletop. It is convenient to use metal pins with threads with a diameter of 10-12 mm as racks. The height of the racks should correspond to the thickness of the foam sheets plus a headroom. The pin is fixed with nuts.

To give the structure stability, bars are attached to the bottom of the tabletop, which will also serve for the safe passage of the electrical wire.

Step 2. Connecting the current supply wires.

From below, under the tabletop, the wires are connected to metal stand rods: the wire is wound around the lower end of the pin and pressed with a bolt.

The second end of the wires must be connected to a power source, depending on the selected method. The best connection is through a plug that connects to the LATER socket. Connection is possible through self-clamping terminals, as well as by twisting and soldering. This depends on the selected power source.

Step 3. Fastening the nichrome spiral

. A nichrome spiral is fixed between two posts. A spring is attached to one end of the spiral (there may be two of them).

The spring is needed to tension the nichrome thread during operation. The fact is that when heated, the nichrome thread lengthens and sags. A thread in this condition will not produce a quality cut. Therefore, the thread is fixed in an initially tense state, so that the spring is slightly stretched.

To fasten the nichrome thread to the pin, washers with an internal diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the pin are used. A small hole is made in the washer for attaching the spiral itself. A small sharpening is also done on the inner diameter side so that the washer can be fixed on the thread of the pin.

A spring with a spiral attached to it is inserted into one washer and placed on the first pin. The second washer is put on the second pin and a nichrome spiral is threaded into the drilled hole. Next, it is tightened so that the spring stretches and fixed.

Step 4: Cutting the foam.

To spread a sheet of foam into two sheets of a given size, the spiral is set to the desired height. The required distance is measured with a ruler.

The machine is then connected to a power source. The thread heats up and now you can cut the foam, smoothly moving it forward along the countertop.

The cutting speed depends on the filament temperature, which in turn depends on the applied voltage and the thickness of the filament itself. You should not try to apply more voltage to achieve high speed, because... this can lead to rapid filament burnout. Here, a balance between tension, thickness and length of the thread must be selected experimentally. The thread should not overheat during operation. When heated, it turns red or scarlet. But it should not turn white - this indicates that the thread is overheating and that it is advisable to reduce the voltage, otherwise the thread will not last long in this mode. Of course, smooth adjustment is easy to do if LATER is available. But if it is not there, then a laboratory power supply can be made from a computer power supply; the video below has more information. After you have made this foam cutting machine with your own hands, you need to make sure that the device is safe.

Step 4: Cutting the foam at an angle.

Sometimes it becomes necessary to cut the foam so that one side is higher and the other is lower.

To do this, the spiral is set at an angle with the required parameters. In this way, foam sheets of various sections can be obtained.

Useful video

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Polystyrene foam is a durable, lightweight material that has thermal insulation properties. Carrying out work with such insulating material seems to be a very simple task. But still, there are some nuances when working with the material. Since it is made in the form of large slabs, trimming is necessary quite often. Trimming can be done with an ordinary kitchen knife, but it will not cut beautifully. It is for this reason that craftsmen recommend using a special foam cutting machine for this purpose.

What to sharpen

To sharpen any object, you need a material that is harder than it or at least the same in hardness. Finding a material harder than zirconium ceramics is quite difficult. The most suitable are diamond coated tools. Can be used:

specialized sharpeners for ceramics;
electric sanders;
diamond paste.

Paying attention to the problem of sharpening, the Japanese company Kyocera has released mechanical and electric sharpeners. This company initially specialized in the production of fine ceramics, so it knows all the nuances associated with its use and maintenance.

Although the cost of sharpeners is quite high, if you love ceramic knives and prefer them over all others, this sharpener is worth purchasing.

There are other, mainly Japanese, American and Chinese, manufacturers of sharpeners

If you choose them, always pay attention to what blade thickness the devices are designed for, what type of knives can be sharpened and at what angle. Some sharpening models can even straighten small chips

Manual sharpeners are less expensive, but to use them you need to have sharpening experience and some dexterity.

In addition to special sharpeners, you can use an electric sander to sharpen a ceramic knife at home. It is imperative to install diamond-coated abrasive wheels. The grain size should be 40 microns or less. The abrasive paste should have a grain size of 5 microns or less.

Metal plate cutter

There is another way to convert a soldering iron into a foam cutter. To modify the tool, you simply need to replace the tip with a copper plate. Steel will also work, but it takes longer to heat up and is more difficult to sharpen. However, with proper sharpening, a steel plate can cut any synthetic material, including polystyrene.

One side of the plate must be carefully sharpened. Sharpening can be done on both sides. It is necessary that the sharpening angle is not too large. The cutting of the material is carried out not only by the blade, but also by the blade of the plate. Such a cutter has one drawback - you will have to experimentally find the optimal heating temperature for the knife.

Do-it-yourself thermal knife for polystyrene foam – All about insulation and energy efficiency

Polystyrene foam is a universal and common material that has a large number of useful properties.

For example, its excellent thermal insulation properties are known to many (especially for construction workers), which, coupled with accessibility and environmental friendliness, makes this material virtually no alternative and irreplaceable.

Foam products

Polystyrene foam is supplied in the form of standard blanks - large slabs. For this reason, a thermal knife for foam plastic is a necessary tool, since manual processing of foam plastic in the vast majority of cases threatens to damage the structure of the material, which is fundamentally undesirable.

How is foam cutting done?

During construction and finishing work, the question arises of how to cut foam plastic so that it does not crumble.

To do this, special tools and techniques are used, which are selected based on the size of the foam board. These cutters can be purchased at a store or made independently.

To make an instrument with your own hands, you do not need special knowledge or skills.

DIY nichrome cutter

The foam is cut with a string heated to +120…+150°C and melts the material. Thanks to this, the cut is even and the foam does not crumble.

Such devices are equipped with a nichrome thread through which electricity is passed. You can make a simple cutter with your own hands.

It differs from the machine in its portability and compactness, so the heating temperature of the nichrome wire cannot be adjusted on it.

Required tools and materials

To make a cutter with nichrome wire for cutting foam, you will need the following tools and materials:

small wooden block;
screwdriver and drill;
2 pencils;
2 pieces of copper wire;
round nose pliers;
hot melt glue or PVA;
insulating tape;
battery connector;
switch;
1 m wires;
soldering iron;
nichrome thread.

The latter is sold in a radio parts store. You can also take it from old heating elements from a hair dryer, boiler, boiler, etc.

Homemade foam cutter

A homemade cutter is designed for minor work. It is not possible to cut an entire sheet of polystyrene foam with it. To cut foam plastic at home, you must:

Make 2 holes in a wooden block 10-11 cm long. They should match the diameter of the pencils. You need to step back 1-1.5 cm from the edge. The recess should be slightly deeper than half of the block in order to fix the pencils. Thanks to this distance, you can cut a sheet of foam plastic of almost any thickness.
Glue both pencils into the holes using hot glue or PVA.
Make a small hole in the top of each pencil for the copper wire.
Bend the copper wire with round pliers so that small rings are formed at its ends. After this, install it into the holes in the pencils.
Glue the battery connector perpendicular to the wooden block. Additionally, it will act as a handle.
Glue a switch onto the block so that you can turn off the power to the string.
Then connect 2 wires to the connector. After this, connect to the switch, and then output each to a separate pencil. To prevent the wire from sagging and interfering with work, it is fixed with electrical tape. To ensure reliable connection quality, you need to solder the wires to the connector. The joints must be insulated using heat shrink tubing or electrical tape.
Remove the braid from the second end of each wire and screw it to the copper wire. Solder the connection.
Thread the nichrome thread into rings of copper wire and secure to them. The string should be pulled tight between the pencils. When heated, it stretches and sags a little. The stronger the tension, the less sagging.
Insert batteries into the connector and start cutting foam sheets.

This way you can make a simple device for cutting foam plastic with your own hands. And another option for manufacturing the machine, see the video:

Do-it-yourself foam cutting machine

Cutting machines are more convenient because the cutting thread is fixed in them and only the foam plastic needs to be moved. This allows for increased precision of movements. During manufacture you will need the same tools and equipment as in the previous case.

Advantages and disadvantages of a hot knife

A hot knife is actively used by craftswomen using the kanzashi technique. It cuts and simultaneously seals the tape into one or more layers. With its help, you can cut the ribbon into squares, make petals with even cuts, without using a candle or scissors. The edges of the tape processed by thermal cutting remain smooth, without black soot, as happens with a candle.

Thermal knife greatly simplifies the creation of multi-layer petals. With it, you can easily create a petal from 10 more layers of tape.

Thermal cutting is used not only for tapes, but also for other synthetic materials. For example, using a thermal cutter you can cut felt circles, which are used in kanzashi as the basis for decorations. This can be easily done using a metal template of the required diameter. Felt cuts just as easily as ribbon. Also, using a thermal knife, you can cut any object according to a foamiran template or cut a foam blank.

The advantages of thermal cutting are obvious:

There is no need to use a candle and scissors - the thermal knife cuts and melts at the same time.
The cuts on the petals are smooth, without black soot.
The speed of cutting ribbons or creating kanzashi petals increases significantly.
Ideal for creating multi-layered petals.

The disadvantages of a hot knife should also be noted:

Electricity consumption.
Some materials, for example, organza and brocade ribbons, when cutting them with a thermal knife, leave a specific odor that can provoke a reaction in the form of coughing.
Not all types of petals can be made. Some types of flower petals can only be created using an open fire.
Private production. As a rule, thermal cutting machines are produced by private craftsmen; accordingly, these devices are not certified, they are not provided with an official guarantee, quality claims will have to be made by an ordinary person, not an organization, and the fact of purchase cannot be proven.

Making at home

To make the knife more convenient for their own use, many beekeepers make them themselves, using improvised means.

Beekeeping knives made from scythe

On the blade of the braid, mark the dimensions of the future blade:

length - 15 cm;
width - 3-4 cm.

Using a grinder, cut out the workpiece. Bend an iron rod under the handle and attach it with rivets to the blade. For greater strength, as well as to make a smooth transition from the attachment to the blade, the rod must be soldered with tin.

Sharpen the free end of the rod. Cut a handle from a birch blank and place it on the tip. The handle can be made not only from wood. The main thing is that it is comfortable and strong.

Finally, sharpen the blade on both sides. A knife made from a braid is sharp, light and convenient for unsealing honeycombs.

Simple DIY bee knife

The blade of this cutter is made from a clock spring. The dimensions should be as follows:

Length - 170 mm;
width - 32-35 mm;
thickness - 0.5 mm.

The spring band needs to be aligned, but not completely. A slight bend in the blade will cut the timber better. In those places where the metal needs to be bent, it is heated.

Use a drill to make holes in the blade for attaching the handle. The handle itself can be cut from a 20 mm sheet of plywood. After the handle is secured, the blade needs to be sharpened. The knife is ready for use.

How to make an electric knife yourself

An electric knife is convenient because it does not require heating with water, which will not lead to excess moisture getting into the honey. You can make an electric knife for printing honeycombs yourself from a braid.

Actions:

Cut the blade of the future cutter from the braid. Blade length - 150 mm, width - 50 mm.
On one side of the blade, drill a couple of holes for rivets that will secure the heater of the electric soldering iron. Treat the back side of the rivet to create a smooth surface.
Secure the soldering iron to the blade using rivets. In this case, you need to bend the heating rod so that you get two elbows.
Sharpen the blade on both sides. The device is ready for use.

To avoid overheating of such a device, in between opening honeycombs, its blade is released into a container with cold water.

Each beekeeper can choose any bee knife for himself. The choice of tools in special stores for beekeepers is rich. But in order for the device to be convenient, individual and with all the necessary characteristics, it is better to make it yourself.

Tags: Equipment, knife

Finnish inspired knife

DIY Batman mask: made of paper, fabric, voluminous / DIY toys, patterns, videos, mk
I didn’t stop watching the video, money to go to some thread forge, get a master class and forge something decent, I wasted, of course , therefore, after all, I went to the store, which is called in three words (knife, club, Moscow) and bought a small Finnish blade there. Here it is.

I needed something close to this option.

Only, even thinner and more accurate, since the blade is quite small.

In this YouTube of yours, of course, working on a grinder looks easy and simple. A person easily spins a blank on the tape and it produces deer, chandeliers and synchrophasotrons. In practice, I realized that it’s crazy. I pressed it a little, delayed a little and that’s it. There is a hole, a bevel, which cannot be corrected in any way except by grinding everything else under it. I peeled and peeled, until I got to the epoxy in one place (I swore and realized that that was enough, probably.

Of course, I wanted to shorten it, but not that much. I howled like a wolf, blasphemed and hit myself on the head with my hand, because I had been warned. But then I tried it on and realized that it would fit under a woman’s hand. Tea, don’t turn the world upside down, you don’t need a very big lever.

After a long period of sanding with sandpaper of different grits and processing with Danish oil, I got this result. I really hope that nothing further breaks off(

Thank you for your attention, good luck to everyone in your endeavors!)

conclusions

Making a foam cutter with your own hands is quite simple. The methods listed above will help you understand the structure and operating principle of the foam cutter. Such devices are practical and easy to assemble. Each method has its own advantages, so home craftsmen can choose the most suitable one, depending on the available materials.

It is important to exercise extreme caution when working with such power tools. This poses a risk of electric shock. Some homemade cutters are also used for cutting polystyrene foam.

Some homemade cutters are also used for cutting polystyrene foam.

Shape cutter

When working with large foam sheets, using a stationary cutter will be difficult. Such panels hardly fit on the desktop. In these cases, a handheld foam cutter is used. This tool is often made from a jigsaw. The cutting blade in these tools should be replaced with nichrome wire.

It’s quite easy to build such an electric cutter with your own hands. To make cutting shaped elements more convenient, you can make several devices with different shapes. First, remove the cutting blade from the jigsaw and connect the wire to the handle. The voltage will be low, but the handle and other metal parts should be insulated. Nichrome wire is connected to the cable. Nuts are used for this. The wire is bent in a certain way.

You can use a soldering iron as a cutter for shaped cutting of foam plastic. It needs to be modified a little. The device already has an electrical wire in its design. To create a foam cutter from a soldering iron, you will need to replace the element that heats up with nichrome wire.

This device is highly convenient to use. Thanks to this product, it is possible not only to cut slabs of material into smaller sheets, but also to make recesses in them.