Hello phaux, you will find that cut-off wheels are similar to grinding wheels in a sense, some will cut faster than others, but they won't last long, others will last forever and yet they will literally "burn" their way through the pieces and take forever to make a cut. In some cases the ones that don't last very long will make a straighter cut even though they don't last as long in the overall sense. My first suggestion is to try to talk your supplier into allowing you to "demo" various brands of wheels. He/she might provide you with some sample wheels to make your own judgement about. If not, you might go ahead and purchase one of each and compare their performance.
As to the metal cutting wheels, others have already given you a rundown on a bit of that area. There are "special" cutting machines that operate at a much slower rpm than a standard chop-saw and they do use special carbide tipped blades designed specifically for that purpose. You don't want to try to use this type of blade on a regular chop-saw. I have heard that there is a company that does make a blade designed to operate at the higher rpms of a standard chop-saw, but I can't remember their name right at the moment. If I run accross it again I will post it here. The carbide tipped cut-off machines could be considered more desireable for a couple of reasons, for the most part they provide a basically burr-free cut, they are generally a bit more accurate on the cut as well, and they tend to cut with much less heat so your parts are easier to handle sooner. I have seen the carbide saw type cutters in a number of different offerings: small 4 1/2" to 5" rechargeable hand-held models, regular worm-drive and circular saw type configurations(generally 7" or 8 1/4" sizes), and 14" chop-saw styles. A bit more for your consideration. Best regards, Allan
Hello again phaux, came across the information that I mentioned in my first post. Try checking out "Freud Diablo" I believe this is the blade that is designed to be used in a conventional chop-saw. Best regards, Allan
I think I'm sold. I'm just tired of the awful dust from the cutting, the wobble, and constantly replacing them. Time to spend some money.
I have the 14" milwaukee, it's bada$$ to say the least. I have both blades for mine and back ups. It cuts light stuff real well, (less than 1/4"). I made 1 blade bite the dust cutting 2 7/8 pipe, I had to chalk it up to pushing too hard, like you do on a regular chop saw.
That baby makes the smoothest cuts of anything I have ever used. If you build gates or framed for anything, it's worth it's weight in gold. You will have very clean smooth cuts, very few burrs. Man do they cut fast also, you can cut a piece of 2 3/8 pipe in 5-6 seconds.