Tapering Bricks ?

[petec]

Hi - question on tapering bricks...

I have access to 2 angle grinders - 4 and 9"

I am keen to use tapered bricks towards the final chains if I can make a decent job of it.

The most successful tapers that I have seen on the various build pics seems to use a chop saw which I dont have.

Is it possible to use the angle grinders to get decent tapers and if anyone has been doing this how did you go about it ? Did you use any sort of jig to hold the bricks etc. ?

Whenever I use the large grinder I get sloppy cuts as the blade travels where I dont want a bit.

Cheers
Pete

[h12rpo]

Search for angle grinder stand on flea bay ..?.......cant vouch for it myself but looks lke it will do what you need - i was thinking of getting one

[conic]

I find that its best practice to put the brick on the floor with a clear line preferably blue sharpie felt pen. use the 9" blade and go slow, bring the blade down but dont put pressure on it , just let the weight of the tool do the work through the amazing force of gravity. all you have to concentrate on then is the vertical angle.

dont ever forget goggles and gloves like i used to or i garuntee you will be in the eye infirmary.

Conic

[petec]

thanks fellas I will consider all these options.

for complete angled cuts I have found that the small grinder all the way round followed by sharp crack with the bolster cuts right through OK. I then use a toothed hammer to clean off the craggy stuff. But for more complex cuts I need the grinders.

cheers
Pete

[cannyfradock]

Pete

I often use Charlie Farley's picture diary of his Pompeii build to point things outfor reference. picasaweb.google.com/115426447285405371194/WoodFiredOven

His photo diary is quite fascinating.....if you look at the link, scroll down to the 10th and 11th row of pics .....you will see his technique there.

I tried to post the pics but failed miserably.

Terry

[faz]

[faz]

Personally, I tapered my bricks along two sides but didn't try and do the more complex cuts tapering the bricks from inside to outside face.

I laid my bricks out flat and held the disk cutter at an angle as I cut them. It cut the bricks so easily it was relatively simple to maintain the angle needed.

A good diamond blade makes it easier to concentrate on the cut rather than the cutting - especially as like conic says, you can let gravity do a lot of the work.

[cannyfradock]

Thank-you Faz......those were the pics I was trying to copy.

Hey Pete........I just found this pic on the old forum of how NOT to cut fire-bricks....



Terry

[lemonsouffle]

Hi All

there are several mentions on this thread of cutting fire bricks with an angle grinder. How do you cut firebricks with an angle grinder?

We have just started to build our dome and are trying to cut some firebricks for the hearth, the angle grinder makes virtually no impact on them at all, just a small groove and the smell of burning. Have been using a bricklayers mallet and chisel and a tile saw to trim them but it is very slow.

Do I have the wrong type of angle grinder, or the wrong type of blade on it?

Any help would be welcome.

Thanks

[petec]

Hi there -

sounds like the wrong type of blade - you need a stone cutting blade.
If you take a look at your local DIY place you will see a selection and new blades mostly have printed on the side STONE if they are suitable.

you'll also see plenty pf references on the net to using a diamond blade for even better cutting - that was some recent advice I got here.

Both my grinders cut very easily through the bricks but it certainly pays to soak the bricks in water for a good few minutes first to prolong blade life, although some people report that the bricks lose their edges very easily after being soaked. I get this a bit but bot too much of a problem really.

Also - be very careful - its very tempting to use your foot to stop the brick moving around when using a large ( 9" ) grinder . Take extra to protect your feet !!!!

Good luck with you build btw,
Cheers
Pete

[pete123]

Also there is a difference between a cutting disc and a grinding disc. A Cutting one is thin & a grinding one is thick.

[cannyfradock]

Hello Lemonsouffle......welcome to the forum.

Pete's comments are spot on. If you haven't used used the forum and you're already half way through your project then I would advice using the "search" facility (top of each page with a magnifying glass icon)...use it like Google. Type in a word or two and it will show all the threads on this forum that have been covered using the keywords you have typed in. Use our old forum in the same way..

woodovenukforum.forumup.co.uk/index.php?mforum=woodovenukforum ....you'llhave to register first, but there's loads of good info on there.

Otherwise keep shouting and we'll try to help you as much as we can.

Terry

p.s.....a 9" angle grinder with a diamond blade is not essential but it makes the work a lot easier. I used a hammer and bolster on most of my build...
ukwoodfiredovenforum.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=pompeiioven&action=display&thread=677

[lemonsouffle]

Hi All

thank you so much for your replies, it was quite encouraging to know that the angle grinder should cut the bricks.

The angle grinder we bought came with 2 blades 1 labelled for cutting stone and the other for cutting metal. We had been using the blade labelled for stone since that wasn't working we tried the blade labelled metal and it is cutting them.

Pete - thank you for telling me about cutting and grinding discs I'm learning all the time but I think we do have cutting discs.


Terry - I have read a lot on the forum and it has been very helpful, I have seen the photos of you cutting bricks with a hammer and bolster but that is quite hard and slow for a novice.

Now that I have posted a question I'll have to start a build thread and post some photos in the Pompeii section.

[bookemdanno]

You definitely get what you pay for up to a point with blades too!
I got a cracker from Screwfix which was an Erbauer Turbo for around £12.
Thick blade, very little wander, doesn't jump too much at introduction, but lots of dust tho.

[colin]

Hello Lemonsouffle,

I built the Wiltshire oven on the forum - I bolstered all of my bricks apart from the transition. The firebrick is such a great brick as it splits accurately to a hit line - for me it was a much cleaner and quicker job than disc cutting. The internal face joints ended up pretty tight and after a year of pretty hard use there's no signs of cracking. I think many get too carried away with the accuracy that isn't needed.

Happy Building!