William Kroyer wrote:
> This may seem like a silly and basic question but, I've got a bunch of
> 36"X48" sheets
> of FR4 that I need to cut down. Nothing I've tried seems to work. At
> least not for long.
> Initially, I tried just using my jig saw with a metal cutting blade on
> it. I went through 2
> and only got about 1/4" out of each. Then I tried just using my
> router. I killed the bit
> but was able to cut up 1.5 sheets before doing so. Today I picked up
> some 7" cut-off
> wheels for my circular saw. Each wheel cut about 24" each before
> tearing itself free
> of the mount.
>
> Any suggestions? I know for smaller pieces I could probably use a
> paper cutter as a
> cutting shear but I don't know I'm going to get these large pieces cut down.
I think the easiest way to cut straight lines is to use a scoring
knife that cuts through the copper and knick the fiberglass enough
that if you pull a few strokes on each side (must be fairly accurately
matched, so clamp a straight edge to the material, first), you can
break the board over a corner with minimal damage. Then you slide the
edges over silicon carbide paper to remove the short glass fibers that
hang out of the break. I steel cutter won't last very long, but since
they are easy to sharpen it isn't so bad. There are also carbide tip
versions, but I haven't actually used one, yet.
http://www.abc.net.au/sydney/stories/s790713.htmhttp://www.epinions.com/Stanley_Scoring_Knife_Shop_Toolshttp://www.store.yahoo.com/olfablades/5012.html