Cast saws for cutting plastic? Responses

Cast saws for cutting plastic? Responses

Randall McFarland, CPO

Here is my original post:

Is there anything out there better than a Stryker saw for cutting polypro off
an AFO cast? The saw we use for that really takes a beating, requiring
repairs averaging every 6 months or so, costing about $250 each time.
Bearing, bushings, shafts armatures, etc.need replacing... Is there something
more heavy duty or cost effective out there?
I'll post the responses.

Randy McFarland, CPO

Here are the responses. Thanks to all who responded!!
Happy Holidays!

Randy

RESPONSES:

....Ive used em all and so far the stryker is the best ...which isnt saying
much..save yourself from a headache..stick with the stryker...it isnt the
best but the others are pure nightmares.

Give TriBar Orthopedic a call. They have a pnuematic cast saw which works
great.

I had the same problem. Now I use a pneumatic saw I purchased Tribar in Ohio.
Works well

YES, YES, YES.
The greatest tool ever for that is the Dotco pneumatic / oscillating saw,
available through
Grainger & SPS. You must have shop air with a tool oilier. I've just
replaced mine after over
5 years if use, but they have a parts/bushing kit.

PDI sells a pneumatic angled die grinder with a cutting bit.  800-459-0177.
I tried it at an AAOP meeting and it ate right through polypro but have not
used it in practice.

We have been using a pneumatic cast cutter for the last ten years. The
only repairs it gets are when it needs re-oiling or to replace the blade.



Air powered saws. Pel, etc. has them. Requires good sized compressor, say
5hp minimum. Fein makes them for not too much, maybe $300. Check out
their web site.

The Fein Co. (a woodworking tool company) makes a sander w/ exchangable
blades. One of the blades resembles a 1/3 section of a cast saw blade, and
I've heard it works very well.
Another Co. that services cast saws I was recentlty solicited by was CAST
ROOM SYSTEMS, INC. (800) 643-9300. Maybe they have better prices.

We run a Dotco brand pnuematic cast saw  (Friddles has the best price) in the
lab just about all day. It is pretty tough and a lot more manueverable than
the stryker. I give mine a drink of teflon oil once or twice a week and they
last us about four years.

Our students use pneumatic saws for their lab work. They take a beating and
have
required no maintenance in 2 1/2 yrs other than a few drops of oil every day.
The manufacturer is Dotco.  Your local hardware supplier should be able to
order them.  we try to save the stryker saws for pt. work.

I think so we use a pneumatic model made by Dotco, Friddles has it at a good
price.

We picked up a snap on air tool that is a router design from PDI that is
very efficient and is a fraction of the cost. It does take a while to get
used to though, its a little hard to control until you've had a little
practice with it.

I am using a pneumatic cast cutter that I got from PEL.  It really takes a
good beating, and I don't think it cost anywhere near as much as a Stryker.

We have very good success with a saw powered by
compressed air. Many fewer moving parts, much stronger
shafts, etc.

We had the same problem so we purchased an air driven saw from Cascade about
5 years ago. It's a Dotco and works well, noisey, but requires little
maintanence. I think we have replaced the bearings,(purchased from
McMaster-Carr) about once a year. Easy to do

Pel carrys the Dotco pneumaticcast cutter.  Its blade moves at a greater
degreeso this moves the plastic out of the cut better than any of the
electric cast cutters.  Of course with pneumatic tools you have to be careful
to
always keep it well lubricated.  Before you buy a pneumatc
cast cutter make sure that your air system can deliver the correct
volume of air and the correct pressure. 

Dotco pneumatic cast saw from PEL supply works great.
They are not expensive and cut better than anything.
They are also very durable.

Try the Dotco pneumatic cutter. It is very heavy duty and self cools. I think
it is about $400. PEL sells it.

Try a right angle die grinder (pneumatic) with a 1/8 veining bit. 
Quick, clean and cool in your hands.

Fein sander saws are an oscillating sander that can take a blade for cutting
just like a stryker. We have found that for the cost of repairing a stryker
we can buy one, sometimes two of these saws. We have found the Fein cutters
to be fine for O & P work. The cutting blades are available separately (Check
when you buy the cutter - the chrome plated blade sometimes included is not
much good, you need the black cutting blades even though they are expensive)
The position of the blade is different to a stryker type cutter, and this
puts some people off, but I found you soon get used to it.  They are quieter
than stryker, and the latest model have variable speed. In our
situation, the cost (At a fraction of the stryker) is a big plus.

We use pneumatic cast saws and in the 6-7 years we have been using them not
one has needed repairs + they are 1/2
the cost.

continued...

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