What to do?

[ranjet]

A customer has changed tile layout to diagonal. 18 x 18 inch tile cut on diag. is to big for my QEP tile saw. I can cut up to 18" only. I was thinking of getting one of those 4" dry tile saws, or getting a big hand tile cutter. I have never used either. Which would be better, easier. The job is only an entry, kitchen and dining room but there will be a lot of cuts with a diag. layout. The 4" saw is $90.00 and the large hand cutters are from $30.00 to $80.00 at Home Depot. What do you think?

Thanks,

RBW

[HS345]

Can't you turn the tile around and cut it from both ends?

[ranjet]

My saw only cuts up to 18" max. I can't really do both end cuts because of the cutting table. Believe me I've tried.

[HS345]

You have to hang the tile off the back end of the table, I do it all the time. Which QEP saw do you have? Might be a good time to invest in a better saw.

You're not going to have any luck cutting 18" tile on a diagonal with a cheap hand cutter from HD. The hand saw might work, but will take a looooong time.

Angle grinder?

[cx]

Welcome back, ranjet. Please put a first name in a permanent signature line for us to use.

I have the Felker version of that little hand saw and, with the use of a straight edge, a fella can make those cuts pretty effectively.

If there are a lot of cuts to make, though, I'd hafta agree with Greg; time to look into a larger wet saw.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[LPIguy]

you can get any number of saws that will allow you to cut that 18" diag. for a very affordable price, if you don't mind flipping the tile. Examples are in my 7" tile saw (WTS950), the MK 270 series, etc. Any of the inverted grinder style saws are capable of making this cut if you flip your tile and most retail in the high 200's to low 300's.


your other option is to step up to a 10" saw that can do it on one pass. Examples would be my WTS2000L, the MK 101 series, the Dewalt 24000, etc. These saws are available online (mine is 799 delivered from a number of sources like www.toolking.com and www.toolsplus.com). Rail saws are also an option and i think Ivan from Rubi could introduce you to a number of good options in that arena.


your final option is what was mentioned below. buy a beefy hand saw and make the cuts with a jig or solid straight edge. these saws retail @ or under 100$ and have most every feature you could want in a hand saw (miter, plunge, guides, water attachments, external brushes, etc). There are a number of sources for these type products.

[bulldog tile]

Lay all your full tiles one day then the next day make all the cuts with a rented saw.

[Hammy]

I did all this with a cheap bridge saw and an expensive blade

[ranjet]

Thanks for the information. The customer has switched back to a straight layout. I'm home free!!!

Do you guys bid more for a diag. layout rather than a straight layout. I told the customer that I would like to get a bit more and I guess that did the trick.

On another problem. I'm doing a simple kitchen counter top & I've noticed that using a 3/4" rough top and 1/2" hardi that the V cap is still to low to clear the drawers. I need about another 1/4" in height. If I add the extra height, I'm going to be to high at the back splash at the kitchen window for the 4" x 12" decorative tile to fit under the window and the customer does not want to go into the window sill. I noticed this on another job and I had to add a layer of 1/4" to the rough top to get proper drawer clearance. Seems like I didn't have this problem before.

Thanks in advance, and thanks for all the good suggestions.

RBW

[bbcamp]

Your bid should reflect the time and materials it takes to do the job. Diagonals take more time and usually have more waste, so your bid will naturally be higher.

[Hammy]

Cut the 4x12" pieces down around the window.


Hammy