"The Tile Saw - The Kilnformer's Friend"
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Choosing a Blade
Often a tile saw will come with a blade – but the blade is meant for cutting tile. This is not an optimal blade for cutting glass, and you will want to change this to a lapidary blade. The issues involved with blade selection are related to chipping, accuracy, and material loss. The thicker the blade, the more material is lost. The thinner the blade the more tendency it will have to wander off the straight line you had intended. The coarser the grit on the blade the faster it will cut, but the more chipping it will cause. The finer grit resin bonded blades may cut chip-free, but wear out faster.
One solution to the problem of thin blades wandering off course is to use a “wheel stiffener” which helps to some degree. () But, one will still have to decide on which characteristic of the blade is the most important and choose appropriately. For my work I have found that cutting straight and true is most important, and I have ended up using a MK 303 blade which is .05” in thickness, along with a wheel stiffener.
If you do get a blade included in your saw purchase, don’t give it away. It is useful if you ever need to cut up ceramic kiln shelves for dams or kiln furniture.
Setting up your tile saw
When using most diamond tools to cut or grind glass, water is involved as a coolant. This protects the diamonds and keeps the glass from overheating and cracking. A tile saw is no different. This is a very messy tool, and you will want to place this somewhere that is either easily cleaned, or that will contain the water spray in a defined area. If you live in a climate where it is feasible to use your saw outside, that is a good solution. If not, you may have to create some sort of enclosure, such as one with PVC pipe, plastic sheeting, and floor coverings to contain the water. And obviously, the saw should be plugged to an appropriate GFCI outlet.
Most tile saws have a tray containing water, and a pump that pumps the water from the tray onto the spinning blade. You will need to fill the tray with water, and periodically empty and clean the tray and replace the water. Having the tool near a water source, and near a place to discard the water containing much particulate matter will make your life easier. If you are going to pour the water down a drain, it is best to have a trap installed to capture the particulate matter so it does not clog your drains.
If making precise right angle cuts is important to your work, you need to adjust the angle of the runners that control the moving platform so that it moves perfectly parallel to the blade. You cannot rely that the saw comes with this perfectly aligned, and I’d recommend finding this adjustment, and making sure it is aligned correctly before using the saw. (see green arrow on photo below) And make certain that you have adequate light on the saw so that you can see what you are doing – you need good light here.
Adjustment bolt on MK Tile Saw
Safety Issues
Of course, you need to keep your fingers away from the spinning blade. Do not wear any loose clothing, wear ear and eye protectors, and consider wearing an appropriate respirator. I also recommend removing any jewelry that might be damaged by the water spray. Wearing a rubber apron to protect you from the water spray is also highly recommended.