As Jeff mentioned in his prior post, the steel has arrived! We began studio today with a quick run down of how the band saw works as well as how to go about cutting our steel tubes and plates. Once the tutorial was finished, we eagerly began cutting. The steel itself is not a very forgiving material to work with. For example, if we cut one of the plates short and our bolt holes don’t line up after we have welded the plates to the tubes, we won’t be able to pry the bolt in like we would if we were using wood. That being said, it is important that the cuts being made are precise the first time.
With Min Ji at the reins, we worked methodically measuring out our cuts twice and checking to make sure that our steel was level and flush on the band saw. We were constantly measuring and remeasuring to make sure our cuts were square and to the right length.
After cutting some of the steel plates, the time had come to cut the 6″ x 6″ steel tube. This was sort of the grand finale for the day. Everyone reconvened at the band saw once the gigantic tube was being laid out on the saw. After a number of pre-cut measures and remeasures, we all sat back and watched the band saw rip through the 6″ x 6″. It may not sound like much of a finale, but it’s pretty impressive once you’ve been working with these steel tubes and struggling to lift them to watch a thin blade tear through it like butter.