Jigsaw for hole cutting?

mrzed · Post by **mrzed** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 1:07 pm

Seeing as I have a jigsaw, and a blade is a lot cheaper than a pair of Wiss snips. Anyone used one? Seems like it would work OK if I just took it slow and carefully.

Tom Brown · Post by **Tom Brown** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 1:27 pm

For what?

Be careful and make sure the work is secure. If the blade starts to chatter and the piece starts to bounce around, it will make a mess out of whatever you're cutting.

A decent bimetal blade will cut the light sheet metal of a case quite well. It will be a little more dicey for cutting small plastic items. It's probably not a safe tool for cutting small items unless you can clamp them in a vise of some kind.

One thing... if you are cutting a finished part of the case and you don't want to scratch the finish, cover the jig saw shoe with electrical tape and that will reduce the paing scratches, as compared to a metal shoe.

cmcquistion · Post by **cmcquistion** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 2:17 pm

I've used it for hole cutting.

It is a lot messier then a dremel, but much quicker, too. I recommend placing several layers of tape all around the work area, to keep the deck of the saw from marring the case.

A good compromise might be to use a jigsaw for cutting, then go back with a grinding wheel in a dremel (or in a drill) and smooth down the edges.

mrzed · Post by **mrzed** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 3:19 pm

Well this is just for the front and back fan grills on an SLK3700, so I'm not too worried about marring the finish. I was already planning on taping the area anyhow though, I find it helps get a cleaner cut for some reason.

Good suggestion on the grinding wheel for smoothing it out. Sounds a lot less work than a half round file (my original plan).

GamingGod · Post by **GamingGod** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 4:17 pm

forget it, just get a pair of wire cutters, the ones that look like a birds beak and you can get it in the little holes and cut the strands one by one around the edge, its really easy i did mine that way. Oh by my slk3700 had hextangle holes not round ones. Then you could use a file or whatever if you really wanted. But I would make sure that there was nothing in the case when you start grinding because of the metal shards.

Katana Man · Post by **Katana Man** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 5:20 pm

You might save yourself a whopping $4 to get a blade which won't last very long. I say get some Wiss tin snips, it's a steal for $10 or so. They'll last longer, make a much cleaner cut, and won't make a mess.

cmcquistion · Post by **cmcquistion** » Tue Oct 21, 2003 5:10 am

All of the SLK3700AMB cases that I have seen, have round holes. I don't think tin snips or wire cutters are going to cut it, on that case [pun intended]. The SLK3700BQE and Antec Sonata both have hexagonal holes that probably can be cut with wire cutters, though.

CaptainSensible · Post by **CaptainSensible** » Tue Oct 21, 2003 9:07 am

I've used a jigsaw to cut fan holes and remove grills. If you use a HSS blade with very high tooth density, you will get a very good finish; the difficult part is keeping the cut straight/circular.

Blades will lose their temper/hardness (due to overheating) and become blunt if you try to do an entire cut in one go; you need to allow the blade to cool down (or use cutting oil) after every inch of cutting. Good 1mm rolled steel (typical case material) will ruin blades very quickly if you don't get your technique right.

GamingGod · Post by **GamingGod** » Tue Oct 21, 2003 12:43 pm

There is a new revision of the 3700AMB I just got mine about a week or two ago and it had hexa holes. Trust me, and I cut out the grill in a matter of a few minutes by cutting the outer strands with a pair of wire cutters.

cmcquistion · Post by **cmcquistion** » Tue Oct 21, 2003 1:56 pm

GamingGod wrote:There is a new revision of the 3700AMB I just got mine about a week or two ago and it had hexa holes. Trust me, and I cut out the grill in a matter of a few minutes by cutting the outer strands with a pair of wire cutters.

Ok.

I'm glad to hear that they're finally doing this. I would think that Antec, of all companies, should no better than to have swiss-cheese fan grills, which restrict 50% or more airflow, and cause noise, too!

GamingGod · Post by **GamingGod** » Tue Oct 21, 2003 2:59 pm

Well they were still kinda restrictive, just not as bad as before. I still cut mine out and have no regrets about doing it.