Hacksaw Vs. Pipe Cutter for PVC

Cutting with a PVC Cutter

• 1

  Measure the length of pipe needed with a tape measure. Mark the length on the pipe using a pencil.

• 2

  Line the pointed edge of the PVC pipe cutter on the measurement and clamp the blade into the pipe. Squeeze the cutter’s blades together using the ratchet attachment, which allows the blade to move forward, cutting deeper into the pipe, without slipping backward.

• 3

  Release the blade from its lowest position by squeezing the ratchet one more time. The tool’s ratchet mechanism releases the blade to the open position. A PVC cutter – as opposed to a pipe cutter designed for copper or iron pipe – allows for quick cuts that are straight and free of burrs sometimes produced when cutting with a hacksaw.

Cutting with a Hacksaw

• 4

  Measure the length of pipe needed using a tape measure, marking the pipe with a pencil. Place the pipe in a miter box so that the blade of the hacksaw cuts on the interior edge of the pencil mark, not on its center or outer edge.

• 5

  Brace the pipe in the miter box, using scrap wood as shimsor by clamping the pipe to your worktable. Cut the pipe using the hacksaw, using the forward stroke to cut and moving the recovery portion of the saw’s stroke away from the pipe. The miter box ensures a straight cut necessary for accurate fittings.

• 6

  Rotate the pipe in the miter box if the pipe’s diameter is larger than the hacksaw’s depth. Rote the pipe approximately 90 degrees, using the placement of the saw in the cut to line it up in the correct position in the miter box.

• 7

  Sand with sandpaper to remove any burrs created by the hacksaw blade on the cut edge. A smooth, straight cut edge is essential to cleanly join PVC pipe, so make sure you only remove the burrs without over-sanding and damaging the straight cut edge produced by a cut in the miter box.