Quick chop saw cutting jig for pipe saddles

[Frank S]

There are nearly as many ways to notch a pipe saddle as there are sizes of pipe.
A lot of times I will cut them on my band saw if I only have a couple to do or even better just use a torch then hit them with a cob for a couple seconds. I've used hole saws and shell reamers or just an angle grinder,
But as a go to for 1 1/4" pipe it is hard to beat a plain old chop saw with the back stop of the vice set at an angle for smaller pipes up to maybe 3" 4" if you are using a 14" saw with a new blade
I was cutting 1 1/4" pipes and needed to saddle both ends with several pipes being the same length this is how I did it
set the vice to between 25 & 30°angle the angle can vary depending on if cutting saddles to mate up to a larger or even smaller pipe. I hardly ever pay any attention to the actual angle opting to just give it an eyeball that's close enough for who it's for angle.
Then I clamped a long enough angle iron to the vice and clamped stop at the distance I needed to make several pipes the same length.

[Toolmaker51]

Interesting combination of geometry and tube joining process.
I don't recall ever cutting round tubing for welds to round stock; but loads of identical lengths in joining rectangular sizes....angle iron is one of the simplest materials overlooked as ready-made fixturing stock.

[Frank S]

Interesting combination of geometry and tube joining process.
I don't recall ever cutting round tubing for welds to round stock; but loads of identical lengths in joining rectangular sizes....angle iron is one of the simplest materials overlooked as ready-made fixturing stock.

I've done more miles upon miles of piping than I care to admit But back sometime around 1982 or 83 I bought my first chop saw to save a bit on oxy& fuel and to hopefully speed things up a bit when working with pipe under 2" I started toying with cutting angles to make the various directional changes needed for corral fencing and how to cut the saddles on the chop saw The same thing can be done with a band saw but it is slower the tradeoff there is a band saw blade will outlast dozens of chop saw blades Carbide toothed metal cutting blades are the ideal ticket particularly if flooded coolant can be added.
For anyone who wants or needs to learn about the millions of ways to work pipe I recommend the Pipe bible also known as. The Pipe Fitters Blue Book or The Pipe Fabricators Blue Book, by W.V. "Duffy" Graves.
They are not cheap but well within the means of most anyone if they even only are curious about how to work pipe.
I could sit here and explain a lot of old tricks I learned through the years many of these will make absolutely no sense to someone who hasn't done much with pipe. Tricks involving your belt and the hole in it tricks using adding machine tape, framing squares, & tri squares on how to figure the setback for cutting and making multi part elbows at any angle or making angle branch offs of a large pie with smaller ones or combining several smaller pipes to make a collector to become a larger diameter pipe but all of that is in the pipe bible. It's been 30 years since I had one and anything I might remember could be far off the actual procedures

[WmRMeyers]

I've done more miles upon miles of piping than I care to admit But back sometime around 1982 or 83 I bought my first chop saw to save a bit on oxy& fuel and to hopefully speed things up a bit when working with pipe under 2" I started toying with cutting angles to make the various directional changes needed for corral fencing and how to cut the saddles on the chop saw The same thing can be done with a band saw but it is slower the tradeoff there is a band saw blade will outlast dozens of chop saw blades Carbide toothed metal cutting blades are the ideal ticket particularly if flooded coolant can be added.
For anyone who wants or needs to learn about the millions of ways to work pipe I recommend the Pipe bible also known as. The Pipe Fitters Blue Book or The Pipe Fabricators Blue Book, by W.V. "Duffy" Graves.
They are not cheap but well within the means of most anyone if they even only are curious about how to work pipe.
I could sit here and explain a lot of old tricks I learned through the years many of these will make absolutely no sense to someone who hasn't done much with pipe. Tricks involving your belt and the hole in it tricks using adding machine tape, framing squares, & tri squares on how to figure the setback for cutting and making multi part elbows at any angle or making angle branch offs of a large pie with smaller ones or combining several smaller pipes to make a collector to become a larger diameter pipe but all of that is in the pipe bible. It's been 30 years since I had one and anything I might remember could be far off the actual procedures

You can get it at Amazon.com for under $35, either title.

[Toolmaker51]

The Pipe Fitters Blue Book or The Pipe Fabricators Blue Book, by W.V. "Duffy" Graves.
Aha! More texts to hunt for my library. I do have PIPE FITTER’S AND PIPE WELDER’S HANDBOOK, THE, by FRANKLAND, THOMAS W. 1955
Also been cataloging every single text of any kind into Excel spreadsheets, under topics. Easy to sort, easier to search (Ctrl F). Once the ceiling gets sheetrock and insulation blown in, building closed bookcases for them all. Might 'number them' ala Dewey Decimal System, in same prefixes (and extended suffixes) as found in libraries.


PS......
Just added those to list in Amazon, and found this note:
BUYERS BEWARE - COUNTERFEIT COPIES OF The Pipe Fitters Blue Book are being sold on AMAZON. The ONLY authorized sellers of The Pipe Fitters Blue Book by WV Graves are; - Amazon.com - Graves Publishing Company (pipefitterbluebook) - thegangbox and - RG Sellers ALL other sellers are not authorized sellers and have a high probability of being a counterfeit copy. The counterfeit copies are poor quality replications that fall apart after minimal use and do not reflect the quality and integrity that we provide with Graves Publishing Company.

That is just one example proliferating because online selling of new items can be very convoluted and deceptive. Most if not all purchases of old texts is very safe.

[DIYer]

Thanks Frank S! We've added your Chopsaw Cutting Jig to our Metalworking category,
as well as to your builder page: Frank S's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Chopsaw Cutting Jig by Frank S

tags: jig, chop saw