Cutting Fibre Cement

[Uncle Fester]

Internet keeps telling me to use special blades but everybody on the net just wants your money anyway.

It is just a one off job, so I don't want to spend hundreds on a special blade, that I also can't get at the local stores (Bunnings).

Can I get away with a normal circular saw blade?

The board is a decent 16mm thick.
I will need to cut a bit over 1500mm overall length.
Don't care if the blade is stuffed after that.
I just want to know if it will last for that length or is there any other way to cut it with standard DIY equipment?

Also thinking of using an angle grinder but keeping a straight line and the massive dust would be my concern.

[porkop]

I usually just use my circular saw but 16 mm is thicker than I would normally cut....maybe a angel grinder with a stone wheel?????

[Crafty]

Tile cutting blade, wet it down and wear a mask. Having someone there to put water on as your cutting keeps the dust down a lot..

[ol' boy]

they are not expensive blades

[porkop]

I also heard the other day that cheap Chinese cement sheeting has been found to contain asbestos.....be aware!

[Godzilla]

Circular saw with a concrete cutting blade.

Take note of porkchops words......

[Uncle Fester]

Tile cutting blade, wet it down and wear a mask. Having someone there to put water on as your cutting keeps the dust down a lot..

Best answer so far.
I do still have a tile cutting blade for the angle grinder that is not completely worn out.

However just hope my RCD breaker does it's job when the water gets sucked into the angle grinder's air cooling.
Why the heck do angle grinders spin anticlockwise so that the dust and grit (and in this case water droplets) always blows back to the tool and worker when you need to cut along a line. Same with the bloody Dremel unless you are left handed.

Only thing for the circular saw in Bunnings would cost almost $100.
Wanted the job done on weekend.

[watchdog]

Best answer so far.
I do still have a tile cutting blade for the angle grinder that is not completely worn out.

However just hope my RCD breaker does it's job when the water gets sucked into the angle grinder's air cooling.
Why the heck do angle grinders spin anticlockwise so that the dust and grit (and in this case water droplets) always blows back to the tool and worker when you need to cut along a line. Same with the bloody Dremel unless you are left handed.

Only thing for the circular saw in Bunnings would cost almost $100.
Wanted the job done on weekend.

That is so the grinder pulls away from you in case of a mishap

[Uncle Fester]

That is so the grinder pulls away from you in case of a mishap

From what I remember a hand held circular saw operates the other way.
I remember that it could kick back quit mighty it it got somehow wedged or hit something hard in the wood. This scared me so much that I don't use it any more, can't even find it to check if i am right about the opposite rotation.
I have a table saw that uses a relatively large blade, so a concrete or fibre cement blade would cost too much for this one task.

I noticed that these boards soak up water like a sponge.
It is raining and I am going to leave the board outside in the hope that it gets completely soaked through so there should be no fine airborne dust if I try with the grinder tomorrow.

[WhiteOx]

Why the heck do angle grinders spin anticlockwise

I dunno about that....
I just looked at mine and it has an arrow pointing in a clockwise direction.

[Dishtrackted]

Silicosis
Be careful of the dust even if it doesnt have asbestos its still not good for you

[Rick]

Bunnings sell a Trojan Fibro Cutter for around $45, stuff using a grinder that dust is a killer

[watchdog]

I dunno about that....
I just looked at mine and it has an arrow pointing in a clockwise direction.

Maybe if you swap the active & neutral --- nah forget about it ( I am just joking)

[allover]

How many meters of cutting, don't bother with a fibro cutting disc as it will last 2 secs, hand saw for about $15 with hardened tips, cut and throw. Do the edges have to be clean cuts as you can scour and break?

[Uncle Fester]

Maybe if you swap the active & neutral --- nah forget about it ( I am just joking)

LOL, thought about swapping the field coil polarity long time ago as this has always annoyed me but the disc would always come loose being mounted with a right hand thread.

[mtv]

Bunnings sell a Trojan Fibro Cutter for around $45, ...

I thought of these too, but haven't seen one that will take 16mm sheet that the OP has.

[Uncle Fester]

I dunno about that....
I just looked at mine and it has an arrow pointing in a clockwise direction.

Depends from what side you look.
But if you hold it with the right hand so you can see the disc grind along a scoured line, the dust and the work piece, if it is not secured properly, will shoot back towards you. Short cuts can be done from the front edge of the disc so the sparks go straight down but not when you have to work along a sheet.
I can't remember ever seeing and angle grinder that works opposite.

I could try to holding it the wrong way from the left but I don't feel like I have a safe grip or like having my right arm fairly close over the disc even though it is partly covered.
Mask, soaked though wet board and slow speed cutting should be the safest way.

[Rick]

but haven't seen one that will take 16mm sheet that the OP has.

Actually you are correct, from memory when I looked at one it only said up to 10mm?

[Godzilla]

Depends from what side you look.
But if you hold it with the right hand so you can see the disc grind along a scoured line, the dust and the work piece, if it is not secured properly, will shoot back towards you. Short cuts can be done from the front edge of the disc so the sparks go straight down but not when you have to work along a sheet.
I can't remember ever seeing and angle grinder that works opposite.

I could try to holding it the wrong way from the left but I don't feel like I have a safe grip or like having my right arm fairly close over the disc even though it is partly covered.
Mask, soaked though wet board and slow speed cutting should be the safest way.

Ive spent years cutting steel with 9 inch angle grinders, sparks and steel straight onto the legs is no issue once your use to it, not to mention you should keep what your cutting low and be bent over the work piece so the off shoot goes right between your feet and not high up and into your body, you can control this by how high up you let the disc cut into the material, the further down you drop the blade into the material the lower the dust throw.

I wouldnt be using water with 240 v power tools.

[Uncle Fester]

Ive spent years cutting steel with 9 inch angle grinders, sparks and steel straight onto the legs is no issue once your use to it, not to mention you should keep what your cutting low and be bent over the work piece so the off shoot goes right between your feet and not high up and into your body, you can control this by how high up you let the disc cut into the material, the further down you drop the blade into the material the lower the dust throw.

I wouldnt be using water with 240 v power tools.

That is much easier with a large 9" disc but these little tile cutters are 115mm and I only a have a grinder that does 125mm max. that I have been using for over 30 years. German AEG with speed control under constant high torque.
In the past I have been cutting marble bench tops for stoves with it because the electricians won't touch that dusty work. How great would it be if it would blow the dust forwards directly into a vacuum cleaner nozzle held by a helper in front of it. A helper holds the vacuum cleaner sideways behind me but it is not that effective and we wear masks and cover our faces with wet towels. I also don't expect asbestos in granite or marble.

Anyhow the tile cutters give me an inch of depth if I work along a board with less than 10mm protruding through the bottom of the 16mm sheet, so there is no way to direct the dust down to my legs.

Yes, decided I won't be having anybody pouring water over the disc while I am cutting. I will probably have to stop from time to time and clean the disc from clogged up moist cement from the pre-soaked board.