Questions about making a Slitting Saw Arbor

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AmericanMachinist

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I have a project on which I want to use a slitting saw, so i need to make a slitting saw arbor for the Mini Mill.

Any disadvantages to the ones with multiple arbor sizes cut in like a stair step? Other than increased stick out below the tool, the other thing that comes to mind is deflecting the saw blade if not careful. I could imagine making different size bushing/washers to account for this? Smaller OD for smaller diameter cutters, and so on.

Or is it worth making one arbor per saw size used?

I don't have a heat treat furnace but i assume for hobby shop use they'll be fine. Having the (in my case) 3/4" shank and the shoulder that the blade registers into come out at exactly 90° seems like the most critical aspect of the build.
 
Commercial slitting saw arbors do have a stair-step centering arbor similar to how you describe, but it is not a rigid setup. It's more like a series of concentric rings sitting on a coil spring so that the ring that fits your saw will fit through the hole, while the other rings push out of the way. That way the length of the arbor does not change regardless of the size of the hole. It probably would not matter if the registers were perfectly 90 degrees, either, since the clamping force is much greater than the torque on the wheel.

There is no need to heat treat a milling arbor or tool holder. It's not a hard wear/heavy duty part.

If you have a stock of slitting saws with one size arbor, then it would be worth it to make an arbor in that size. At least, it would to me.
 
pontiac428 said:
Commercial slitting saw arbors do have a stair-step centering arbor similar to how you describe, but it is not a rigid setup. It's more like a series of concentric rings sitting on a coil spring so that the ring that fits your saw will fit through the hole, while the other rings push out of the way. That way the length of the arbor does not change regardless of the size of the hole. It probably would not matter if the registers were perfectly 90 degrees, either, since the clamping force is much greater than the torque on the wheel.

There is no need to heat treat a milling arbor or tool holder. It's not a hard wear/heavy duty part.

If you have a stock of slitting saws with one size arbor, then it would be worth it to make an arbor in that size. At least, it would to me.
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Thanks! Great info. The 90 degree comment i intended to make was ensuring that the shoulders are perfectly perpendicular to the shank, so the blade spins true. On say a 4" saw with 1" arbor, any deviation is multiplied by 4. At least, that's how i see it working. Time to give it a try!
 
I'm with Pontiac. Make a separate holder for each arbor size you have. The multi-step ones don't hold as well or as accurately.
 
My first slitting saw won't arrive till next week it looks like. I'd like to make the arbor this weekend if i have time. This is probably a silly question, but i assume a saw listed as 1" arbor will have a 1.000" hole and i should make my arbor 0.999" to just under 1.000"?

Thanks!

(Edit: saw is American made by a reputable brand)
 
The Arbor hole tolerance: +.001"/-.000", so something like -.0005 to -.001 under should work. I had a few sitting saws on hand so did some test fitting to be sure. The OD diameter of the saw varies more so having a 0.001-0.002 clearance should not be an issue.
 
mksj said:
The Arbor hole tolerance: +.001"/-.000", so something like -.0005 to -.001 under should work. I had a few sitting saws on hand so did some test fitting to be sure. The OD diameter of the saw varies more so having a 0.001-0.002 clearance should not be an issue.
Click to expand...
Thank you!
 
Whats the best way for configuring a pin in the arbor for fitting the notch (keyway) in the blade?
 
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