Plunge cuts in concrete, a-freakin-mazing.

When I think of cutting block, brick or concrete I think diamond blades. And up until today I thought about big round expensive blades. And the thing about those big round blades is that to cut a square you have a huge overcut and you have to come at it from both sides to reduce the overcut, or you use a percussion tool and chip chunks away. I won’t go into too much detail about the old ways because I want to tell everyone about the NEW way! Diamond CHAINS, yep freakin chains! ICS claims to be the world leader in “Diamond Chain Technology™” (they even have it trademarked).  They have about a dozen different models of chains with names like TwinMAX, ProFORCE, SpeedPRO, PRK and TwinPro with varying grades. Offering plunge cut capability of up to 25″ making perfectly square corners with no overcuts (when using the optional speedhook I presume). Now of course you are going to need one of their special saws. They come in gas powered and hydraulic powered and run with bars from 12″ up to 25″.  You gotta check out their web site, they have video of this beast in action.

This is about as cool as it gets. Who doesn’t love chainsaws? This is a great idea, the tech they put into the chains is pretty cool as well. I wish these guys luck with their product.

The EzSmart Square being used as a cross-cut rip fence... schweet.

Power tools are inherently dangerous, consider a 8 1/2″ blade spinning at 5200 RPM on a 10+ lb tool that you hold with one hand while you steady a 2×4 with the other hand all while surrounded by air hoses, extension cords, materials, debris and a radio playing some moe. song because thats what the hippy you work with listens to. Thats a mouthful isn’t it? Keep in mind you still haven’t cut that board. For jobsite safety there is nothing safer than a rail system Now everyone knows about the Festool Plunge Cut Saw and their guide rail system but what beginning woodworker has the jack to pony up for that? A little company called Eureka Zone has come up with a great way to get that Festool cut without having to plunk down $500+. The manufacturer claims that you can cut softwood, hardwood and even melamine with no tearout using a 40 Tooth Diablo Blade, that sounds like one hell of a trick. With some clever engineering, some small “anti-chip tabs” and of course the stability of the rail system, added with my knowledge of the Festool Plunge Saw, it should work. But I’d have to see it in action to appreciate it. Now I do not own this item, but it is definately something that I would buy. Actually if it does what they say it does I want to get the Smart Square. Which has an always true square attachment on the rail, and it provides a great place to put your hand while the saw is going. With one hand on the square and the other hand on the saw with the saw resting on the guide rail I can see it providing a nice smooth, clean cut that is as straight as a rail. For the amature woodworker like me, that does not have all the big expensive machines, this is an amazingly versatile way to get started. This can get you started without a miter saw or a table saw, I mean thats at least $500 and up to $5-$10,000 depending on what brand you buy. An amazing value, and its entirely made in the USA so you KNOW its quality.