Masonry Magazine June 2002 Page. 17
What You Need to Know About Brick Table Saws
By Tom Inglesby
Did you ever see a mason or laborer with the side of his or her boot cut by a handheld high speed saw? Workers sometimes get a little over confident-or careless-and try too many cuts, too fast, and too close. It doesn't happen often, but once is too many.
The answer is, of course, use a brick saw, the table-mounted saw that can provide accurate, safe cuts time after time after time after...well, you get the idea.
The staple of the mason, the brick saw hasn't changed much in decades. They have gotten better, more accurate, longer lasting, and now offer features to make them even more productive. But they are still whirling blades held in a movable arm, mounted on a cabinet with a shuttle to move the brick or block into cutting position.
If you haven't evaluated brick saws for a while, you might be surprised how many new features they offer the mason. The key is options: the more the vendor can offer in features, standard or add-on, the more work you can do with the equipment.
Take the power unit, for example. Brick saws are used in harsh environments, with dust and slurry common, and must be constantly working to earn their keep. According to Royce Brock, masonry superintendent at J. E. Dunn Masonry, Kansas City, Mo, "The first consideration in choosing a saw is the availability of power. You have to have power to run the saw and every job is different."
Vendors match that need with a variety of power units, both electric motors-in multiple voltages and gasoline engines. You might think the best choice would be the gas unit, a self-contained power supply. "In our industry, that means a Honda engine," says Andy Lundberg, product manager for masonry saws at Target, a division of Diamant Boart, Olathe, Kan. "With the gas unit, you run the saw from the engine-it's not a generator that provides power for an electric motor. Or you can opt for a combination unit where the gas engine can be swapped out for an electric motor in about three minutes. We have customers that buy four or five saws, all with electric motors and maybe one gas unit. Then if the job is too far from the electric power, they just take the gas unit along, swap out the motor for the engine and start cutting. Same saw, more choices." Gas-driven saws generally can't be used indoors due to air quality issues and noise factors.