AN UNCONVENTIONAL METHOD FOR CUTTING IRON & STONE METEORITES
When I decided to invest in a saw to process iron & stone meteorites, I bought an unconventional machine: the MK-100 Brick & Paver Saw. Most cutters use a band saw for irons & it leaves deep saw marks that have to be sanded out; then they use rock saws to cut stones. The MK-100 can cut both and it has a very large cutting capacity. When cutting irons, the abrasive blade polishes the face of each slice. I use a very thin & inexpensive abrasive blade which produces very little cut loss, about 14-18%, when cutting slices with an average thickness of 4-5mm. When cutting stones, I use a standard diamond blade and the powerful motor enables me to cut the hardest material with ease. The blade is thicker than the blades most rock saws use, but I still only have a 18-20% cut loss. The only drawback of this saw is that it can not easily cut pallasites, but neither can a band saw, and only the best rock saws are up to the task.
I'm always looking for new material to make spheres for my collection.
If you have a specimen that you would like processed & you think I might be interested in making a sphere from it,
send me an EMAIL & I'm sure we can come to an agreement that is mutually beneficial.
THIS IS THE SAW I USE TO CUT IRON & STONE METEORITES
THE
MK-100
BRICK & PAVER SAW
A: The specimen is set in a block of Plaster of Paris to keep it stable & to ensure that every slice is parallel to the first.
B: A modified milling machine vice is bolted to the sliding table of the saw. It provides the tremendous pressure required to hold iron meteorites.
C: This clamp is holding a piece of bar stock that is used as a slice gauge to ensure each slice has a consistent thickness.
D: Two pieces of aluminum angle stock evenly distribute the tremendous pressure the vice applies to the plaster block.
THE CUTTING PROCESS
I can cut any stone meteorite in a single pass, but I have to go much slower with irons. I begin by making an initial cut which just barely touches the surface & I make several slow passes to establish the cut line. Then I drop the saw down about 1mm per pass until I get a good solid cut line. At that point I can drop the saw at a rate of about 2mm per pass. In the left picture below, I am making my first cut & the picture on the right is my sixth cut.
In the left picture below, I have cut through the specimen. You can see where the plaster and slice have fallen away from the block. I make a final pass and cut the remaining plaster from the block to get a square surface. I release the block, slide it to the slice gauge, re-clamp the block & cut another slice. I repeat this process until the specimen is processed into slices.
The picture on the right is of the blades I use to cut my irons. A 10" blade costs about $5 & I used 6 to process a 3.7kg Toluca Meteorite.
