Esoteric Toyo questions

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RHunter
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Joined: Tue Jan 24, 2006 8:44 pm
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii

Esoteric Toyo questions

Post by RHunter »

Hi All,

I recently put together a strip cutter from Paul Tarlow's tutorial, and in the process was cannibalizing cutter head(s) from my various cutters, brass pencil, plastic pencil, and that funny little one you couch in between the fleshy part of your thumb and index finger.

A couple of things I noticed, one is each cutter has a spring, does this act in some fashion to get oil, should you have it in your cutter to flow ?

secondarily, cutter heads seem to have some play in them , which allows a bit of left-right wiggle, is this for curvature cutting ?

In my primary cutter, years ago, I yanked the spring and reefed on the head so there is no left-right wiggle, are there any advantages to that ?

further quesitons as i look closely at these heads, I thought there were 3....TC-10 , TC-17 (thick glass) and TC -22, Now as a replacement , I have acquired a TC-600 and all of a sudden, I don't know what I am dealing with here.....are these based on angle or degree of cutting ? or is there something else to distinguish them ? or to recommend one over another ?

thanks,
randy
Kevin Midgley
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Re: Esoteric Toyo questions

Post by Kevin Midgley »

Marty
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Re: Esoteric Toyo questions

Post by Marty »

Different angles for different glasses (I never remember which is for what so I just grab a cutter and use it until I realize it's not working as well as it should and then I grab another...).
Swivel head is for no reason at all- you did the right thing by disabling it. To cut curves you turn your hand; I cannot understand why one would want a tool that went off in whatever direction it felt like at the moment.
Spring is for the oil feed, another useless invention as far as I'm concerned. It leaks, puts too much on the glass etc. I cut dry mostly but keep a small cup with an oil-soaked rag in it for dipping when my conscience tells me that it's time for some lube for the cutter. Any liquid will work as far as the cut is concerned, the oil is for the axle and the wheel.

Now is the time for people to chime in with their magic formulas for cutting fluids.
Bert Weiss
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Re: Esoteric Toyo questions

Post by Bert Weiss »

Unfortunately this website doesn't give much information. Of all the cutters I have ever used there is one that stands out high above all the rest. It is the Toyo custom grip tap wheel cutter. If I were making a strip cutter, I'd choose the cutting head replacement for this cutter. I believe it is a 134º angle wheel and is good for glass between 3mm and 12mm, and works OK for heavier glass as well. For thinner glass, you have to press a bit hard, so you want a sharper wheel.

The tap wheel design uses 8 little cams instead of a round axle bearing. The cams serve to make the cut go a bit deeper and create a break with less flare. The thicker the glass you are cutting, the more the flare is a problem.

I never put cutting oil inside the cutter. I just don't trust this system. I use a paint brush and brush kerosene on the glass before I cut. A gallon of kerosene costs around $4 and will last you decades. I use Glass Plus cleaner to clean the glass after I cut and it does a perfect job removing the kero.

I have one of those Bohle swivel cutters and I can not control it at all, for any kind of cut, curved or straight.
Bert

Bert Weiss Art Glass*
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RHunter
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Joined: Tue Jan 24, 2006 8:44 pm
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii

Re: Esoteric Toyo questions

Post by RHunter »

Hi All,

FWIW , since no one could really pop off the top of their head, what the different cutter heads are or do.... I spent a little time doing that research.

To some degree it seems that partly the cutter heads and their handles coincide for their product numbering.

TC600 is the pistol grip cutter -and its head, product description says Tap Wheel Wide Cutter designed for Thick glass , straight cutting I think 140° cutting angle

TC 9 aka Thomas Grip ( little one that fits in fleshy part of hand between thumb and fore finger) says 138° cutting angle and most of the hits I got for this were European sites

TC10 Standard on most Acrylic pencil grip cutters referred to as General purpose best for intricate and tight curves

TC17 - this has a bulkier form factor than the others, says it is designed for Straight cuts

TC21 - Tap wheel wide cutter technology, designed for thick glass, straight cutting

I couldn't find a manufacturer's website, hoping to find product info, so no clue who actually makes TOYO glass cutters and couldn't find the head that Bert referred to , can you chime in with a product # ?

so that's all I know, anyone else with info about the thing we use to get the majority of projects of the ground would be welcome

Randy
Bert Weiss
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Re: Esoteric Toyo questions

Post by Bert Weiss »

I don't remember finding the specs on cutter wheels being so difficult to find. The tap wheel pattern head is TC-21V.

OK CRL has more info. What they say is not what I remember. The TC10, TC 17 are 140º regular wheels. TC21V is a 140º tap wheel. These are all for a range of thicknesses 3mm - 12mm, and probably outside that range as well. The heavy glass wheel is 153º.

In my memory bank, I thought the wheels they say are 140º were 134º. I don't cut much glass thinner than 3mm, but I think you want a sharper wheel for that. The theory is, the thicker the glass, the duller the cutter you want, and the harder you need to press down. Often an old used wheel is duller. In my experience, the Toyo wheels lose their sharpness fairly quickly, and then work great for decades to come.
Bert

Bert Weiss Art Glass*
http://www.customartglass.com
Furniture Lighting Sculpture Tableware
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