Additional content added below 08-18-2007.
Several of our Trash to Treasure members are pretty talented
when it comes to making wind chimes from castaway glass beer
and wine bottles. At the time of this post, I have yet to experience
such fun, but I have taken a few baby steps in that direction, so
I thought I would share tidbits about using a wet saw to cut the
glass rings as found in many of the chimes.
How to use a wet tile saw to cut glass, bottles and more!
A quick visit to see Cheryl's wind chimes:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/760958/
or Kimberlianne's chimes:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/699137/
will have you wishing and wanting a tile saw yourself. Fear not, they
are not as scary as you think, are very inexpensive, and may even be
in your garage already.
This tutorial is based on use of a 7" QEP wet tile saw. Many home improvement
stores offer wet tile saws; which are intended for use in cutting tiles for mosaic
and other projects such as backsplashes, counter tops, bathrooms, kitchens, etc.
It is an electrically operated saw which works with water.
While I have used a standard, inexpensive blade intended for tiles, there is a
blade available which is called a diamond blade. Let me reassure you that use of
the word 'blade' is not what it sounds like. In fact, it is nothing like an actual saw
blade with teeth or sharp edges, it is rough to the touch, though. Naturally one would
want to exercise caution with any power tool, so it is always a good idea to keep
your fingers away from the cutting wheel while in operation.
After familiarizing yourself with the initial operation of the saw itself, we'll
bring in the bottles, complete with pictures for each step.
Put on some clothing you don't mind getting dirty and wet,
grab your safety glasses, ear plugs and let's have fun!
This message was edited Aug 18, 2007 3:13 PM
