How To Cut Rebar – 10 Different Ways Which Is Best For You?

Rebar is a long reinforcement steel bar that is widely used in the construction process to supplement concrete. You get it in a standardized length and have to cut this sturdy metal into the lengths according to your job requirements. 

Cutting the rebar isn’t an easy task. There are some specialized processes along with professional tools, using which you can do the job perfectly.  In this article, we’ll run you through methods for how to cut rebar to make the work easier for you. 

How To Cut Rebar

These are some commercial standardized techniques. You can also try them easily with the right set of tools. So, without any delay, look through the whole article to add more convenience for yourself to cut the rebar. 

Can I Cut Rebar Without Any Tool?

Rebar is basically long steel bars and is strong enough that it can’t be cut without any tool. Some of the tools that you can utilize for this purpose are a metal cutting hacksaw, portable bandsaw, and reciprocating saw. However, you can tear it apart using hand tools such as specialized bolt cutters, etc. 

Effective Ways To Cut Rebar

We’ll talk about some categories of tools, in particular, that can be used to do the job rightly. You can pick them as per the requirement and complications of your projects to perform impeccably.

Cutting rebar with power saws

Power saws are versatile tools that are utilized to cut through several metals and wood materials. You can consider these effective equipment to make your rebar cutting jobs butter smooth. 

Cut Rebar with Circular Saw

Using a circular saw can be the most common and simple way to cut the rebar. A circular saw is widely used at construction sites for this cause. As these reinforcing bars are made up of carbon steel, so it’s a wise choice to use a tool that either having an abrasive disc or metal cutting blade.  

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Unlike angle grinders, the circular saws having abrasive discs creates some dangerous sparks. But to eliminate that, most manufacturers have now come up with carbide blades. The RPM speed is also seen reduced in order to make the application of the saw safe and effective. 

It reduces the number of harmful sparks and the amount of heat produced while cutting. Moreover, it prolongs the blade life and lowers the risk involve in rebar cutting. But, you still need to be cautious while making cuts because it overall is a risky process. 

Cutting the rebar with a circular saw is an economical yet fruitful method. The saw lasts long and doesn’t need frequent blade replacement. It is the best-suited method for you if you don’t want to go for some heavy investments in your cutting tool. 

Rebar cutting with a portable bandsaw

Using a bandsaw for rebar cutting can be a good thought. A bandsaw is somehow under-rated because of its ginormous size and complicated design as compared to a reciprocating saw. But it’s a highly useful power tool that can be used to cut steel rebar. 

The fact that it produces less vibration and offers clean-cut edges, makes it win the game. It doesn’t produce hazardous sparks, that’s another plus point. Unlike other power saws, it is taken as less useful but in this case, you’ll be happy with its application. 

Bandsaw

For metal cutting purposes, a horizontal bandsaw is of great use. Its widely used in the metal industry to chop bars and metal rods into different sizes. The amount of heat produced on constant blade use can also be eliminated using the coolers. The bandsaw is one of the most effective tools used for bulk cutting and can cut through rebar effortlessly. 

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The bandsaw is not that portable and is a giant tool. They are suitable for larger shops but not for construction sites. It also is effective in dealing with larger projects and not for the single rebar pieces.

Hack Saw 

A hacksaw can be used as a last resort if you don’t have any of the other saws to get the job done. You may have to walk some extra miles to perform with a hacksaw. But you’ll get the job at the end of the day, and matters the most. 

how to cut rebar

All you need is to be aware of choosing the right type of blade. Try to look for blades having 14-18 TPI, that’s most useful in cutting through metals. With a normal blade, you’ll waste your whole day to make it work for your metal but if it’s not made to deal with metal, it’s not gonna work anyway. 

How About Using a Cutting Torch?

A heating torch is a handy tool that is used to cut metals by throwing an intense amount of heat on them. On the constant heat amount, the metal pieces melt away easily making you able to bend them in any shape of your need. You can do bending with the help of any stick or pipe.

It is one of the unconventional ways to cut the rebar. You need some skills to cut the pieces diligently. A cutting torch may give you some rounded and uneven cut rebars, be prepared for that beforehand. We suggest not utilizing plasma and oxyacetylene torches for your larger projects though. Their application is not that ideal to deal with bulky jobs.

The plasma torch is a bit costly to use. The reason is that it consumes a significant amount of electricity and is time taking. The same is the case with an oxyacetylene torch, it’s sluggish. 

How To Cut Rebar With Dremel?

Cutting rebar with Dremel can be of great use for DIYers and Hobbyists. It’s not that quick so cannot be an ideal tool to utilize on construction sites. All you need to do is to pick the appropriate Dremel bits to make it work for your tasks efficiently. 

Moreover, you can g for this option only if you have to cut small pieces. Using this rotatory tool for cutting more than a couple of rebar pieces wouldn’t be a wise choice to make. For heavy-duty jobs, you can count on other sturdy rotatory tools such as die grinders.

Some Other Rebar Cutters

There is a myriad of professional and specialized tools that you can avail to deal with some serious rebar cutting. 

Bolt Cutter 

A bolt cutter is basically used to serve the purpose of cutting bolts and chains. The cut is not that immaculate, that’s a rough sort of partition. If precision and accuracy don’t matter for your type of task, you can ideally use it for rebar cutting. You can cut through your pieces in simple steps, there is no need of covering some extra miles. 

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Cutting Wheel

The cutting wheel more or less does the job in a way similar to that of the table saw, the only difference is that table is excluded. It works wonders for tearing apart the reinforcement bars. But be vigilant when doing the job. Keep your surroundings safe by clamping the metal pieces before turning on the equipment.

Hydraulic Cutters

Using hydraulic cutters for cutting rebar is one of the most preferred methods. This is an effective, economical, portable, and quiet tool. To build up the pressure, you need to pump it sand then enjoy the seamless cuts. 

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This is a hassle-free method. There is no requirement for cords, batteries, or any other extra attachment. You can effortlessly deal with your smaller tasks using a hydraulic cutter. 

Angle Grinders

An angle grinder is another most recommended equipment for cutting the reinforcement metal bars. You can achieve precise and accurate cuts with an angle grinder. It works not only effectively but quickly as well. Mark, your rebar pieces are to be cut beforehand, and cut through them all in one go!

When you’re picking the angle grinder, stay steer clear of choosing the inappropriate size for your required capacity tasks. Try to choose the standard size of 4” to 4.5” because that can perfectly do most of your cutting work. An angle grinder is considered to be a better alternative to a hacksaw. 

What Is The Best Way To Cut Rebar?

The best way to get the work done is to get your hands on some specialized bar cutters. But is you can’t go for doing some heavy investment on your tool, metal cutting chop can serve well for the intend of cutting rebar. 

A chop saw having a superior quality abrasive wheel can be of great use to cut diligently. Pick the chop saw with a diamond blade to add more effectiveness. If you pick the chop saw with a stopper, it will offer great repeatability and work wonders for your cutting projects. 

how to cut rebar

One downside of the chop saw is that it can’t be that ideal to be used for rebar pieces attached to the concrete. To perform that task, you better get your hands on an angle grinder or can go for any other bandsaw serving portability as well. But in the case of the bandsaw, try to keep the flammable metals away. The sparks emitting from the metal can ignite them. 

Overall, it’s a wise choice to be made to deal with rebar cutting. It’s quick and efficient to prepare your reinforcement metal pieces for reinforced mesh. 

FAQ’s-How To Cut Rebar

How to cut rebar in concrete?

You can cut through the rebar embedded in concrete using a drill. Choose a drill with a one-pieces carbide tip. It will not only drill 30% faster than a normal drill but will dust off the waste faster and offer a less vibration operation. Turn the power on for the drill and start drilling. After few seconds of drilling deep, you’ll feel the bit hitting the rebar. Continue drilling and you’re good to go.

How to cut rebar by hand?

You can cut the rebar by hand. Now through hand doesn’t mean that you have to hold it and bend it exerting the force without using any tool. By hand means to use tools that offer you to apply pressure and make the cuts using the tooltips and special designs. To meet the purpose there are a number of tools that you can utilize. For instance, specialized bar cutters, etc. 

Final Words-How To Cut Rebar

We have listed down some of the conventional and effective techniques and tools used for dealing with rebar. You now must be having a great idea about how to cut rebar in the best way. Different tools differ in price range, some vary in features and quality of cuts. You try to choose the right equipment that serves best for the nature of your projects. 

One thing you need to look through is the precautionary measure. Make sure you meet them all before starting the operation. The reason because rebar cutting is a strenuous task. It can bring a lot of danger if the measures aren’t taken to keep yourself protected.

Now you probably know how to cut rebar. I hope you had a great time reading our blog!

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