rock hard porcelain

[andy-p]

Starting a bathroom on monday, tiles are 500x300x11 porcelain from fired earth, got a hold of a sample and the bugger simply wont cut on a dry cutter, tried my trusted sigma ,no chance!! then tried scoring with the rubi and tapping on the handle, broke everywhere bar the scored line, so it looks like doing all the cuts with a wet cutter, unless anyones got a better idea ?? :mad2:

 

[MrSpoon]

what size wheel are you using? is it breaking along the score line then veering off towards the end? try lifting the breaker to the tile then give it a good hard tug, or a sharp whack depending on how yours works

 

[andy-p]

no matter how you score the tile when i try to snap it, it wont budge it even with all my weight on the breaker, its absolutely rock believe me!! im gonna give fired earth a ring and see what they say ,long shot i know..

 

[MrSpoon]

hmm worth a shot, might have to be a wet job tho:mad2:

 

[pjtiler]

only score once !! with a new 18mm wheel (rubi gold )
then lightly tap the back of the tile along the line with a pin hammer
lightly !!!!!!!
see if that dose the trick

 

[TilingLogistics]

If you have to end up wet cutting I would still score it. It will help with chipping in most cases

Kev

 

[andy-p]

just off the phone to fired earth and have been advised the tiles have to be cut with an electric cutter with a quality blade, holes to drilled with armeg.. looks like its gonna be a ***** of a job, ah well think ill sink a few beers tonight, cheers !!!!!:8:

 

[Highlander]

Would wet cut but as for any holes use 365 drills they will go through them no probs. I have both armeg and 365 and now use 365 all the time. One thing I bought from Topps was their hole saw guide it works treat with the 365 drills and lasts longer than the 365 guide.

Highlander

 

[muffinman]

18 mill rubi gold wheel will eat em

 

[andy-p]

18 mill rubi gold wheel will eat em

no chance mate trust me!!

 

[sWe]

When cutting ultra hard porcelain, it is extremely important to score only once, and it has to be smooth and of even depth, otherwise the tile is going to shatter when you try break it. If you score more than once, the scoring line will become uneven, and that will result in a shattered tile most of the time.

Oiling the guide rail/rods and using a fresh scoring wheel helps alot.

When you break the tile, it is paramount to concentrate the breaking force in one short, swift movement, and the movement range of the breaker must be short.
This is why I prefer manually adjustable breaking systems to auto adjusting ones.

 

[DHTiling]

There is a new range of porcelain bodied tiles out that have a thick 1.5mm glaze on them and makes them virtually impossible to break on a dry cutter....sometimes scoring the back and the face of the tile helps...but is difficult to obtain a clean cut.....wet cutter with a continous porcelain rim blade for best results......

 

[sWe]

Haven't come across any of those. What are they called?

 

[DHTiling]

Can't remember the make..will check next time i'm in the tile shop.....

 

[Spud]

Try and get your hand on a Nuova Battipav Super Pro 600 this will breeze through the tile.

We started using them at our centre a few months back and they are a different class to Rubi.

Its got spring loaded beds either side and has a 2000 kg breaking capacity.

We have tried cutting everything with it and it performs every time without fail.

If your interested in getting yourself one let me know.

Good luck mate

i agree i have the superpro 750 the best porcelain cutter i have ever used best slide cutters around ,i have come across some of the copper metallic ranges that it wont cut though and had to cut these on a wet saw but 99/100 tiles it cuts perfectly ,good post essex tiling

 

[The Lowestoft Tiler]

I have just finished a floor with tiles that were so hard, i could not break them with my Rubi cutter! I scored the tile, removed it from the bed, placed a small steel bar under the score and stood on the tile each side and the tile would not break! now i did this just to prove to the customer how hard they were!
I had to cut all of the tiles with a diamond blade on my grinder, scored them first and blade went like a knife in butter.
The tiles were Edimax "space" i used the 600 by 600, 600 by 300 and the tiny brick tiles. Job came out really nice and the customer is happy as Larry!

 

[enduro]

Starting a bathroom on monday, tiles are 500x300x11 porcelain from fired earth, got a hold of a sample and the bugger simply wont cut on a dry cutter, tried my trusted sigma ,no chance!! then tried scoring with the rubi and tapping on the handle, broke everywhere bar the scored line, so it looks like doing all the cuts with a wet cutter, unless anyones got a better idea ?? :mad2:

Sounds like the ones i did the other week from Fired Earth, i did a post about them, and as you say only way to cut them is a wet cutter, even my rubi tx900 with a brand new wheel would not cut these. Had to drill them and bought some drills from 365Drills and they worked a treat.

 

[andy-p]

Try and get your hand on a Nuova Battipav Super Pro 600 this will breeze through the tile.

We started using them at our centre a few months back and they are a different class to Rubi.

Its got spring loaded beds either side and has a 2000 kg breaking capacity.

We have tried cutting everything with it and it performs every time without fail.

If your interested in getting yourself one let me know.

Good luck mate

looked that cutter up on the net, looks the business, that breaking capacity is about twice the rubi innit! but even that cutter wouldnt break these suckers, gonna have to set up the old bridge, i canny wait.. :furious3: :lol: the tiles are called ethos white from fired earth, beware...

 

[Deleted member 1779]

As the posts above say - dont forget your 365drills.....

Will work very well on the ultra-hard tiles. Wont break them. And at £49.99 are excellent value for money. (Price quoted for the all-in-one solution)

AVAILABLE HERE

(tile drill results in very hard tiles)

 

[DHTiling]

If its porcelain this cutter will cut it. We have tried cutting everything with this cutter just to see how far we can push it , we have cut 15mm porcelain on it and although it was extremely tough to break it still managed it.

It will save you half the time

If it's the tile i.m thinking of dan....NO!! dry cutter will touch it....it is porcelanato bodied and has a thick glaze , so when combined together with the grade 5 hardness of the biscuit it just won't break cleanly.....

I will get the name of the tile i'm thinking of t/moz........

 

[White Room]

Would wet cut but as for any holes use 365 drills they will go through them no probs. I have both armeg and 365 and now use 365 all the time. One thing I bought from Topps was their hole saw guide it works treat with the 365 drills and lasts longer than the 365 guide.

Highlander

Is that the one with four bearings which wrap around the cutter

 

[TopTrainer]

One day all tiles will be made this way.......................................:mad2:


TT

 

[Deleted member 1779]

Yes comment above makes a point. Word from Europe is that as ceramic kilns go end of life they are being replaced by efficient porcelain making equipment.

Production of hard tiles is set to increase over the next ten years driven by consumer demand plus production methods. Expect a lot more porcelain!

About the drill guide. It would seem our drills are lasting much longer than we give them credit for. Some get up to 25holes per drill bit. And so the guide can wear out. Advice is to use the guide only for a few seconds to get the hole started. Then remove it. Just be careful of some other equipment which can be bulky, doenst stick to the tile (prone to falling off the wall!). One other little trick we noticed is that its possible to use worn guides to start the drill if you pull the drill into it.

 

[Highlander]

Is that the one with four bearings which wrap around the cutter

You got it works great with 365 drills