Mtakata Power Tools

As we increase our technological base, the types and capabilities of our tools increases along with that base. Today's glass cutting tools are a good example of that increase. Where we used to rely on a diamond wheeled cutter and a pair of pliers, there are many more options available today. There many types of specialty glass cutting tools available today including machine operated specialty cutters designed to make glass knives for histology laboratories. While this is a very specialized use of a glass cutting tool, it is an example of how far science has advanced even the age old art of glass work.

Even your more standard glass cutting tools have changed over the years. Where the standard used to be a diamond encrusted or hardened steel wheel cutter, there are also carbide wheel cutters and oil lubricated cutters available now and the hardened steel cutter in almost impossible to find anymore. Diamond encrusted wheel cutters are still the most popular, but even these can be found in many different styles. One that I found was a comfortable foam cushioned handle with a detachable oil fed cutting head. This glass cutting tool is designed to have enough weight to do most of the work of scoring the glass by itself. No matter what angle you have the scorer at, the head remains perpendicular to the glass being scored and this cutter does so much of the work of scoring that you can use while sitting down. This is a great boon to artists who work with glass.

Oil fed glass cutting tools keep your tool lubricated to allow them to last longer. Having the glass cutting tools lubricated as you use them not only helps them to last longer, but also helps to ensure good scores by keeping the wheel turning evenly. Cutting glass is not like cutting other materials. You do not actually cut the glass as you would with a piece of wood, but score it creating a pressure point in the glass. You then tap it sharply it break the glass at the pressure point created. If the scoring is deep enough, the glass breaks smoothly and evenly all along the pressure line created by the scoring with a single tap. To help keep the score straight and even, there are many scoring aids available. These scoring aids are called jigs and run the gamut from a long heavy straight edge to more complicated ones designed for specialty use or artwork.

An important tool to keep by your glass cutting area is a small stiff brush to clean your work area. This is to keep you from being tempted to clean the area with your hand as is often done at a woodworking area to remove small particles. If tried with small glass particles, some of them will become imbedded in the skin. Glass imbedded in the skin can be very difficult to remove and is very dangerous because of that. With all the variety of glass cutting tools available today, anyone should be able to cut glass quickly and easily.