Cutting a tire-tread doormat

[Brian Kent]

My sister wants to trim a doormat to fit the space better. It is made of strips of recycled tire tread.

How would you cut a strip of tire tread?

Sawzall did not work.
Borg salesman recommended dremel.
She has an angle grinder.

I was wondering about putting it in a vise and slicing it with a big kitchen knife.
I also could try a hack saw.

What would you do?

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Hand saw..... or a pruning saw.....some thing with some teeth.

The speed of a angle grinder might tend to burn it, I'm afraid.

[Brian Kent]

Ken, like a regular big-ole cross cut hand saw?

[Jeffrey Makiel]

Brian,
It sounds like a good job for a band saw. It's amazing to think of all the non-wood things I've cut with it. However, I haven't cut meat with it yet! But I just got my health care renewal bill with a massive increase, and now the local possum are beginning to look delicious.
-Jeff

[Marty Paulus]

Brian, Keep in mind that tires have belts of either steel or kevlar in them. Getting through the rubber tread with a large tooth saw is the easy part. Getting through the steel belts is where you will have your trouble. You may want to try low tooth count hack saw blade. Cutting through the rubber will dictate a slow cutting rate which is why the sawzall didn't work.

[Mark Bolton]

I think most of the people who make those style mats (have seen them at craft shows) use a skill saw believe it or not. I dont know the details but I would imagine you would have to have a helper pull the cut open as you cut through to avoid excessive burning.

I dont think the tires used for these mat's are typically steel belted so your not cutting through plies of high tensile wire.

Mark

[Steven DeMars]

Sandwich the tire material between two pieces of thin sacrificial plywood.

That is the way they cut rubber tire sandals during the 60's . . .

Almost forgot . . . use a good jig saw . . .

Steve

[Dick Strauss]

Hydraulic hoses (with internal braiding) can be cut with a std abrasive cutoff wheel so I'd suggest the angle grinder with cutting wheel. Make sure you cut it outside because the area will stink to high heaven for quite some time using this method

[brent warner]

I have cut mudflaps (1/2 inch thick) with box cutter knife -- use straight edge, score, bend so cut starts to open, score, etc until cut through !

brent

[ray hampton]

My sister wants to trim a doormat to fit the space better. It is made of strips of recycled tire tread.

How would you cut a strip of tire tread?

Sawzall did not work.
Borg salesman recommended dremel.
She has an angle grinder.

I was wondering about putting it in a vise and slicing it with a big kitchen knife.
I also could try a hack saw.

What would you do?

If the rubber mat are anything like cutting a tire THEN DON"'T use a angle grinder, I cut a tire with the angle grinder and it wore a almost new wheel down to nothing, it will work but make sure that you buy extra wheels

[ray hampton]

if a knife will cut rubber then how about buying the knife-edge blade for your Sabre or jig saw