Cutting porcelain tiles

[tileman]

Hi, I just bought a Rubi TX700N because I have a big job that is all porcelain 600mm x 300mm and 600mm x 600mm both 10mm thick, I started today on the 600mm x 300mm the TX700N couldn't cut them, the cuts mostly went off to one side, I ended up using my angle grinder with a Norton Ultimate tile cutting blade, the job is too big to cut all the tiles this way, can anyone help the Rubi cost about £300 and as yet is useless.
Regards John

 

[Deleted member 15]

use sigmas, dont have any probs with porcelain, they're a lot less than £300

 

[Gazzer]

Hi Tileman, filling your profile in may help as no one can see your location. Who knows there maybe a tiler local who could help.

 

[strongboes]

The chances are it's your technique in using the cutter. You may be using the wrong size wheel, or not scoring hard enough.

Then there is alwaus a technique to using the breaker. on the rubi's there is a sweet spot which you want to be breaking it, i usually find that a number of small taps with the breaker until with experience you know when it will break, then one quick hard tap and it should break clean.

or you can apply pressure to the breaker slowly increasing it, whilst holding one edge of your tile firmly with the other hand and flexing the tile slightly up and down and there will come a point when it will break.

or you can if your cutter is on the floor, bit difficult to explain this one, right knee on the ground to left side of cutter, left knee on tile corner, left hand on breaker. right hand on tile corner. apply pressure with breaker but initiate break with right hand.

If you cant get tile to break clean which i must admit is very very rare, it's just the way you are doing it, then you could cut each end on your wet cutterto the correct side of your score line, then put back on the rubi and should break fine.

I suspect you need a firmer score line, and a sharper action on your breaker.

p.s all the above are only things i have done when faced with a tile that wouldn't break, and is not a normal thing to be doing.

 

[Gazzer]

This is a problem lots of people have and i have found it is to do with the scoring technique mainly. It seems that when you start the score you are not putting as much pressure on as you do when you are in the middle part of teh score, then as you come to the end you release pressure again. You need to keep a constant pressure all through the scoring action.
As Strongboes says, there is a technique with these harder tiles when it comes to snapping teh tile. Usually moving the snapper slightly into the tile helps. It all takes practice.

 

[strongboes]

Further to what Sir Ramic has said I got reminded reading his post, is sometimes you dont push the scorer through dead straight, and if you examine the tile carefully you can see the point at which it has gone astray the score line deviates by a small amount, almost like an old record player jumping if you get my drift. My very well used rubi 600 is near the end of it's life i think, you could easliy do a wavy line if you weren't careful. The bearings it slides on have gone pretty loose, which also reminds me, is it possible to replace these bearings????

 

[tileman]

Thanks all,
Stongboes, I have just tried those moves and am on my way to the hospital now to get untangled.
Seriously, I will try your suggestions tomorrow, I agree with the idea of cutting each end first.
Sir Ramic, I think you are correct in the applied pressure theory, trouble is the tiles are so expensive, I felt I couldn't risk scrapping anymore.

I know one thing though, I will quote a lot more for jobs fixing Porcelain.

Thanks again john

 

[Daz]

I've gone through the same pains as Strongboes suggests. I have also swapped between a 6mm and 10mm scoring wheel and found differing results (unfortunately there is not a common theme so it is down to trial and error).

I've got a TS600 and find that with patience and a little practice I can cut large format procelain; if all else fails I wack them onto my bridge cutter (that cuts anything!).

Good luck!

 

[mz30]

Like has been stated by other members Porcelain is notorious for shearing off ,no matter which cutter ,however i have found that using my ts-600 they rarely shear away from the scribed line(it is fairly new though) ,as you stated your using a rubi try and make sure that your scribe is going from the bottom edge of the tile to the top(try lowering your wheel a little)as most of the time i have seen people have the wheel to high and it does'nt scribe properly all the way to the top of the tile, also try scribing twice if it does not work.
Hope that helps

 

[tileman]

The cutter was supplied with a 10mm and an 18mm scoring wheels, I used the 18mm wheel today. I don't know how to determine which size of wheel is the correct one to use, I thought, the thicker the tile, the bigger the wheel !!!!

 

[mz30]

The cutter was supplied with a 10mm and an 18mm scoring wheels, I used the 18mm wheel today. I don't know how to determine which size of wheel is the correct one to use, I thought, the thicker the tile, the bigger the wheel !!!!

No tileman you have misunderstood what i mean ,when i say lower the wheel i mean have the stem protruding out of the top of where it goes ,however on porcelain i like to use a 6mm wheel as i have found them to be better at scoring porcelain although they may not last as long as cutting ceramic.

 

[UKTT Darren]

If it is a smooth porcelain topped tile use a 10mm wheel in the cutter and score heavely then put the breaker an inch from the top and give it a sharp quick snap, this will do the trick, if it is a rough finish on the porcelain use the 18mm wheel and repeat the above. The key to this is a heavy score line and a quick snap

 

[mick7]

Hi
I'm a total novice and cut 600 x 600 x 10 polished porcelain with a Genesis cutter which only cost £48 on special offer. I used a 6mm Rubi blade as recommended by the tile shop and it cut through like butter. Genesis has been recommended on the forum before hence why I used it - brilliant. Had a practise on an offcut to get it right and then away. None broken or sheared off unbelievably. I was very careful with where to apply the pressure and snapped off slightly into the tile as suggested before.

 

[MICK the Tiler]

Dogs ears we call them down here, when the cut gets the wanders. As everyone else has said practice makes perfect. Try double scoring or even triple scoring then brake. I use sigma cutters and don't have any trouble, Rubi are also a fine trade quality cutter and it's not the tools fault or the tile, just technique.

There have been some really good tips in this thread about technique that should be learnt and practiced by all new to tiling.

 

[nybor62]

rubi tile cutters are crap . sigma would do the job .
i all ways use angle grinder. you could score the tiles with the ruby then break on floor . just put two spaces on each end of the scored tile then put weight onit it should break

 

[DHTiling]

rubi tile cutters are crap . sigma would do the job .
i all ways use angle grinder. you could score the tiles with the ruby then break on floor . just put two spaces on each end of the scored tile then put weight onit it should break

You obviously have'nt used the rubi tx range then to say a comment like that......we all have our favourites but to come out with such a remark with out knowing the full range of cutters is well off the mark.........do some research and see....opinions don't make good cutters............

 

[muffinman]

all cutters are not the same best thing to do is score the tile then get the tile and hit the back of the tile on the machine top end where the rails finish were the score line is very quick you will get the hang of it

 

[muffinman]

You obviously have'nt used the rubi tx range then to say a comment like that......we all have our favourites but to come out with such a remark with out knowing the full range of cutters is well off the mark.........do some research and see....opinions don't make good cutters............

rubi all the way tx is great on any tile you just have to be a Good Tiler lol

 

[Sean fsy]

if they dont split with the manual cutter i just use my wet cutter on the full job, time consuming yes but if the customer is paying a lot of money for the tiles then the amount of waste becomes a major factor, i just put an extra £20/£40 on the job to cover the price of 1 or 2 blades whicn in theory is maybe only the cost of 3,4 tiles. doesnt bother me if it takes longer as theres no price on perfection.

 

[Aston]

when cutting porcelain, i tend to back score the tile about an inch from the end of the tile, then score once sometimes twice before snapping on some porcelain.

i use a ts60 and a tx700 and theres not much between them except the tx700 is better suited to set up for multiply diagonal cuts..i find when using the tx700 on porc, if you hold the breaking handle down with your left thumb over the rails, then firmly tap the handle with your right hand, then the tile breaks nicely...score well and firm sharp snap is the key imo.....tiles are unpredictable and can break now matter how you approach them!

 

[Sean fsy]

i only ever use a snap cutter on unseen cuts, any cuts that are seen i wet cut, always.