To work with tiles, you can create a tile cutter with your own hands. With this tool, the tiles are cut as accurately as possible. The simplest tool option is a grinder tile cutter.

In order to make a tile cutter from a grinder with your own hands, you must first understand the features of this tool. It is used to cut all types of tiles. Thanks to this tool, the highest quality tile cut is made.

For cutting it is necessary to install a diamond or corundum disc on the tool. They must be securely fastened to the tool.

Many people ask how to make a DIY tile cutter? To this end, it is necessary to correctly install the grinder, which is equipped with a corresponding disc. If the method of horizontal fastening of the grinder is used, then it is necessary to ensure a strict vertical position of the working disk. When cutting tiles, make sure that they are perpendicular to the cutting tool. The process of cutting the disc in this case is carried out with outstretched arms.

Necessary materials

If you do not know how to make a tile cutter from a grinder with your own hands, then you can use the vertical tool mount. In this case, it is necessary to take care of the location of the table surface and the upper part of the gearbox on the same plane. In this case, there may be deviations of several millimeters. The cutting element of the grinder in relation to the table surface should be located at an angle of 90 degrees.

In order to make a do-it-yourself electric water-cooled tile cutter, you must use the appropriate tools.

Most often, this procedure is performed using:

• Sheet metal;
• Grinders;
• Clamps with a diameter of 0.8 to 1 centimeter;
• Nuts and lock nuts.

You can make a tile cutter with your own hands if you have a grinder at hand. With this tool, it will be quite easy to cut.

Advantages of a tile cutter

The advantages of an electric tile cutter from a grinder include:

• The ability to cut durable porcelain stoneware and stone;
• The fastest possible processing of large volumes of material;
• Providing the possibility of the most even cut;
• Reduced wear when compared to hand tools.

Due to the large number of advantages, the grinder is widely used as a tile cutter among many builders. You can watch the video how to make a tile cutter from a grinder.

Installation rules

In order to make a tile cutter with your own hands, you need to build a work surface. A metal sheet is attached from above. Before carrying out this procedure, a hole must be made in the table and sheet through which the disc will pass. When choosing a sheet size, you need to consider the size of the tile. Even the largest material must fit on a sheet of metal during the cut.

Next, the grinder is attached to the table. For this purpose, nuts, locknuts and clamps must be used. To ensure the integrity of the grinder during the work on cutting the tiles, it is necessary to place the clamps in protective covers. For this purpose, PVC or rubber tubes can be used. Before installation, it is necessary to adjust the clamp to the shape of the cross-section.

If a do-it-yourself tile cutter, a video of which can be seen on the Internet, will be built in a residential building, then you need to connect it to a vacuum cleaner. For this purpose, it is necessary to fix the socket of the intake hose under the location of the cutting disc of the tool.

Instead of a vacuum cleaner, you can use a container of water.

The grinder at the base of the tile cutter is the best option. This is due to the fact that a minimum number of components are required to connect it. Also, this tool can work at high speeds, which provides a high speed of work. When using other improvised means, an additional gearbox is required.

additional information

When installing the grinder, there is no need to lay a metal sheet on the entire surface of the table. It will be enough just to cover the corner of the working surface with it, which will ensure maximum cutting accuracy. Also, the metal corner will provide high accuracy of the tile cut.

With the help of a grinder, you can make an automatic tile cutter with your own hands, a photo of which can be found on our website. Unlike manual models, when using this tool, the appearance of microcracks can be observed on the tiles. When using a tile cutter from a grinder, such troubles can be avoided.

After that, cutting is done with a grinder. When installing the tool, everything must be done to ensure its stability. This will guarantee convenience during work.
Any master can independently make a tile cutter from a grinder with his own hands. To do this, you just need to have the appropriate tools. It is best to use a high power grinder to cut the tiles. This will ensure a high quality cut, as well as the absence of chips in the cut line of the tile. Before carrying out work, it is necessary to take unnecessary or defective tiles and make a test cut. This will allow you to assess the quality of the grinder.

The cheapest and easiest option is considered a mechanical device for cutting tiles and tiles. Its convenience lies in its inexpensive cost, the ability to use it without electricity, and security. The speed of work, of course, will be inferior, but since we are talking about laying several square meters of coverage, then buying an electric model will be superfluous if you know how to make a tile cutter with your own hands.

Making a mechanical tile cutter

In order to make a homemade tile cutter, you need to prepare a platform on which the tile will be attached and the action is performed. You can make it from the board. The main thing is a flat surface without humps and depressions. The cutting element and rails will be attached to the platform. As a cutting element, a glass cutter with a removed head is mainly used, to which the blade is attached.

After the main parts are collected, you need to find additional ones. If you have a lot of spare parts from other devices in your garage, picking up the rest will be as easy as shelling pears. What you need:

• Glue and rubber;
• 2 small bearings and a shaft for their work;
• Steel tube with shaft diameter;
• Steel corners with dimensions 20X20 (4pcs) and 40X40 (2pcs).

If you have a welding machine, very good. If not, you can use metal glue. What is it for? In order to fasten the corners together and make the so-called frame for the tile cutter with your own hands. In appearance, you should get 2 U-shaped parts symmetrical with each other. As you already understood, this is what welding is needed for. These parts must be fastened to the platform in such a way that the cutting element can move freely in the middle.

The tree is not particularly durable, therefore, metal strips are additionally installed on it, which are placed on hinges. A recess is made in the middle of the board, which serves as a groove for the cutting element. This groove is needed in order not to damage the platform with a glass cutter during operation, which will drop below a little tile.

When everything described above is ready, you need to fix the blade. For this, a steel tube is taken, to which a blade retainer is attached on one side, and a handle on the other. The glass cutter blade is a diamond disc that reaches the tile on the platform when the handle is pressed. To create a cut, the handle must be gently moved over the tile surface. Bearings are needed so that the moving part of the device moves smoothly and evenly. Check if the tile cutter is assembled correctly. The last thing to do is to attach the rubber bands around the edges of the board. The fact is that the wood slides, and the tile can move along the work surface. To prevent this from happening, rubber strips are attached. You can start using a manual tile cutter with your own hands.

Making an electrical device

Electric tile cutter is more perfect. Its cost is more than mechanical, but it also works faster. In addition, it does not require the use of physical force. The main thing is to comply with all safety standards. Actions are based on the principle of a grinder, therefore such a tool can be used as a basis. The goal in this case is to properly secure the grinder to the platform. If in the previous version a glass cutter with a diamond disc is attached to the platform, then in this, according to a similar principle, you need to fix the grinder.

The power of the grinder is much stronger than the physical strength of a person, respectively, and the platform must be more powerful. If you have an old but sturdy table at home, you can choose it as a platform. It will be much more difficult to carry such a device than a mechanical one. The platform is made with a groove in the middle. It is needed so that the disc does not cut the table when scrolling. In addition to the groove, you need to make limiters for the tiles. During operation, the tile should not move to the side, as an uneven cut will come out.

For smooth running of the grinder, it must be fixed to steel pipes. The pipes are welded together by the type of fastening of steps on a stepladder. This way you can adjust the height for tiles of different thickness. The last step is to fix the ring at the desired height, in which the grinder will be clamped. It is advisable to fasten a ring adjustable in diameter, for the possibility of changing the grinder. Do-it-yourself tile cutter from a grinder is ready.

Installation of ceramic tiles is difficult without any type of tile cutter. When choosing a tool, it is important to consider the amount of work that needs to be done. To tile a small area at home, a manual-type tile cutter is enough. If you are a master of cladding, then you need an electric variety of tools. It has good performance and cooling system.

Of course, such a device is very expensive, so we offer you an article that describes how to create a tile cutter with your own hands.

How to know if you need a homemade tile cutter

If you understand that good cladding, even of a small area, cannot be performed without an electric cutter, then after reading the information provided below, you will understand how to make such a tool yourself.

Before you begin building a device, you need to critically evaluate your design and installation ability, as even the slightest mistake can cause serious injury.

If you understand that you will not be able to cope with this task, then it is better to use the services of a professional or rent a tool in a special store.

How to choose an engine

If you are confident in yourself, then we begin the process. For the manufacture of a tile cutter using an autonomous electric motor, you need to select and mount a gearbox that helps to establish the required movement of the disc. From the technical point of view, this solution is quite complicated, so it is recommended to resort to another solution - to use a small grinder equipped with an option for manual regulation of the disc speed.

Making a tool with an electric drive

First of all, it is necessary to determine how the grinder will be located when cutting tiles.

Option 1

The tile is fed along the slat under the grinder, which is strictly fixed under the table.

Pros of a tile cutter from a grinder:

• this technical solution is the simplest, since it involves reliable fixing of the cutting disc from the bottom of the tabletop and the installation of a guide rail (HP) with the possibility of its adjustment;
• you can put a bucket of water under the table, which will trap dust a little, and cool the disc.

Cons of the tool:

• a lot of dust, since such a tile cutter cuts the ceramic throughout the entire thickness and cannot make a small cut;
• inconvenient adjustment of the grinder due to its location under the tabletop.

Option 2

The fixed tile is cut with a grinder, which is attached to the top of the tabletop to the straight rails.

Advantages of the device:

• less dust is generated because you can simply cut through the ceramic and not cut through the hole;
• available regulation by tool.

Disadvantages of the tool:

• it is very difficult to make such a tile cutter without certain skills;
• it is necessary to additionally manually process the surface of the notch of the tile so that it is divided into parts.

If you compare these two tools, then the first will be easier to make at home. Therefore, we will describe below how to do it.

We make a tile cutter table

In order for the ceramic to flow smoothly under the disc, you need to make a smooth tabletop. In addition, it must be strong enough to securely hold the cutting tool. Therefore, experts advise to use a rigid steel frame from the corners to make the countertop. All parts must be connected by electric welding. Then we fit the tabletop under the finished frame. For this, sheet steel with a height of 0.5-0.6 cm is suitable.On it, make a slot for a saw blade with an excess of 0.2-0.3 cm.

Note! To protect yourself while working, mount the grinder so that its disc does not protrude from the slot more than half.

Under the countertop, in continuation of the gap or parallel to it, you need to weld on a steel profile with a size of 0.4 * 0.6 cm or a steel strip with a thickness of 0.4 - 0.5 cm. A grinder will be attached to them later.

On the fixture table, place the drive bar parallel to the grinder to feed the tile straight under the disc. To do this, to the left of the grinder, perpendicular to it, make 2 parallel slits at a distance of the length of the bar between each other. HP will move along them. Its ends will be secured with bolt-nuts through the slot.

Install the grinder

You can attach the grinder to the bottom of the tabletop in different ways. Make sure the mount is firm and strong. This is important because otherwise the grinder can jam in the cutout of the tabletop when cutting the tiles. Also, when installing the saw, consider the possibility of:

• work to the on / off buttons;
• regulate the rotation speed of the grinder;
• change disk.

To prevent the bolt from turning out, a Grover spring washer is placed under its head.

Also, to this connection, the tile cutter is attached to the tabletop with clamping clamps made of strip steel, made according to the drawing of the table. For laying between the "body" of the file and the table, blocks of wood are used. Grooves must be made in them according to the shape of the grinder.

How to cool a homemade tile cutter

Factory electric cutters have a water cooling system. Its design is influenced by the location of the grinder, that is, it can be above the table or below it. It is extremely difficult and pointless to make an electric water-cooled tile cutter of this type at home. To cool the diamond disc, a banal air blow will be enough.

It is also important to remember that you cannot work with a grinder if the humidity indicator is more than 85 percent. Based on this, it can be assumed that the file cannot be wetted.

How to make a homemade manual tile cutter

If you don't want or can't make an electric cutter, you can try making a hand tool. This mechanical design has undeniable advantages:

• simple and safe to use;
• easy;
• mobile;
• compact;
• relatively inexpensive.

It is suitable for cutting floor and porcelain tiles in the home.

Such a tile cutter is a platform on which the cable, HP and the cutting element (RE) attached to the handle are fixed. When pressed against the ceramic, it draws a notch line. Further, the pressure platform presses on the tile, and it breaks into particles. The particles have smooth edges.

Manual cutters are available in mechanical, roller and bearing types. Any house can be created. They differ from each other only in certain elements.

Step-by-step instruction

To make a tool, you need certain metal parts and a cutting element. For the latter, you can use a standard glass cutter. Before installation in the cutter, the cutter must be released from the head. Also, the creation of a tool involves the use of bearing elements, so prepare them in advance.

First of all, we make the base of the tile cutter: a tabletop with a groove and an HP in the middle. A good wide board will do for this purpose. Attach the welded metal strips to it with a hinge. Make grooves in the center of the inner side and drive the bushings there - they will ensure the handle with the cutter slide and limit its travel.

The cutter should be positioned so that when the handle is pressed, it touches the tile and draws a line on it. When pressed, the tile is fixed on the board, then we pull the RE by the handle and that's it - the tile is cut.

As you can see, the scheme for creating and operating such a tile cutter is really very simple.

How to make a circular from a tile cutter

Few people know that a tile cutter can be used as a circular cutter. It is good to cut thin fiberboard or wood tiles with it.

If you decide to turn your tile cutter into a mini circular saw, be sure to check the number and speed of the blade. The permissible number of revolutions is 4 thousand. Also, be sure to read the safety precautions before starting work. You can find out more detailed information from the video:

Outcome

A tile cutter is a very necessary thing for arranging home comfort. If you doubt that you can do it yourself, it is better to rent the device or use the services of a master.

When you don't want to waste your finances once again on a tile-laying tool, you can build a tile cutter with your own hands. It will help to simplify the work, especially if you need to work with porcelain stoneware.

The manual cutter must have a high bearing strength, and the rails and lever must be made of strong steel.

Power tool features

The simplest to operate is a mechanical unit for cutting ceramic tiles.

Pros of a mechanical tile cutter:

• simplicity and safety during operation;
• light weight;
• mobility;
• does not require a lot of costs;
• compactness.

With this design, you can cut any ceramic and porcelain stoneware tiles.
The device of a conventional mechanical tile cutter has the form of a platform for fixing tiles, on which there are a guide and a cutting component, which is fixed on a handle with a carriage. The cutting element is pressed against the tile and in one motion it draws a fracture line. Then the pressure platform presses on the material, it breaks into 2 halves with smooth edges.

Making a manual tile cutter

List of required materials:

• durable board;
• 4 corners made of steel 20 * 20;
• 2 corners made of steel 40 * 40;
• 2 bearings;
• a shaft that fits under the bearings (about 5 cm);
• a steel pipe corresponding to the diameter of the shaft (approximately 2 cm);
• strips of durable rubber;
• electric welding.

The assembly of a manual tile cutter is carried out as follows: small corners are welded to the outer part of a large corner so that the bearing can easily move between them. This is half of the main part of the tile cutter. The other part is performed symmetrically to the first one. Next, you need to mount the cutting component of the tool. To this end, a handle and a holder for the cutting part must be welded to the steel tube, which can be a standard glass cutter or other sharpened component with a diamond coating.

This design is put on the shaft, and its edges are pressed into the bearing bushings. The cutting device is retracted to the starting position. It will also be necessary to secure the ends of the bearing corners using electric welding. At the same time, it is necessary to check the movement of the cutting part along the left gap between the bearing corners. If there are no vibrations and the passage is easy, then the main part of the tile cutter is executed correctly.

It remains only to glue the rubber strips to the bottom and remove the chamfers from them. When the glue is dry, you will need to fix this part on the wood base.

There can be a variety of design options. It is important that the metal part moves easily in a vertical position and there are no deviations along the horizon line. The simplest device consists of standard door hinges, which are attached to two parts of the tile cutter. The disadvantage of this design is that it will not allow cutting of material of various thicknesses. It is advisable to use hinge designs that are height adjustable.
The homemade tool is ready!

Features of the electric tile cutter

This is a more advanced and efficient unit.

It is a little more difficult to do it yourself, since it will require knowledge of the safety standards for working with cutting power tools.

Such a unit will work thanks to the motor that rotates the cutting disc.
The material cutting attachment looks like a grinder's disc. An electric tool will work in the same way. The tile is laid on the work surface, then slowly moves towards the diamond disc, which rotates rapidly.

In order to prevent the accumulation of a huge amount of dust, the electric cutter must be equipped with a container for liquid. During operation, the disc will need to be dipped into it, washing away the dirt and at the same time cooling it, which will increase the life of the tile cutter.

Pluses of an electric tile cutter:

• it makes it possible to quickly process a lot of material;
• can cut stone and durable porcelain stoneware;
• can make a smoother cut;
• it has less wear and tear compared to mechanical models.

The networked tile cutter can be transported from one location to another, but it takes up more space. In addition, the costs for it are more than for manual ones.

About the electric tile cutter

It is advisable to perform an electric unit for cutting material on the basis of a grinder, since it will allow obtaining the required number of revolutions of the cutting edge per minute.
In addition, another electric motor will need a gearbox that will make it possible to get from 4000 to 5500 rpm.
Do-it-yourself grinder tile cutter must be firmly fixed under the table top so that the length of the outer cutting edge is not more than half the thickness of the material. In order to simplify the cutting process, a metal corner must be fixed on the table parallel to the disc. By moving the tool along the corner, you can get an almost perfectly smooth cut.

Both the handheld and the networked type of tool require some skill to work with. For this reason, before working with tiles, it is advisable to practice properly holding the tool in your hand. This can be done on waste material.

We wish you good luck in making your own tile cutter! Follow the instructions above and you will succeed. Such a tool can serve you for a long time, and working with such a tool is doubly pleasant, since you have put your own work and your soul into it.

Working with tiles always implies the presence of a certain tool. If there is no professional equipment at hand, then this issue can be solved with the help of your ingenuity. For example, making a tile cutter from a grinder with your own hands is quite simple.

But first you need to understand what kind of tool it is. As the name implies, such a device is designed for cutting all types of tiles. It helps you make high quality cuts, with more advanced models being able to cut up to 45 °.

The standard tile cutter has a cutting element, protractor, guide and floating base. It is quite possible to replace such a design with a grinder, slightly supplementing it. This tool is capable of working with both ceramics and flooring.

Creating a tile cutter from a grinder

The need for such a technique arises when cladding work is to be performed. For this purpose, you can use a grinder, having previously taken care of a corundum or diamond cutting disc. But the main problem will be a secure fit.

You can create a tile cutter using a special fixing grinder. It fits on a table or workbench. So the work is much more convenient, because there is no need to guide the grinder. In addition, it is much more comfortable to hold the tile than the tool. This design will also contribute to a smoother cutting line, and the likelihood of tile breaking is much lower.

The grinder can be attached to the surface with a horizontal or vertical method, but taking into account that the cutting part rotates on the tile.

1. Horizontal mount. In this case, the grinder is installed in such a way that the working disk is located strictly vertically. During cutting, it is necessary to control that the working tile is perpendicular to the plane of the grinder's cutting disc. At the same time, the cutting element must not snag on the table surface. If you install a tile cutter-grinder in this position, then you immediately need to be prepared for the whole process to take place with outstretched arms, that is, you will constantly have to keep the cut elements on weight, which is extremely difficult physically. Especially if you have to perform large cutting volumes.
2. Vertical mount. To use this method, two points must be observed:

The grinder's cutting disc must be located strictly perpendicular to the table surface.

• the upper part of the grinder gearbox must be located on a level with the table surface or lower by a maximum of 1-2 mm;
• the location of the cutting element (disc) and the table surface together should be equated to 90 °.

In order to create, you should choose the right tools and components:

• grinder;
• metal sheet 0.4-5 cm;
• clamps with a diameter of 0.8-1 cm;
• nuts and locknuts.

Back to the table of contents

First of all, a metal sheet is attached to the work surface. But before that, it is necessary to cut a slot in it, into which the tile cutter disk will enter. The size of the sheet, more precisely, its width, should be chosen so that even the largest tile can fit under the disc. The entire cutting process is controlled by hands, that is, the tiles are moved along the table forward under the cutting element itself.

The grinder is attached to the table (both in the first and in the second case) with clamps using nuts and locknuts. To keep the grinder body undamaged, it is recommended to place the clamps in rubber or PVC tubes. In advance, the clamps are adjusted to the shape of the cross section of the future tile cutter.

It should be remembered that when installed vertically, the grinder remains without a protective casing, since it cannot be put on, which means that working with such a device is extremely dangerous. Therefore, it is better for the operator to be on the right or left side during the entire process, and in addition to use protective equipment - glasses, a respirator and gloves.

If the home workshop will be located in one of the rooms of the apartment, then it is recommended to connect such a tile cutter to a vacuum cleaner. For this, the socket of the intake hose is fixed under the place where the cutting disc is located. And then, during cutting, the grinder and the vacuum cleaner turn on at the same time, which will help get rid of waste materials from the entire process.

A grinder for the base of a tile cutter is quite advisable, since a minimum of additional components are used for this. In addition, thanks to this tool, it is possible to achieve the required number of revolutions of the cutting edge in one minute. Otherwise, you will need to look for an additional gearbox that can give an indicator of 4000-5500 rpm.

In order for the cut to have a more ideal indicator, a metal corner is installed on the table surface, keeping parallel to the disk. Thus, by adhering to it, a high evenness of the cut can be achieved.

Why is a grinder needed? With the help of a grinder, an automated tile cutter is made. Hand-held models, including glass cutters with jigsaws, can form micro-cracks. This often causes the tiles to crack during tapping. While using a grinder-based tile cutter helps to avoid such defects.

To insure yourself, you can draw a future cut line in advance with a pencil. Further, a shallow cut is made along it with a glass cutter, and only then a full-fledged cutting is performed.

Back to the table of contents

Correct selection of the work surface

An important point is the selection of the right table. The size of the tiles that you can work with depends on its size.

If necessary, the working surface can be increased by using folding tables, retractable supports, etc.

If possible, you can purchase such a desktop in a specialized store. But in this case, you should pay attention to several points:

1. Depending on the purpose, each table model can have its own indicator of functional load. Manufacturers indicate this value in the documents for their products. If the table cannot withstand heavy loads, it will have a significant impact on functionality and performance.
2. It is very important to pay attention to the strength of the structure. If the support is not stable, the cutting process can be unsafe. Also on the working surface there are marking and fastening tools. It is best if the table is made of stainless steel or aluminum alloys.
3. There are additional elastic attachments that come with the tables. They prevent the tool from slipping.
4. Not the least in terms of convenience is the ease of cleaning the table. This parameter is influenced by the perforation of the material and the characteristics of the outer base.

Of course, in most cases, you should choose a work surface for individual requirements, since the quality of the result obtained largely depends on the convenience of the operator and his environment.