Product Description
Hot Cut & Seal Webcutter 5 inch
Features
- Rugged all-metal construction— extremely durable, yet lightweight.
- One-piece hot knife and heater block provides extremely efficient heating and extended heater life.
- 5" hot knife cuts most common webbing widths. (Larger blades are optional).
- Variable heater control up to 1022°F (550°C).
- 110 VAC fused and fully grounded power supply with power lamp.
The ARX-80 HotCutter is a general purpose hot knife cutter used for hot cutting and sealing woven and knitted synthetic materials to prevent fraying. Cuts webbing, braid, elastics, strapping, cord, ribbon, hook and loop, and rope.
To operate, simply slide the webbing across the base plate and bring the handle down to cut and seal with minimum effort. Cutting time is usually less than one second, depending upon material thickness and heat setting.
Brass vs. Stainless Steel Blades
Although Brass is actually the overall best material for hot knives as it conducts heat extremely well, the downside is that it wears out faster than Stainless Steel. The downside to Stainless Steel is that it requires higher operating temps to do the same work as brass. As such, it causes the heater to burn out faster. But, the cost of the heater is about one-third the cost of a replacement blade. Stainless as a material is actually less expensive than brass but is more difficult to machine, making fabricated parts more expensive.
The other difference between a machine with Brass blade vs. Stainless Steel blade is that over time the brass knife plate is more likely to fuse to the heater block. Therefore, when the brass blade needs replacing, often times the heater block will also have to be replaced. As for longevity of the Brass blade, it depends upon usage. We've seen blades last from 1 year to 5 years or more, with a majority in the latter category. If you choose brass, it is important to remember that the heat does most of the cutting and not pressure. Applying a large amount of pressure during the cut actually wears out the blade faster.