What to cut Homasote with ?

For straight cuts, we used a box cutter with the longer blade, that made minimal dust.  For curves, a metal cutting blade made the smoothest cuts, but we had two vacuums following along to suck up most of the mess.  I've tried to cut it with one of the "knife" blades for the jigsaw, but that didn't work well, so I can't recommend it.

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

I've tried to cut it with one of the "knife" blades for the jigsaw, but that didn't work well, so I can't recommend it.

Those can work well but they get dull very quickly.

I found the best for me was to rough cut what I needed outside with a hand saw, and then do all final cutting using my bandsaw putting the bevels on to make the road bed.  Very minimal dust and a nice polished edge.

I use the metal cutting blade in a jig saw.

I use the Bosch t-shank jigsaw blade for soft material item #T313AW3. I use with my saber saw and no mess. This blade is designed for fast, course cuts in cardboard, leather, carpet, polystyrene and other soft materials. Great for cutting straights and curves

I purchased my homosote from Home Depot. Fortunately, my layout is fairly flat, so I had HD cut the 1/2” plywood and the 1/2” homosote which saved me a lot of work and mess. If you do decide to cut it yourself, regardless of the cutting method you use, I Would highly recommend doing outside!!!

The box cutter with a long blade has worked best for me also.  It doesn't make a mess like cutting it with a saw.  Curved cuts with it can be a challenge, but I haven't had to make many of them.  When I first thought of trying it, I was concerned the knife would slip and I could get cut.  Yes, you have to be carefull, but I haven't encountered any slips.

I have a Dremel Multi-max that I use for foam. I'm sure it would work great for homasote as well. They have fine tooth blades and since it uses a vibration action to cut the dust level should be low. I usually hold my shop-vac nozzle near the cut to capture the dust.

PS- it's a great tool to have in your arsenal for modeling and honey-do projects.

Bob

Rich we bought a set of Jigsaw blades from Lowe’s and the knife blade was included. It creates virtually no dust. I have used it inside and it cleaned up quickly but our rule is all cutting to be outdoors.

@Apples55 posted:

I purchased my homosote from Home Depot. Fortunately, my layout is fairly flat, so I had HD cut the 1/2” plywood and the 1/2” homosote which saved me a lot of work and mess. If you do decide to cut it yourself, regardless of the cutting method you use, I Would highly recommend doing outside!!!

We used a metal blade in the jigsaw and two vacuums, very little mess was created.  All the Homasote was cut inside.  It did take two people to man all the vacuums and the saw, but it worked well.