How To Cut EMT Conduit

EMT Conduit is a readily available steel pipe that you can find locally in stores. Look for it in the electrical aisle of home improvement or hardware stores. We like to use conduit for DIY projects such as greenhouses or desks. In this blog you will learn how to cut EMT Conduit the easy way. Before you know it, you'll be ready to build!

 

Easily Cut Conduit With This Simple Tool

 

One of the first steps to any project is cutting your pipe to the size you need. There are quite a few ways to do this with electirc saws and other things. We believe this cutter is the easiest and most affordable way that you can cut EMT Conduit. It has two tools built in. One for cutting and one for de-burring pipe ends after you make a cut.

 

You can find this tool on our website or locally in mosi mprovement or hardware store. There are quite a few different brands that make this tool. We like the one brasscraft offers. It works perfectly to cut ½”, ¾”, and 1” EMT Conduit. Those are the three sizes  of conduit that can be used with the current lineup of Maker Pipe fittings. The cutter can also be used to cut copper, brass, aluminum, and PVC pipes with diameters between ⅛” and 1-⅛”. As you can see this little tool is really versatile. You can use it anywhere because it doesn’t require electricity to operate.

 

How To Cut EMT Conduit

Mark Your Cut

The first step to cutting EMT Conduit is marking your measurement. Use a dry erase marker or sharpie to mark the desired measurement on your pipe. Then loosen the knob on the cutter until there is a big enough gap to fit the conduit inside.

 

Align The Conduit

You’ll want to make sure the pipe is resting between these two rollers here. This will keep the conduit on track and make it easier to spin around. Then you’ll tighten this knob until the cutter wheel is aligned with the mark you made. 

 

 

A common mistake that people make is over tightening the knob. This is easy to do and causes the conduit to pop out of the rollers. This not only shortens the life of the tool, but also ruins your cut. Be really cautious not to overtighten.

 

Rotate The Cutter Around

Once you have the cutter wheel aligned and the knob tightened a little bit, you’ll want to rotate the cutter around the pipe a few turns.

 

Tips For Cutting

Of course, you can simply hold the pipe in one hand and rotate the cutter with your other hand. It is also helpful if you have a vice or hand clamp lying around. You can use either tool to hold the conduit for you while you rotate the cutter.

 

 

Javier recently shared a neat trick for cutting. He clamped the conduit to his build while cutting. If you don’t have access to a vice or clamp, you can always wear some gloves to give you some extra grip. Another cool trick is to take a T Connector and secure it to the pipe you’re cutting. This will act as a handle while you’re rotating the cutter around the pipe. Huge thanks to Jay from the community for sharing this trick!

 

 

Whether you're using a vice or your bare hands the process is the same. Keep rotating the cutter around the pipe and tightening the knob a couple of turns every so often until the pipe is all the way through and you’ve completed your cut.Tradesmen like to do a trick where you stop about 90% of the way through the pipe and then you can step on the conduit to snap it into two pieces. Over time this will keep the cutter wheel sharp and extend the life of the tool. 

 

How To De-burr EMT Conduit

 

 

After your cut is complete you’ll notice that there is a little bit of a lip on the inside of the conduit. You don’t have to remove this lip unless you’re planning to add threaded inserts or other accesories into the pipe. However, de-burring conduit is just as easy as cutting it. On the back of the cutter tool, there is this little hidden metal piece that rotates out like this. 

 

 

Insert that piece into the pipe and spin it around to grind off the lip on the inside. It’s very easy to do and after a little bit, the conduit will be smoothed out on the inside.

 

Conclusion

We love this simple hand tool and reccomend it quite often. It is definitely the best option if you only need to make a few cuts for your build. There are also some other methods that involve power tools. Power tools don’t necessarily make cutting easier but rather more time-efficient. One of our favorite time saving electric tools is this Milwaukee portable band saw which we reviewed in this video here so check that out if you’re interested. Thanks for reading and happy building!