Can you cut a 55 gallon drum with a jigsaw?
 

I want to make a woodburner out of a 55 gallon drum. They sell kits, but the kit needs several rounded holes cut, so I can use a diamond bladed circular saw like I wanted.

Will a jigsaw work? Everyone said my last wood burner was a huge fire hazard, trying to get something decent in before winter.

Yes you can use a jig-saw to cut metal. I did it all the time when working sheet metal.
You need to get the right blades though, wood blades from the depot will not do it.

By the way, I hope you were not serious about using a diamond blade on steel.

Andy.

Yeah - aren't you supposed to? That's what I normally use to cut steel, it works perfect. I've used it to cut brick / concrete too - I think that is actually what it's made for.

a 55 gallon drum is made of pretty heavy gauge metal... not sure how well a jigsaw blade would hold up.. why not use a mini grinder

Good excuse to go out and buy that Sawzall you wanted. I didn't realize how useful it was until I got one....works great for cutting limbs on trees as well.

Jig saws will cut a barrel. I have done it in the past.

Before you go cutting into that drum you should make sure that what was in it wasn't flammable.

yes you can use jigsaw to cut the drum, all u wanted to do is use coolant to get a perfect finishing.

Nobody realizes how useful a Sawzall is until they buy one. I picked mine up 3 years ago and cannot count the uses I have found for it.

Use a fine toothed metal cutting blade in your jigsaw and it will work fine. Sawzall blades are usually too broad to make tight turns. Go slow and expect to break a couple of blades. Drill a starter hole for the jigsaw blade to start.