A tube cutter works using its sharp blade to cut through plastic tubing when pressure is exerted by the user. This is done by squeezing the tool’s handles together.
Some tube cutters cut the tubing in a circular motion by rolling the blade around the plastic tubing, slicing further through the plastic on each turn.
It is important that the cuts are made as square as possible, especially when using the tubes for water lines, as if there are any gaps where the tubes meet, it will cause leaks.
To make the cut square, the cutter has a jaw to hold the tube in position whilst the blade slices straight down through the tube.The blades of tube cutters that cut in a circular motion should be kept in the same position with each turn, as any slight movement along the tube could cause the cut to be crooked and not square.
Some tube cutters, for example the power tube cutter and three way tube cutter, are better at making square cuts than others depending on whether they have an anvil jaw and how well the jaw is shaped to the tube.For more information, see our page: What are the different types of tube cutter?
