Oil is an important aspect of glass cutting. A stained glass artist must have this in his arsenal. But which one should you use?
Cutting Oil is filled in the reservoir of the glass cutters. Cutting oil helps to ease up the job and make it more efficient.
Various types of oils can be used to cut glass. Let’s look at each one of ’em so you can decide for yourself which one to use.
Before that let’s see what makes Cutting oil useful for our purpose.
What is Cutting oil made of?
Cutting oil is made out of Petroleum distillates, Plant oils, Animal fats, Water, and Air. These are all the raw ingredients of Cutting oil.
Cutting oil is made so that it assists the glass cutter in its job. Cutting oil helps the tools function optimally and reduce the damage to the tools.
Cutting oils are generally made from Mineral oils. Mineral oils based on Kerosene, Paraffins, and mixtures of them make good Cutting oils.
What kind of oil is used for glass cutting?
Let’s look at the properties of Cutting oil.
- Should keep the workpiece at an optimum temperature. Cutting oil shouldn’t let the tool get hotter than optimal temperature.
- A good Cutting oil would lubricate the cutting edge and prevent tip welding. This ensures the life of the glass cutter.
- Ensure the safety of the person using it. It should also be safe to the environment upon disposal.
- Cutting oil should prevent rust on the cutting tools.
All these properties of Cutting oil increase the life of the cutting tools. Thus, Cutting oil should be preferred when working on Stained glass projects.
What can I use instead of cutting oil?
You need Cutting oil to assist you in cutting glass. If Cutting oil isn’t available then you could probably use Kerosene.
Kerosene is often used by many of my friends who are into stained glass crafts. They say it works great.
Baby oil works great to lubricate the glass cutter and reduce tip welding. There’s nothing in the market that can perfectly replace Cutting oil for its purpose.
Note: Only use Baby oil if there’s absolutely no chance of getting Cutting oil.
Can you use WD40 to cut glass?
No, you shouldn’t use WD40 to cut glass. WD in WD40 stands for Water displacer. WD40 just helps to displace water from crevices, cracks, and joints.
It should be used for that purpose alone. WD40 wasn’t primarily made for cutting glass. Do not use WD40 under any circumstances.
Let’s look at some popular alternatives and know if they really work.
Can you use Olive oil to cut glass?
No, do not ever use Olive oil to cut glass. If you use it you’ll probably need to buy a new set of glass cutting instruments.
Cutting oil has a consistency and properties that suit well for cutting glass. Olive oil doesn’t have such properties.
Olive oil won’t spoil your tools immediately but it does ruin them eventually. It’s best not to use olive oil to cut glass.
Can I use Baby oil to cut glass?
Baby Oil can be used if you use a hand-held cutter. You can fill the oil reservoir with baby oil and it would work perfectly fine.
It works great and smells great too! It’s been 10 years and the handheld cutter is still working well. Just remember though, this should be your last resort.
If you are able to find cutting oil near you, do use cutting oil.
Can I use Motor oil as cutting oil?
No, you shouldn’t use Motor oil if you don’t have cutting oil handy. Motor oil is made for a different purpose and it is not an alternative to cutting oil.
Motor oil impedes glass on contact. Cutting oil does the opposite. This is why I advise against using motor oil for glass cutting.
Motor oil is probably the worst choice. Motor oil will try its best to keep the blade away from the glass. It will interfere with your glass cutting efforts.
Why do you need Kerosene to cut glass?
Kerosene can be used to lubricate glass cutters. It works as a great alternative to Cutting oil due to its inherent properties.
It is the go-to option for most stained glass artists as it’s handy. The only problem is that it gives out this odor which some may find disturbing.
Kerosene lubricates the cutter and helps keep the temperature optimal. It also doesn’t gum up the glass surface as it evaporates immediately.
So, to conclude we can say Kerosene is the best alternative to Cutting oil.
Happy Crafting 🙂
