Skid plate for a concrete saw

Abstract

A skid plate for a concrete saw is integrally cast having two end mounting portions and a middle portion with a slot in the middle portion. A horizontal slot in a leading end mounting portion cooperates and a vertical slot in the trailing end portion releasably engage pins on the saw to allow the skid plate to be easily fastened to and removed from the saw. A spring loaded latch mechanism holds the pins in the slots.

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       34 . A skid plate for a concrete cutting saw, the saw having a rotating blade with sides and rotating about a rotational axis to cut a groove in a concrete surface during use of the saw, comprising:
 an elongated support portion having a longitudinal slot therein sized to fit within about ⅛ inch or less of the sides of the concrete cutting blade during use of the skid plate, the elongated support being slightly bowed an amount selected to substantially counteract bowing of the skid plate that occurs when the elongated support is urged against the concrete surface during cutting of the concrete, the elongated support being integrally cast or forged or machined in the bowed configuration;   at least one saw mounting portion connected to the skid plate.   
   
   
       35 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein the at least one saw mounting portion extends in front of a front mount on the saw and extends a distance sufficient to abut the concrete surface directly below the location of the front mount on the saw during cutting. 
   
   
       36 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein the skid plate has a leading end that is thicker than the elongated portion in a direction parallel to the plane of the cutting blade. 
   
   
       37 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein the skid plate has a leading and trailing end each of which is thicker than the elongated portion in a direction parallel to the plane of the cutting blade. 
   
   
       38 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , where the elongated portion is cast of metal. 
   
   
       39 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , where the elongated portion is cast of metal and a bottom of the skid plate has a coating on it that is harder than the cast metal. 
   
   
       40 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , where the elongated portion has a bottom that has a hard coating on it. 
   
   
       41 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , where the elongated portion is cast of a metal the dominant portion of which is other than iron. 
   
   
       42 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , where the elongated portion is cast of a polymer. 
   
   
       43 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein there are two mounting portions, one of which comprises a slot extending along an axis toward and away from the elongated support portion and configured to receive a pin orientated generally parallel to the rotational axis and the other of which comprises a slot that is generally parallel to the concrete surface during cutting. 
   
   
       44 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein the skid plate has a leading and trailing end and two opposing sides extending between the ends, with the leading end of the skid plate inclined from one side to the other in the direction of the trailing end. 
   
   
       45 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein the skid plate has a leading and trailing end and two opposing sides extending between the ends, and further has a top and bottom surface, with the leading end of the skid plate inclined from the top toward the bottom and from the leading end toward the trailing end. 
   
   
       46 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , wherein the skid plate has a leading and trailing end and the leading end of the skid plate has a V shaped configuration in the plane of the elongated portion with the point of the V oriented away from a trailing end and toward the leading end. 
   
   
       47 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , further comprising a plate configured to releasably connect to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the skid plate and the concrete during cutting, the plate having a smooth bottom for abutting the concrete surface during cutting. 
   
   
       48 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , further comprising a plate configured to releasably connect to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the skid plate and the concrete during cutting, and a mechanism releasably fastening the plate to the skid plate. 
   
   
       49 . The skid plate of  claim 34 , further comprising a metal insert in the support portion at a leading end of the slot in the skid plate. 
   
   
       50 . A skid plate for a concrete cutting saw, the saw having a rotating blade with sides and rotating about a rotational axis to cut a groove in a concrete surface during use of the saw, the skid plate having a leading and trailing end with opposing sides and a top and bottom surface, the bottom surface being adjacent to or abutting the concrete during cutting; comprising:
 an elongated support portion having a longitudinal slot therein sized to fit within about ⅛ inch or less of the sides of the concrete cutting blade during use of the skid plate;   at least one saw mounting portion connected to the skid plate; and   the leading end of the skid plate having at least a portion inclined from one side toward the other side in a direction toward the trailing end of the skid plate.   
   
   
       51 . The skid plate of  claim 50 , wherein the elongated portion comprises a polymer with a metal insert at the location of an up-cutting edge of the cutting blade and extending to the surface abutting the concrete. 
   
   
       52 . The skid plate of  claim 50 , wherein the elongated portion comprises a polymer cast over a metal portion. 
   
   
       53 . The skid plate of  claim 50 , further comprising a plate configured to releasably connect to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the skid plate and the concrete during cutting, the plate having a smooth bottom for abutting the concrete surface during cutting. 
   
   
       54 . The skid plate of  claim 50 , where the elongated portion includes a polymer cast over one of a metal insert or a metal plate. 
   
   
       55 . A skid plate for a concrete cutting saw, the saw having a rotating blade with sides and rotating about a rotational axis to cut a groove in a concrete surface during use of the saw, comprising:
 an elongated support portion having a longitudinal slot therein sized to fit within about ⅛ inch or less of the sides of the concrete cutting blade during use of the skid plate; and   at least one saw mounting portion connected to the skid plate at a leading end of the skid plate, the mounting portion having a side shield on each opposing side of the skid plate, the side shield extending above at least a portion of a top surface of the leading end of the skid plate.   
   
   
       56 . The skid plate of  claim 55 , wherein the saw mounting portion extends in front of a front mount on the saw and extends a distance sufficient to abut the concrete surface directly below the location of the front mount on the saw during cutting. 
   
   
       57 . The skid plate of  claim 55 , wherein the leading end of the skid plate is thicker than the elongated portion in a direction parallel to the plane of the cutting blade. 
   
   
       58 . The skid plate of  claim 55 , wherein the skid plate has a leading and trailing end each of which is thicker than the elongated portion in a direction parallel to the plane of the cutting blade. 
   
   
       59 . The skid plate of  claim 55 , where the elongated portion is cast of metal the dominant portion of which is not iron. 
   
   
       60 . The skid plate of  claim 55 , wherein the elongated portion comprises a polymer cast over one of a metal plate or insert. 
   
   
       61 . The skid plate of  claim 55 , further comprising a plate configured to releasably connect to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the skid plate and the concrete during cutting, the plate having a smooth bottom for abutting the concrete surface during cutting. 
   
   
       62 . A skid plate for use on a concrete cutting saw having a cutting blade that rotates about a first axis and extends through a slot in the skid plate to cut a groove in a concrete surface along a second axis that is orthogonal to the first axis, the skid plate having a releasable connection for releasable mounting the skid plate to the saw, the skid plate comprising:
 a leading end inclined away from the concrete surface and an elongated support portion both integrally cast, forged or cut from metal or polymer, the support portion having an elongated slot therein, the slot sized relative to the cutting blade to support the concrete surface during cutting so it does not produce unacceptable raveling of the cut groove during use of the skid plate, the support portion having a bottom.   
   
   
       63 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion includes a metal insert at the location of an up-cutting edge of the cutting blade. 
   
   
       64 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion comprises a polymer with a metal insert at the location of an up-cutting edge of the cutting blade. 
   
   
       65 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion comprises a polymer with a metal insert at the location of an up-cutting edge of the cutting blade and extending to the surface abutting the concrete. 
   
   
       66 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion comprises a polymer cast over a metal portion. 
   
   
       67 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion includes a plate over the bottom of the elongated portion. 
   
   
       68 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion includes a polymer cast over one of a metal insert or a metal plate. 
   
   
       69 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion is cast of a metal the dominant portion of which is other than iron. 
   
   
       70 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , where the elongated portion comprises a polymer. 
   
   
       71 . The skid plate of  claim 62 , wherein the skid plate is configured to abut the concrete below the location of the releasable connection to the saw during use of the skid plate. 
   
   
       72 . A method for use with a concrete cutting saw, the saw having a rotating blade with sides and rotating about a rotational axis to cut a groove in a concrete surface during use of the saw, comprising:
 providing a skid plate having an elongated support portion having a longitudinal slot therein sized to fit within about ⅛ inch or less of the sides of the concrete cutting blade during use of the skid plate, the elongated support being slightly bowed an amount selected to substantially counteract bowing of the skid plate that occurs when the elongated support is urged against the concrete surface during cutting of the concrete;   providing at least one saw mounting portion, wherein the elongated support and at least one saw mounting portion are integrally cast, forged or machined from a single piece of material;   providing a plate configured to removably attach to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the elongated portion and the concrete during cutting.   
   
   
       73 . The method of  claim 72 , further comprising forming the elongated portion out of metal. 
   
   
       74 . A method for use with a concrete cutting saw having a cutting blade that rotates about a first axis and extends through a slot in a skid plate to cut a groove in a concrete surface along a second axis that is orthogonal to the first axis, the saw having front and rear mounts on opposing ends of the cutting blade to fasten to the skid plate, the skid plate comprising:
 providing two saw mounting portions on the skid plate located to correspond to the front and rear saw mounts and an elongated support portion, the two mounting portions and support portion being integrally formed by casting, forging or cutting;   further providing an elongated in the support portion, the slot sized relative to the cutting blade to support the concrete surface during cutting so it does not produce unacceptable raveling of the cut groove during use of the skid plate; and   providing a plate configured to removably attach to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the elongated portion and the concrete during cutting.   
   
   
       75 . The method of  claim 74 , further comprising forming the elongated portion out of metal. 
   
   
       76 . The method of  claim 74 , further comprising forming the elongated portion at least partially out of a polymer. 
   
   
       77 . The method of  claim 74 , further comprising forming the plate out of metal. 
   
   
       78 . The method of  claim 74 , further comprising forming the plate out of a polymer. 
   
   
       79 . A method for use with a concrete cutting saw having a cutting blade that rotates about a first axis and extends through a slot in a skid plate to cut a groove in a concrete surface along a second axis that is orthogonal to the first axis, the skid plate comprising:
 providing the skid plate with first means for mounting the skid plate to the concrete saw and providing the skid plate with second means for supporting the concrete surface during cutting, the first and second means being integrally formed;   providing a plate configured to removably attach to the skid plate so the plate is interposed between a bottom of the elongated portion and the concrete during cutting.   
   
   
       80 . The method of  claim 79 , further comprising forming the elongated portion out of metal.