Stop Wasting Tube: How Our Free Linear Cut Calculator Saves Material, Time and Money

Every offcut in the scrap bin is material you paid for and didn't use. Whether you're cutting chromoly for a roll cage, RHS for a trailer or extrusion for a shop fit-out, the way you lay out your cuts on each stock length decides how much you buy and how much you throw away.

That's why we built the CDI Linear Cut Calculator. It's free to use and you don't need to sign up.

What it does

You enter your stock length (say 6000 mm), your saw's blade kerf, any end trim, and the list of pieces you need with quantities. The calculator packs the pieces onto as few bars as it can and shows you:

• how many stock lengths you need to buy
• the material yield and total waste
• a colour-coded layout of every bar, showing exactly which pieces come from which length

You can print the plan or save it as a PDF and take it straight to the saw.

A quick example

Using the calculator's default job: 4 pieces at 1200 mm, 6 at 800 mm and 10 at 450 mm, from 6000 mm stock with a 3 mm kerf. That's 20 pieces, and the calculator fits them onto 3 lengths at 78.3% yield. It also tells you exactly which pieces to cut from each bar, so there's no working it out at the saw.

Why it matters for businesses

• Accurate quoting: know your true material quantity before you price a job, instead of adding a "just in case" length to every quote.
• Tighter ordering: order the right number of lengths from your supplier the first time. Fewer short orders and fewer extra delivery runs.
• Less time planning: a cut list that used to take a pen, a calculator and a few goes to get right is done in seconds.
• A clear plan for the shop floor: print the bar-by-bar plan so whoever's on the saw cuts it the same way every time.

Why it matters for DIY builders

• Buy once: no second trip to the steel yard because you came up one length short.
• Don't overbuy: no paying for a full length you only needed half of.
• Less stress: the kerf is allowed for, so your last piece isn't mysteriously 6 mm short.

What can you use it for?

Anything sold in straight lengths: round tube, square and rectangular hollow section, flat bar, angle, aluminium extrusion, threaded rod and timber. Roll cages, chassis rails, bull bars, racks, trailers, benches and shelving are all good fits.

Try it now

Open the free Linear Cut Calculator. If it saves you some material, we'd love to hear about it.

Working with sheet as well? Check out our Sheet Cut Calculator and Tube Coping Calculator.