Before I could afford a chopsaw, my 6" angle grinder was all I had to cut steel. It is a Porter Cable, made by Flex in Germany. I spent $25 to buy a cutoff guard. This guard is made of the same heavy guage steel that the angle grinder guard is made of, and it completely covers both sides of the blade much like a chopsaw guard. Enough of the cutoff wheel is exposed to use the full radius of the wheel as it wears down. The operator is substatially more shielded than when using the standard type guard with a cutoff wheel. Another nice feature of this grinder is the ability to mount the side handle sticking stright up (perpendicular to the plane of the wheel). This allows one to have great control while lowering the tool into a cut and the cutoff guard eliminates unneccesary exposure of the wheel.
I finally was able to afford a chopsaw last year and I use it exclusively for cutting stock for fabrication. I still use the grinder for taking things apart and cutting stainless and hardened steel. I also found an old Beverly B-2 so I no longer have to cut sheet goods with my grinder (which is no fun at all).
BTW the guard only works if you use it and I must admit I don't unless I'm going to be using the cutoff wheel a LOT. That's why one can't have too many angle grinders...
If you can only afford one, a $25 guard can make cutting much safer.
Jeff Dantzler Seattle, WA