Cleaning saw blades

[Willemjm]

As for oven cleaner, lye, drain cleaner: Sodium Hydroxide is a very strong alkali that has been reported to break down the brazing holding the carbide teeth to saw blades. It dissolves aluminum and zinc, and will also attack alloys that contain them. It is a very good rust remover for steel and iron, and will remove most one part coatings.

I use to clean my bicycle chains (those used for competitive cycle racing) with that. Then they started failing. I had a really bad crash once in the final sprint to the finishing line when my chain snapped. Sent it back to the manufacturer who had no answers, until they analyzed the cause being the cleaner makeup.

I always wonder where a saw tooth will end up, if it comes off at 3500 rpm?

 

[Bill Clemmons]

I do remember someone posting a brew using baking soda that worked great, you just had to let it soak for several hours. i do not remember the other ingredients though.

Bryan: See post #2 above.

 

[Bryan S]

Thanks Bill. That must be why I remembered it

 

[Matt Furjanic]

Oven cleaner. Put it on the blade and let it set for about 1 or 2 minutes, then rinse with hot water. I do this with router bits too. It they are really cruddy, a bit of brushing will do the trick. Works every time, and contrary to popular belief, it will not damage the steel if you rinse within a few minutes, then dry the steel immediately. I use a garden blower to dry the blades Right away. I have 20 year-old blades and bits that show no damage, and they are super CLEAN...

 

[McRabbet]

I've used Simple Green and have also used Dawn liquid dish soap with an old toothbrush. 5 Gallon pail lid woks great as others have mentioned. After either treatment and rinse, I carefully dry the blades.

 

[Matt Furjanic]

I believe it’s an old wives tale that oven cleaner deteriorates the brazing. Somewhere I read where a lab used a micro scale to measure the weight of the brazing before and after the oven cleaner soaking, and there was no weight loss. In my experience, I have been using this for about 20 years and have never lost a braized tooth from one of my blades.

 

[junquecol]

There are two types of Simple Green, one of which isn't recommended for blade cleaning. I use Awesome from Dollar Tree. Tried the orange stuff, but wasn't impressed.

 

[Oka]

I use turpentine, then clean with acetone or lacquer thinner, quick n easy, if it build up is excessive I use a little Bonami with the brush

 

[golfdad]

Klingspor carries a great blade cleaner by Trend. Best I’ve ever used

 

[gamiller3rd]

I’m a fan of inexpensive citrus spray cleaner and a toothbrush

 

[Digimontus]

There are different ways to clean a blade. I know that many people use baking soda for cleaning. Still, this method is less effective than using special chemicals for cleaning. It is better to use alkali, as it corrupts the formed layer. The main thing is to observe the safety precautions, as lye can harm your skin. If you do not have the necessary cleaning tools, I recommend you ask for help from the service. I recently had a clogged drain, I tried to clean it myself, but I failed. So I went to a company that does hydro jet drain cleaning santa ana. They have all the necessary equipment for quality cleaning.

 

[Rwe2156]

Krud Kutter. Try it!!

 

[HITCH-]

Another +1 for Simple Green.

 

[Martin Roper]

I use Trend tool cleaner I got at Klingspoor, but it's available many places. Works great for me. It has taken everything off the blade I've managed to stick to it, including some burned on pine pitch. It has no real smell and just wipes off when done.
View attachment 193457

Ditto. I cleaned a bunch of router bits with this and it worked well. Maybe I'll do my saw blades today.

 

[junquecol]

Last week, picked up some used blades at recycle dumpster. Brought them home, and cleaned them (Awesome from Dollar Tree.) Found out they were SHARP, only extremely dirty.

 

[Martin Roper]

Ditto. I cleaned a bunch of router bits with this and it worked well. Maybe I'll do my saw blades today.

I had a cleaning party tonight. Just me, three table saw blades, a New Belgium Trippel, and Trend tool cleaner. I've never had better results with Simple Green, the orange stuff, or others, all of which seemed to require a long soaking time to break down the gunk. I simply sprayed on the Trend and brushed off the pitch pretty much right away with a stiff toothbrush. No soaking. No waiting. I wiped off the residue with an old cotton towel. I used about a tenth of the product that I had with Simple Green and others. Start to finish was about 15 minutes.

 

[ralitaco]

I think I have some Krud Kutter and I KNOW I have a dirty blade. I used this blade on my miter saw for a while then used it when I built my fence which included cutting about 1000 pickets. The last few batches had the same struggling. I am guessing it was because the blade was dirty.

I am guessing that the dirt I see is pitch. I am just hoping the blade is still sharp.

I will post some after pics later this week (I hope).

 

[ralitaco]

So I soaked the blade in KK for a bit and the junk just started floating off

Then I hit it with a brush

Next I need to put it back in the miter saw and test it out.

 

[Gofor]

That is how Krud Kutter has worked for me. With hard wood build up (white oak) I sometimes use a brass wire brush to speed things up.

 

[Wiley's Woodworks]

I had a cleaning party tonight. Just me, three table saw blades, a New Belgium Trippel, and Trend tool cleaner. I've never had better results with Simple Green, the orange stuff, or others, all of which seemed to require a long soaking time to break down the gunk. I simply sprayed on the Trend and brushed off the pitch pretty much right away with a stiff toothbrush. No soaking. No waiting. I wiped off the residue with an old cotton towel. I used about a tenth of the product that I had with Simple Green and others. Start to finish was about 15 minutes.

View attachment 213215

My experience is identical to Martin's--Trend is much faster and you use less than Simple Green. On router bits, especially bearing bits, Trend and a toothbrush are more effective than soaking in Simple Green.