Hi,
I heard/ read somewhere that oven cleaner can weaken the bonding of the carbide tips to the blade. Has anyone else heard this? Really wouldn't want those flying around the shop.
Mark
There was a report awhile back, that a couple of types of high alkaline cleaners, including standard Simple Green (as opposed to Pro) could weaken the brazing. I don't remember where I saw this, but believe any type of problem would only result from extended immersion.
Here is what Freud says:
“Definitely avoid oven cleaner and other caustics. They attack the cobalt binder in the carbide and can lead to carbide failure (translates to tiny missiles of carbide at 100+ mph). Also, Freud and some other brands of blades have a tri-metal brazing foil that uses copper alloy for a cushioning layer. The copper can also be affected by these cleaners (translates to larger missiles of carbide). We recommend soaking overnight in kerosene in a vented container and using a stiff nylon bristle brush to clean. Teflon coated plates will clean up with a soapy cloth (except for the teeth as mentioned earlier). There are commercial blade cleaning products that are not caustic but we don't officially sanction them. I've personally used Simple Green concentrate with good results.
Charles M
Freud, Inc"
Here is what the Simple Green folks had to say:
"Thanks for your inquiry. We actually do not recommend any Simple Green products
on the cobalt/carbide blades that you refer to in your email. Simple Green can
cause embrittlement and cracking on this kind of metal.
Believe it or not, we have heard from several sources that strong coffee is
great for removing pitch from blades. A plastic bin can be used for soaking
blades overnight.
I hope that this information is helpful to you. Feel free to share it with
others in your profession or online discussion groups. And we hope that you'll
keep using Simple Green for the rest of your shop-cleaning needs!"
However they followed up with the following:
"Dear Mr. Delano and XXXXXXXXXXX:
I am sorry for the confusion I may have caused with my short answer to Mr. XXXXXXXXXXX question yesterday. Please allow me to give you the long answer, and feel free to also post this in your discussion group.
Simple Green has been successfully used by many woodworkers over many years as a good spray-wipe-and rinse cleaner for saw blades. When pitch is fairly fresh (within a 12 hour period of deposit,) it is fairly easily removed by Simple Green. Older, dried out pitch is much more difficult to remove. What we do not recommend is long-term soaking of cobalt/carbide blades in Simple Green. Long exposure like this can possibly cause cobalt leaching that will, in turn, effect the integrity of the carbide. Shorter term "spray/wipe/rinse" applications do not pose that kind of problem. We would recommend dwell times of full-strength Simple Green upon cobalt/carbide steel to be no more than about 15 minutes.
As mentioned in my earlier email, if you have a blade that has an older, tougher buildup of pitch, try soaking the blade in strong coffee overnight. Several folks have told us that this does work.
I hope that this information is helpful to you. I apologize for confusing the issue previously. I made an erroneous assumption that the blade would be soaked for extended periods of time.
If you have any additional questions or concerns, please let me know.
Sincerely,
Carol Chapin
Environmental & Regulatory Coordinator
SIMPLE GREEN
(800) 228-0709
cchapin@simplegreen.com"
Here is what Tom Hintz has to say in
"NewWoodWorker"