Tip: Blade cleaning with UHMW

I had an Oldham blade in the table saw that wasn't cutting well--tended to burn and leave rough surfaces. I'd cleaned it as thoroughly as I could and it didn't help. I was about ready to send it out for sharpening, when I had occasion to cut a piece of UHMW polyethylen. Well, it didn't do the greatest job on the UHMW, but ever since it's been cutting wood just as cleanly as when it was brand new.

Cutting UHMW may not be the cheapest or neatest way to clean a blade, but it seems to have done the job really well.

Reply to
J. Clarke
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Interesting. You may have just given away a patentable idea. It makes sense that the blade would melt some of the plastic and receive a coating in return. I wonder if running the UHMW through a blade that was running backwards would help or hurt the effect you mention...

R
Reply to
RicodJour

Instead of a coating, I'm willing to wager that the UHMW cleans the blade similar to the way a crepe block cleans the sawdust embedded in a sanding drum.

Reply to
Upscale

Mebbeso, but John did say he cleaned the blade as thoroughly as he could prior to running the UHMW though it, and it still wasn't cutting right.

In any event, John should start producing the BladeBlocks (tm) and let the suckers....errr...customers determine if they work or not. ;)

R
Reply to
RicodJour

Mebbeso, but John did say he cleaned the blade as thoroughly as he could prior to running the UHMW though it, and it still wasn't cutting right.

In any event, John should start producing the BladeBlocks (tm) and let the suckers....errr...customers determine if they work or not. ;)

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Remind me of some teflon I picked up at a scrap yard. I used it for quick and dirty bearings for gym equipment. I just banged it into some steel tubing and it was ready to go.

I had to cut this up to go into various peices. It ended up coating my saw blade. And it did cut easier afterwards, Until the teflon wore off anyway.

As for the gym equipment, the more you used it, the better/smoother it worked.

Reply to
Lee Michaels

Did you do much cutting with the blade after cleaning with the UHMW? My immediate guess is that the some of the material may have imbedded or melted on to the blade or remaining debris. After a period of cutting this may all disappear and the blade may return to its previous state.

If you do not have a lasting condition I highly recommend CMT Formula 2050 for cleaning your blades. This stuff is environmentally safe, made for cleaning blades and works very fast. I clean my blades a couple of times a year and the procedure takes be about 5 minutes start to finish on both sides.

Reply to
Leon

I would guess that a blade cutting better would be more to due with Teflon left behind on the blade, reducing friction and there-by fooling one into thinking the blade is cleaner or sharper (honed).

Stu

Reply to
stu

Touché

Reply to
stu

Interesting thread ... if it is indeed cutting better, as the OP indicated based on firsthand experience, it can fool me anytime it wants, regardless of the reason.

Reply to
Swingman

I wish my car would fool me by getting better gas mileage...

R
Reply to
RicodJour

Agree. Don't much care whether it cuts better because it's sharper, cleaner, covered with Teflon, goose grease, or because it's the dawning of the sign of Aquarius. Important thing is that it "cuts better"!

Tom Veatch Wichita, KS USA

Reply to
Tom Veatch

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