# My dull table saw blade cleaning experience...



## netaron (Jun 14, 2016)

I've been cutting a lot of hardwood on my TS lately. I noticed the last few rips were very time consuming and a bit smokey. So I did a search, and found a lot of info on how to clean the blade that didn't help me much. Someone had posted something about using Simple Green to clean their blade. There was also a response from the Simple Green guys that suggested one of their other products. Some other posts recommended other products that worked well, but since I didn't have those products on hand, hey, what could it hurt.

Long story short, since I had simple green on hand, I went to work on the blade. Proudly, I tested the blade after all that hard work only to find out it was duller than before. HUH?!?!

So I grabbed my magnifier to the carbide tips. They looked like they were having cake for desert and not willing to let go. I basically made the batter by adding simple green to wood dust. Then it caked on the saw teeth. Hard. Very hard. Test cutting only helped bake the "cake-on" process.

So, crap!

Ok, back to research. Conflicting info. So I took my 320 grit sandpaper, sanded down all the caked hardened batter. Then took a trip to Ace, and purchased a set of diamond sharpening stones. The package looked like it contained 4 different sharpeners with different coarseness. 

When I got home, I found out it was only 2 different sharpeners; coarse and fine. Ok, this will still do. Unfortunately, because the diamond sharpeners are glued to a plastic backing, and then glued back-to-back to each other (one side coarse, and one side fine), it was too think to fit between the saw teeth. The package made it look like they were separate. My fault for not doing my homework.

Anywho, after I figured out which blade to use on my scroll saw to cut the darn thing in half so it would fit between the teeth, I had spent almost a whole day. After sawing them apart, the single sharpener fit perfectly between the teeth and I looked directly above each tooth to make sure I was at the proper angle. After about 30 minutes, the saw teeth looked nice and shiny. 

Did another test cut; much better, but not as smooth as say a week or so ago. Then I inspected the sides of the blade. It looked like there was some film or residue, perhaps from my using simple green, or who knows. Went to work on her with 400 grit sand paper. Test cut. Ah. Finally. 

Aron


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## Jim Frye (Aug 24, 2016)

I clean my blades by laying out a trash bag, spraying the surface liberally with 409 or Fantastik, laying blade on the bag, giving the blade a spraying, and folding the bag over the top of the blade. I let it sit like this for a few days. The bag keeps the blade in contact with the cleaning solution and it doesn't dry out. All it takes is a brush to clean the residue from the blade. The blade gets a final cleaning with soap and water.


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## woodchux (Jul 6, 2014)

Cleaning TS blades (or router bits) can cause a lot of extra work without satisfactory results. Tried the saw blade/router bit cleaning kit from Rockler (#34895 @$30.00), which cleaned OK, but to refill the liquid remover was costly. As Jim Frye stated, use 409 for 2 days and the results will be IMO the same as the kit liquid. Be safe.


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## triplechip (Jun 8, 2009)

Aron,

I would recommend sending your blade to a professional saw sharpening shop. Most shops use ultrasonic cleaning machines. These machine will remove wood pitch buildup very fast. The ultrasonic waves pull the wood pitch out of the pours of the blades. 

At the beginning of this video, you will see how it works on a saw blade.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Ive found simple green to work pretty well, just let it soak for a while then hit the teeth with a brass wire brush to knock everything off. Never had a problem, and it cuts through pine sap pretty nicely. 

It's also important to note that while it's never a bad idea to clean your blade, cleaning is not a panacea for a dull blade. Professional sharpening is well worth the cost


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## netaron (Jun 14, 2016)

The helpful information is much appreciated. I like that ultrasonic cleaning machine....I want one! I think my wife has one for her rings somewhere...now how do I fit the saw blade in there;0)


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## Pineknot_86 (Feb 19, 2016)

The video was awesome. Is that a WW shop or a sharpening shop? Whatever it is, they have a ton of $$$$ tied up in equipment. The inspection station would be nice. Used to be in QC and see the magnification of fasteners and precision parts. Surprising what we don't see without it.
I have heard of using oven cleaner to clean TS blades. Anyone tried it? Need to clean my blades so I'll be watching this thread.
Thanks.


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## Jim Frye (Aug 24, 2016)

I used to use oven cleaner (with the bag method I described earlier), and it works. I stopped using it when I started buying teflon coated blades. I wasn't sure if it would harm the coating and switched to 409 type cleaners. They don't smell as bad as oven cleaner, but do work a bit more slowly.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Most blade manufacturers seem to recommend against using oven cleaner on the blades. Something about the cleaner attacking the brazing material attaching the tips


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