Saw Blade Sharpening

[iamnothim]

Clearly I am blessed to have been using LA Grinding to do all of my metal working tool sharpening and custom grinding for the past 50+ years. They have set the standard, establishing the state-of-the-art, using CNC sharpening machines when those are appropriate.

Back in 1959 when I opened my first large woodworking shop closer to my home in Pasadena I used a marvelous fellow who worked by himself sharpening woodworking blades and bit. His tiny shop was close to my woodshop. In that area his reputation was outstanding. He used a minimum of technology because he had so much experience and became 'at-one' with the bits and blades. Of course back then carbine tips were just becoming practical in woodworking. Unfortunately he died about 1980.

So I asked LA Grinding if they sharpened woodworking blades. They assured me  they had been doing so for a long time. That was when I started using them for all my tool sharpening. The day I was making up my mind to buy my first Festool TS55 I phoned LA Grinding to see if they would deal with those blades. They assured me they had been sharpening Festool blades for the major movie studios for a few years.

Many times I have written that to be successful in business you need to become virtual partners with your key vendors. When I was a kid my Apaw taught me how to set my saw blades and hone my chisels and plane irons. So when I needed to source my sharpening I felt I could recognize dedicated talent. This is how I feel about LA Grinding, which actually is located in Burbank. I know my primary plywood and hardwood vendor knows their business better than I do, so I feel a bond with them.

As for one blade maker refusing to sharpen a competitor's blades, IMO that is nuts. If they do not understand why Festool blades are designed they way they are, then they are far behind state-of-the-art. What do they mean "We sharpen all blades"? To me they are saying "We sharpen all blades we know how to sharpen and we have no interest in buying modern equipment and learning how to us it to sharpen state-of-the-art blades".

Thanks for the tip...  I just sent my blade out today.

 

[rsh]

Anyone know of a trustworthy blade sharpening service in the Atlanta, Georgia area that will sharpen Festool blades?

Waiting anxiously for a response to this - rljatl, if i hear anything first, i'll send you a note.

 

[RJNeal]

About two years back I sent Forrest some blades, three 10" , one of theirs, two others, my Kapex 60 tooth, and my ts55.
The Kapex blade was sharpen off center. Like they possibly forgot to use a centering bushing on their arbor. It's not out much.
I only use it for rough lumber and do use it for any trim.

I want to thank ccarrolladams for mentioning LA grinding. I know you have talked highly of them in the past. Two weeks ago I checked out their web page. Which I liked.
I plan on mailing them some blades next week. I checked into the fix rate mail boxes the post office have. They have a box that 10" blades will fit it.
Rick

 

[ccarrolladams]

Those fixed-rate cartons from the USPS are a great way to send things like saw blades back and forth.

I am sure you will be very pleased with the LA Grinding service, especially for Festool and other blades with irregular tooth spacing.

 

[tjbnwi]

Send your Festool blades back to Leitz.

http://www.leitztooling.com/

Tom

 

[wubears71]

I'm really glad I saw this as I have 3 TS55 blades packed up and ready to ship to them.  Now I will have to find someone new. 

 

[JSlovic]

I just got my Ts 55 plywood blade back from Rockler on Roswell Rd.  I haven't tried it out yet so take this with a grain of salt. 
They send them out to a local shop, the cost was $15, turnaround about 10 days

Highland Woodworking sends them out of state, I haven't used their service but would guess it's good given thier general reputation

Jack

 

[rljatl]

I just got my Ts 55 plywood blade back from Rockler on Roswell Rd.  I haven't tried it out yet so take this with a grain of salt. 
They send them out to a local shop, the cost was $15, turnaround about 10 days

Highland Woodworking sends them out of state, I haven't used their service but would guess it's good given thier general reputation

Jack

Thanks for the info!  Rockler is closer, but I trust Highland more.  Please let us know how your blade works.

 

[iamnothim]

[off topic]  A little...  Forgive me thought I'd share.

Last week I was at my local Festool Dealer, Austin Hardwood.  Knowing I needed to send my 10yr old 44t  blade out for sharpening, I decided to purchase a couple new ones.
Another thread spoke highly of the Tenryu so I picked up a 48T.  It's a very nice blade.

Then this Festool "panther" blade caught my eye.   I knew nothing about it but figured it was special.  I'm a sucker for marketing stuff.  I wanted a blade that would rip and 14T looked like the ticket.  What I found strange was the icon that indicates it cross cuts. (See photo)   I figured that made it special.

Well I got home, went to the forum, and searched on panther.......  I'm grateful I did because it's going back.   It sounds like this one will chew off additional material from my guide rails and different posts had different results getting a clean cut.... No good.   I came to know that "panther" means very aggressive.    Makes sense.  It also appears there are other less aggressive panthers.   Too many moving parts for me.

EDIT:  I forgot to make a point.  Are these blades good for all around ripping?  Or just specialized.

 

 

[rsh]

EXPERT DIE, inc in dalton is the recommended freud sharpening service in georgia. highland recommended forrest for festool, but it might be worth seeing if expert die will do festools as well

 

[chelseaboy]

Fin,

I don't know where you are in the North East; but I get all my blades sharpened here

Leitz Tooling UK Ltd.

Unit 5c, Linsey Park
Bowburn (North) Ind. Estate

DH6 5AD Bowburn, Durham

Phone: +44 (0) 19 13 77 20 07

Fax: +44 (0) 19 13 77 20 07

Leitz make the Festool blades, so I think they know what they're doing 
Think I'm paying around £12 a blade and they are perfect when they come back.

Kieran

durham@leitz.org

Nice one, thanks for that link Kieran

 

[peter halle]

The Panther blades are good for ripping.  That appears to be the older version with the wider kerf as you noted.

Peter

 

[tjbnwi]

[off topic]  A little...  Forgive me thought I'd share.

Last week I was at my local Festool Dealer, Austin Hardwood.  Knowing I needed to send my 10yr old 44t  blade out for sharpening, I decided to purchase a couple new ones.
Another thread spoke highly of the Tenryu so I picked up a 48T.  It's a very nice blade.

Then this Festool "panther" blade caught my eye.   I knew nothing about it but figured it was special.  I'm a sucker for marketing stuff.  I wanted a blade that would rip and 14T looked like the ticket.  What I found strange was the icon that indicates it cross cuts. (See photo)   I figured that made it special.

Well I got home, went to the forum, and searched on panther.......  I'm grateful I did because it's going back.   It sounds like this one will chew off additional material from my guide rails and different posts had different results getting a clean cut.... No good.   I came to know that "panther" means very aggressive.    Makes sense.  It also appears there are other less aggressive panthers.   Too many moving parts for me.

EDIT:  I forgot to make a point.   Are these blades good for all around ripping?  Or just specialized.

 

They have a 2.2 Panther, I believe it is 12 tooth.

Tom

 

[Custard]

Fin,

I don't know where you are in the North East; but I get all my blades sharpened here

Leitz Tooling UK Ltd.

Unit 5c, Linsey Park
Bowburn (North) Ind. Estate

Leitz make the Festool blades, so I think they know what they're doing 
Think I'm paying around £12 a blade and they are perfect when they come back.

Kieran

I use Leitz Tooling's branch in Winchester for all my Festool and Felder blades. Same story. Great results, great service, and averages about £10-12 per blade.

 

[iamnothim]

They have a 2.2 Panther, I believe it is 12 tooth.

Tom

Thanks Tom and Peter
I'm surprised the reseller had old product.  Not sure if I'll opt for the 2.2 anyway.