TS 55 Saw Blades

[jvsteenb]

Job, oven cleaner over here is lye, if I'm not mistaken.

Ah.... [scared] that explains a lot. Over here, we call that drain cleaner..... wouldn't dream of using that on a blade.

My blades go from mediocre cutting when dirty to almost like new after I use it

Now that is exactly my experience.
Thank you Mark, for correcting my somewhat generalised "recommendation" - safety first should be paramount.

Regards,

Job

 

[MarkF]

Job, oven cleaner over here is lye, if I'm not mistaken.

Ah.... [scared] that explains a lot. Over here, we call that drain cleaner..... wouldn't dream of using that on a blade.

Check the contents on your oven cleaner.  Here's what's in the most popular brand in the US:
Butane  (propellent, organic solvent, inhalant)
Monoethanolamine ( breaks down fatty acids...VOC by the way)
Diethylene Glycol Monobutyl Ether (Solvent... primary component of Brake Fluid. (ever read the warning about not dribbling brake fluild on metal parts/painted areas of your car?)
Sodium Hydroxide (Lye...turns fat to soap, burns skin, blinds, etc)
Diethanolamine (Foamer)

 

[jvsteenb]

Yeah,

I checked, and it contains about 3% potassium hydroxide - although not very much, this is a strong alkali and caustic as well - if I recall correctly from my chemistry classes, even more so then sodium hydroxide.
Good to be aware of it though !

Regards,

Job

 

[RONWEN]

I bought a bottle of the CMT Blade & Bit cleaner -- sprayed onto the blade, waited a few minutes and brushed it with a brass bristle brush.  There was actually more build up than I realized -- I haven't tried a cut yet but the blade looks like brand new & the inserts are still quite sharp (I can't tell much if any difference between it and my new blade) so it should work much better.