DIY $9 Saw Blade Cleaning Kit (Table Saw, Band Saw, Drill Bits, etc.)

[Ben Martin]

Just thought I would pass along a pan that I found at Walmart, it runs under $3 and is intended for dog food (no clue who has a dog this big...). Couple the pan with a $6 concentrate of Simple Green and you have a long time supply of blade cleaning suppplies. I used an old toothbrush to scrub off the pitch.

The pan has the manufacturers name stamped in the middle, so it lifts the table saw blades up off bottom so a decent amount of cleaner can reach all sides.

A note, I have a Delta bandsaw with a riser blcok, 105" blades, and the tightest I could get it wound is the max size that could fit in the pan...

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp325/martbj/330621040_photobucket_17684_.jpg

For a safe and easy video on re-coiling a bandsaw blade see the following video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI1Okb4Vp9Q

I think the pan would also make a nice nut and bolt holder for working on the car or anything other project.

Hopefully somebody will find this helpful...

Ben

[Bob Frey]

Great idea. I actually use 2 of those to feed my shop security dogs. They aren't all that big (bull dogs) but they are very active and eat alot. I'll have to get a third pan for myself.

[Chris Padilla]

Ben,

How about some numbers on the pan? Diameter...depth?

[Ben Martin]

Ben,

How about some numbers on the pan? Diameter...depth?

Chris,

It is 12" in diameter and 2" deep.

Made in the USA to boot!

Ben

[scott spencer]

Soaking in Simple Green is thought to be bad for the binders that hold the carbide to the steel body. To avoid any possible issues with soaking, I would just spray it on, scrub a few seconds with a brass brush, and rinse it off and wipe.

I use a cover from a 5 gallon pail...free in my case, but are $0.99 at home centers. LA's Totally Awesome is at least as good as any other spray cleaner I've used (Simple Green, 409, Fantastic, Greased Lightning, Boeshield, etc), and is available at many dollar stores...you can pick it up when you stop to buy the brass brush set for a $1! :D

http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/098262/098262015252lg.jpg http://dadiansautodetailing.com/store/images/Brass%20Detail%20Brush.jpg http://www.viewpoints.com/images/review/2007/322/3/1195376718-64398_full.jpg

[John McClanahan]

[QUOTE=scott spencer;1520720]Soaking in Simple Green is thought to be bad for the binders that hold the carbide to the steel body. To avoid any possible issues with soaking, I would just spray it on, scrub a few seconds with a brass brush, and rinse it off and wipe.

This comes up frequently, but I believe the carbide teeth are silver soldered to the blade band or disk. Correct me if I'm wrong on this.

John

[Ben Martin]

Here is a link, "straight from the horses mouth":

http://tinyurl.com/2a9at3v

Simple Green warns against long term exposure because "Long-term exposure like this can possibly cause cobalt leaching that will, in turn, affect the integrity or carbide." I have e-mailed there customer service for clarification on what long term exposure means, 5 mins., 5 hours, 5 days??

I soaked my blades for all of 5 minutes and that is all it took to loosen the pitch. I can't imagine a chemical reaction that causes leaching to take place in the period of time, especially with a mild, bio-degradeable type product. But we will see, I will post back when I here from then.

Scott,

I like the pan because it give you the ability to soak a bandsaw blade as well.

Also, I would warn against using a brass brush, see Mike Holden's post, #24 from the following thread:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=9087

Ben

[Myk Rian]

A note, I have a Delta bandsaw with a riser blcok, 105" blades, and the tightest I could get it wound is the max size that could fit in the pan...

I can get a 4 fold on 105" blades smaller than 1/2" wide.
Simple Green is also my goto blade cleaner.

[Ben Martin]

I can get a 4 fold on 105" blades smaller than 1/2" wide.
Simple Green is also my goto blade cleaner.

Yep, that is what I did, it should get you a little under a 12" diameter coil.

Ben

[Thomas Hotchkin]

Ben, I have been using the bottom 2 1/2" of a used 5 gallon plastic paint bucket for about 10 years now works great. Cut bottom off with a sawsall and trim it on the table saw. Tom

[Neil Brooks]

Wait just a minute.

We're woodworkers.

Shouldn't we pay more for something that doesn't work nearly as well, but is marketed to us by one of the big woodworking retailers, and comes in pretty packages ?

I'm confused.

[John McClanahan]

Thanks for the link, Ben. I, too wonder what "long term" means. I would think it would take many days of soaking to weaken the metals. Interesting tip on the coffee, too. If old coffee works, why pay for Simple Green? :cool:

John

[Bob Wingard]

Thanks for the link, Ben. I, too wonder what "long term" means. I would think it would take many days of soaking to weaken the metals. Interesting tip on the coffee, too. If old coffee works, why pay for Simple Green? :cool:

John

I think it means "If there is ANY risk of danger, should you soak your blades in this stuff for a year, we must, for legal reasons, advise against this application of our product" .. or something to that effect.

[Ben Martin]

Well, I got my response back from Simple Green on using their product to clean saw blades. I have posted this with their permission...

Dear Ben,

Thank you for contacting Simple Green and for your interest in our products.

Simple Green All Purpose Cleaner should not be used to soak saw blades for any period of time. Any application other than spray and wipe is not recommended.

The recommended product for cleaning saw blades is Simple Green Pro HD which has no effect even during long soak times. Simple Green Pro HD can be purchased at Home Depot.

I hope that this information helps. If you have further questions about this or other Simple Green products or uses, please feel free to contact me via reply email or directly. My contact information is provided below and my regular business hours are Mon thru Fri from 8 -5 Pacific Standard Time.

Thank you again for your inquiry.

Sincerely,

XXXXXXXXXXXX
Technical and Customer Liaison

I will start a new thread with this info. since I think it will be really helpful to others who might not venture into here...

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Wait just a minute.

We're woodworkers.

Shouldn't we pay more for something that doesn't work nearly as well, but is marketed to us by one of the big woodworking retailers, and comes in pretty packages ?

I'm confused.

Yep. I use Boeshield blade & bit cleaner. More expensive and less effective than Easy-Off. I did want to start another SG vs EO debate....