Should I hang on to old saw blades?

My grandfather has done all of his ripping on his table saw with a Sears made in the USA 6 tooth saw blade that he has had re-sharpened every year. For as long as I can remember he has been doing this (at least 10 years) and now a 10” blade is closer to a 9” blade…

I would recommend hoding on them…

-- Derrek L.

Why not hang onto them? If they are still true and none of the teeth are missing, they are still good blades. They also come in handy when faced with cutting a piece of wood that may or may not have nails, staple, grit, etc. I’d much rather lose one of these blades than a carbide blade.

-- Dave; Lansing, Kansas

Hang on to them as long as they do not wobble, are not cracked.

You mentioned that they are not tipped with any kind of hard metal. I am not a smith or a metalurgist, but I know that after doing a bit of googling and wikipedia searching, as well as a search and some reading of the Craftsman tools page, that Kromedge is some sort of chrome-nickel-molybdenum steel and it seems to me that it is a type of HSS steel. HSS steel tools are great as long as they are drill bits and that sort of thing because of the properties of the HSS steel. Saw blades are another thing though HSS blades (where the blade is completly made from HSS or other hard alloys are no longer allowed to be used. I asked my master once why and he produced a HSS table saw blade and a 1/4 pie shaped piece was missing, the blade had cracked because the HSS steel is brittle. Thats why it is no longer used in sawblades and they no longer produce blades like that. I suppose everyone on LJ’s has cracked or broken a drill bit, which is non leathal, but flying bits of shrapnel is not so much fun I think.

Maybe someone here can positivly Identify if the Kromedge is definetly a type of HSS. A good thing to know for safety reasons.

-- Nicholas, Cabinet/Furniture Maker, Blue Hill, Maine

I hang on to old blades and occasionally use them as sacrificial blades for cutting aluminum or wood that I suspect might have some nails in it. A few people on this site also talk about using old tool steel to make new tools, scrapers and the like.

-- You know.... I think that old wood needs to be furniture.

My better half has to coerce me into getting rid of what she calls junk and what I call “possible candidates for rehabilitation”....but when it comes to blades….I agree with the above…it is always nice to have a junk blade around to cut scavenged woods….Destroying a Forrest WW II to cut up some old 2×4s and hitting a nail will set you back a good $100 or at the minimum will have you sending it in for resharpening….I also use a junk blade to cut softer woods like pine that I use for supporting….these woods have alot of resins and pitch that will clog a blade quickly…..You want to keep your good blades as clean and sharp as possible…

Just a thought.

-- Woodworking.....My small slice of heaven!

I see many of your relatives getting shop clocks for Christmas this year! :D

-- Happiness is like wetting your pants...everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warmth....

Bentlyj, well put… thats how I wanted to put it, I write too much when I have drunk too much coffee

-- Nicholas, Cabinet/Furniture Maker, Blue Hill, Maine

I wont use a tipped blade, new or old, if there is a chance of nails or anything else in the wood. I found out the hard way that those tips do come off and they are bullets when they do.

-- Carpenter assembles with hands, Designer builds with brains, Artist creates with heart!

Even if you don’t want to use them any more, they can become ART projects. Here is a nice project.

http://lumberjocks.com/projects/20067

They would make good craft sale or christmass gifts.

-- Scrap Wood's the best...the projects are smaller, and so is the mess!