What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?
TIA

David Starr

In article , David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?

Washing soda.

Not baking soda. Washing soda. You can find it in the laundry aisle of most
grocery stores. It's easy, fast, cheap (three and a half pound box costs less
than US $2.50), environmentally benign, and reasonably safe (but keep it out
of your eyes).

How well does it work?

Dissolve 1/4 cup in a quart of warm water in a dishpan. Lay your sawblade down
in the water and watch the pitch dissolve. I mean that literally. You will see
pitch dissolving in the water before the blade has even hit the bottom of the
pan.

Let it soak for five or ten minutes, and most of the crud will rinse right
off. If any remains, it can easily be removed with an old toothbrush, or even
by simply wiping with a rag dipped in the washing soda solution.

The stuff is also great for cleaning up in the kitchen. Have a pot or pan that
something got burned in? No problem. Mix it up a little stronger (one cup per
quart) and soak it for an hour or two, overnight in really bad cases. Most of
the crud will come out easily, without vigorous scrubbing.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

Doug Miller wrote:
In article , David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?

Washing soda.

Yep, that works. It's the active ingredient in dishwasher detergent,
or in OxyClean.

But I use another alkali, lye; about half a teaspoon in a pint of water
makes a
good soak, takes off all manner of gunk. No need to make up a
concentrated
solution, just let it set ten minutes to an hour. And don't get in on
your
fingers, or let it sit on aluminum.

Anything left after the lye (sometimes soot remains), I can polish off
with a buffing
wheel and some emery or rouge. It's very satisfying seeing the clean
surface of
the carbide teeth again.

On Sun, 10 Dec 2006 21:26:30 -0500, David Starr wrote:

What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?

Rockler Pitch Remover works fine for me--I suspect that any similar product
works as well.

TIA

David Starr

--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?

I use anhydrous isopropyl alcohol to get pitch and tar off anything.

Una

On Sun, 10 Dec 2006 21:26:30 -0500, David Starr
wrote:

What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?
TIA

David Starr


Oven cleaner, rubber gloves, toothbrush. Rinse well. I've heard
Simple Green works, although with a bit more scrubbing.

I'm using the Rockler pitch and resin remover. Works well!
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=11122&sid=AF989


"David Starr" wrote in message
...
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?
TIA

David Starr

In article , "HappyGilmore" wrote:
I'm using the Rockler pitch and resin remover. Works well!
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=11122&sid=AF989

Yikes! Eight bucks a pint?! My washing soda solution costs about five *cents*
a pint...

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?

I like CMT 2050.

How well does it work?

Way better than washing soda, WD-40, kerosene, Simple Green, Goo Gone,
brake cleaner, lacquer thinner, naptha, and mineral spirits. Oven
cleaner works as well as 2050, but is way nastier to be around.

I haven't tried anything not listed above. G

David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?
TIA

David Starr

I have used brakekleen in the past with good results because it was
what I had. After reading this thread I'll try the washing soda since
I have some that I bought for rust removal.

"David Starr" wrote in message
...
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?
TIA

David Starr

There are probably a hundred solutions. CMT "the router bit company",
manufactures and or sells Formula 2050, specifically made for this purpose.
A little goes a long way. It works quickly and in most cases a paper towel
removes the build up. You can get it on your hands. You do not have to
rinse it off. It leaves a protective coating to help prevent rust. It is
environmentally friendly.

Hi David:

I've tried several of the other things mentioned in this thread, but
the best thing I've found is called Super Clean (it used to be sold by
Castrol, but that name has recently been dropped). It's sold in 1
gallon purple plastic jugs, like antifreeze. I think it cost something
like $5 per gallon at Wal-Mart. It's a great degreaser, cleaner, pitch
remover, and mild paint stripper. It's the best thing in the world for
stripping paint from plastic without harming the plastic. Wear gloves
and eye protection, though.

Regards,
John.

"B A R R Y" wrote in message
...
David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?

I like CMT 2050.

How well does it work?

Way better than washing soda, WD-40, kerosene, Simple Green, Goo Gone,
brake cleaner, lacquer thinner, naptha, and mineral spirits. Oven cleaner
works as well as 2050, but is way nastier to be around.

I haven't tried anything not listed above. G

Solvent versus surfactant. I like the surfactants. Most of the
"phosphate-free" cleaners are based on sodium metasilicate, so a quick look
at active ingredient percentages will let you know where you stand.

I use "TSP-90" which has no TSP, sadly. That was a great pitch and char
remover.

On Sun, 10 Dec 2006 21:26:30 -0500, David Starr
wrote:

What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?
How well does it work?
TIA

David Starr

I used to use oven cleaner. Very nasty, requires that you wear rubber
gloves when using.

Now I use the bottle of pitch remover that came with a can of
Boeshield I got not long ago.

If I were to buy a product just for the purpose I'd buy the CMT stuff
sold for this.

Yikes! Eight bucks a pint?! My washing soda solution costs about five
*cents*
a pint...

True
But I find I dont need to use very much. Lasts a while. Guess it depends how
often you clean your blades

Dean

Doug Miller wrote:
In article , David Starr wrote:
What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?

Washing soda.

Not baking soda. Washing soda. You can find it in the laundry aisle of most
grocery stores. It's easy, fast, cheap (three and a half pound box costs less
than US $2.50), environmentally benign, and reasonably safe (but keep it out
of your eyes).

How well does it work?

Dissolve 1/4 cup in a quart of warm water in a dishpan. Lay your sawblade down
in the water and watch the pitch dissolve. I mean that literally. You will see
pitch dissolving in the water before the blade has even hit the bottom of the
pan.

Let it soak for five or ten minutes, and most of the crud will rinse right
off. If any remains, it can easily be removed with an old toothbrush, or even
by simply wiping with a rag dipped in the washing soda solution.

OK, I tried it. Around here the supermarkets don't carry "washing soda"
by that name. But they do have "borax" (20 Mule Team Borax) and a
couple of competitors. I sprang for a smallest box (20oz) of "Snowy
Color Safe Bleach". Ingredients are sodium perborate, sodium carbonate,
and sodium silicate. Plus a lot of other good sounding stuff that
probably doesn't do a thing for pitch.
Mixed it with hot water, 1/8 cup borax to 2 cups hot water, about the
strength you recommended. Dropped in 6 black and sticky router bits and
voila, I could see the black coming off and making the water go dark.
Not bad at all. Let them soak for an hour and then did a bit of
scrubbing. All the sticky clots of pitch are gone, and the black stain
on the metal is much lighter, although not completely gone. Works a lot
better than any of the solvents (alcohol, mineral spirits, lacquer
thinner) that I tried earlier.



David Starr

In article , David Starr wrote:
OK, I tried it. Around here the supermarkets don't carry "washing soda"
by that name. But they do have "borax" (20 Mule Team Borax) and a
couple of competitors. I sprang for a smallest box (20oz) of "Snowy
Color Safe Bleach". Ingredients are sodium perborate, sodium carbonate,

Sodium carbonate is the chemical name for washing soda.

and sodium silicate. Plus a lot of other good sounding stuff that
probably doesn't do a thing for pitch.
Mixed it with hot water, 1/8 cup borax to 2 cups hot water, about the
strength you recommended. Dropped in 6 black and sticky router bits and
voila, I could see the black coming off and making the water go dark.

Yep, that stuff goes to work pretty quickly, doesn't it? g

Not bad at all. Let them soak for an hour and then did a bit of
scrubbing. All the sticky clots of pitch are gone, and the black stain
on the metal is much lighter, although not completely gone. Works a lot
better than any of the solvents (alcohol, mineral spirits, lacquer
thinner) that I tried earlier.

If you can get some pure washing soda, it will work even faster. Want me to
send you some? Let me know... my real email address is in my sig, just below.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

David Starr wrote:

What does everyone use to get pitch off sawblades and router bits?

Soak in Simple Green.

Lew