How do you clean your cutter knife blade?

We have 15 laser cutters, where we cut mostly plywood and some acrylic. The knife blades on the bed get covered in gunk and as a result cause burn marks on our wood products.
We have tried lots of ways of cleaning them, from using steel wool, Krud Cutter, etc.

Since we have over 100 of these pieces, we need a more effective solution to clean lots of them. Is there a chemical that might be better for the job, like Muriatic acid, or perhaps a sand blasting cabinet or fiber laser gun? Any advice?

Attachment 478188

My steel honeycomb bed in my 1390 Triumph is pretty gucked up after almost 9 years. I did find an effective cleaner recently, however: FLAME! I 'cleaned' a small area of the table awhile back that was particularly bad, with just a basic Home Depot propane torch. Nothing removes old wood and plastic residue like fire.

Only problem is, those torches have a small flame, pretty slow-motion process with one of those...

What I'm GOING to do, but haven't yet, is take my table outside, prop it up on cinderblocks, and put a large-flame nozzle-tip on my acetylene welder, stand back a bit and just slowly sweep the whole table until all the guck is nothing but ash, then hit it with my power washer after it's cooled off. I figure about 10 minutes with the flame should do it.

If you have a small propane torch, try it.

Another option that may work would be to steam-clean them. The X-factor is whether or not your knife tables could withstand the 210° water under 4000+ psi water pressure blasting them. Assuming the knives aren't real flimsy and the pressurized hot water is applied correctly, shouldn't be a problem...

>edit< - just caught the 'fiber laser gun' part of your post-- YES, a fiber laser should clean all that crap off in short order, actually! Care would have to be taken not to overheat the knives as they could warp, or lose their temper if they've been hardened...

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Originally Posted by David Sabot

We have 15 laser cutters, where we cut mostly plywood and some acrylic. The knife blades on the bed get covered in gunk and as a result cause burn marks on our wood products.
We have tried lots of ways of cleaning them, from using steel wool, Krud Cutter, etc.

Since we have over 100 of these pieces, we need a more effective solution to clean lots of them. Is there a chemical that might be better for the job, like Muriatic acid, or perhaps a sand blasting cabinet or fiber laser gun? Any advice?

Attachment 478188

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There are a couple of things that work good to get that gunk off. I've used Krud Kutter in the past, but have heard lately that people have tried the 1 gallon jug of "Super Heavy Duty Degreaser" from Harbor Freight and it works very well. Haven't tried the degreaser yet myself though.

I use the super clean in the purple jug from wally world and power wash

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Originally Posted by Bert Kemp

I use the super clean in the purple jug from wally world and power wash

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I second this. This degreaser is amazing, its cheap and puts all other degreasers to shame. This is my go to degreaser from kitchen to car.

https://smile.amazon.com/Superclean-...e-73bfa3ee44fe

Kim

I'll third the Super Clean, wonderful for emulsifying grease- :)

However, 'grease' isn't what goops up on cutting table beds, it's wood sap and plastic soot... What I've found works best on that stuff is acetone, xylene or Home Depot's 'painter's solvent', all of which will emulsify plastics and wood sap. Problem with that stuff is, it doesn't mix with water and must be disposed of carefully. SuperClean's main working ingredient is lye, which is water soluble and can go down any drain.

All that is why I just use a torch. And as long as I'm careful the table can just stay in the machine while the blower removes the smoke...

Oven Cleaner. Take it outside and spray with oven cleaner. Wait 5 minutes or so and rinse off. Works like a charm for me.

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Originally Posted by David Sabot

We have 15 laser cutters, where we cut mostly plywood and some acrylic. The knife blades on the bed get covered in gunk and as a result cause burn marks on our wood products.
We have tried lots of ways of cleaning them, from using steel wool, Krud Cutter, etc.

Since we have over 100 of these pieces, we need a more effective solution to clean lots of them. Is there a chemical that might be better for the job, like Muriatic acid, or perhaps a sand blasting cabinet or fiber laser gun? Any advice?

Attachment 478188

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by David Sabot

We have 15 laser cutters, where we cut mostly plywood and some acrylic. The knife blades on the bed get covered in gunk and as a result cause burn marks on our wood products.
We have tried lots of ways of cleaning them, from using steel wool, Krud Cutter, etc.

Since we have over 100 of these pieces, we need a more effective solution to clean lots of them. Is there a chemical that might be better for the job, like Muriatic acid, or perhaps a sand blasting cabinet or fiber laser gun? Any advice?

Attachment 478188

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I would suggest that it needs to be regularly cleaned to keep them sharp, rust-free, and free of bacteria. They require special handling and care, depending on the type of knife and their various uses. Best practice for cleaning them; Wipe the knife clean right after each use, Clean with the blade pointed away from you, Soak the knife for a minute or two if food is stuck on.

wrong kinda knife Paul:rolleyes:

Years ago I used a cleaner from Woodcraft for my sawblades that was incredible. They don't seem to have it any longer but they are selling this:https://www.woodcraft.com/products/f...eaner-18-ounce

Given that it's formulated to remove the same stuff you're trying to remove it might be worth a try.

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Originally Posted by Paul Barksdale

I would suggest that it needs to be regularly cleaned to keep them sharp, rust-free, and free of bacteria. They require special handling and care, depending on the type of knife and their various uses. Best practice for cleaning them; Wipe the knife clean right after each use, Clean with the blade pointed away from you, Soak the knife for a minute or two if food is stuck on.

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I would suggest you to use sand too that's helpful for super clean