by Jeff Lott
The other day, I was out in the shop cutting blocks of steel to be used as toolholders for my Phase Two tool post. I saw a lot of chips were being carried by the saw blade and being deposited on the front of the block. Many of the chips were continuing on and building up on the drive wheels.
What I needed was a scraper of some kind to clean the blade and knock the chips off. I had some polypropylene sheet plastic, 1/8” thick, on hand. I cut a small piece, slit it and put in over the saw blade. You can see the results in the photo. Other materials would also work, such as heavy felt. I tried steel but it seemed to bounce around a lot, though a softer metal may do fine. The plastic does wear, but it is so easy to replace that this is not a concern. I have been happy with my quick fix so far and hope it helps someone else.
Thanks Jeff, your subscription has been extended by an issue!