Glue and removal of

[chilli]

If you have some old gunky stuff in your groove, what's best to use to remove it? I know Superglue can be dissolved with Acetone (nail varnish remover) but is this safe for the blade metal?

chilli
never did her own armoury stuff

[Purple Fencer]

Originally posted by chilli:
If you have some old gunky stuff in your groove, what's best to use to remove it? I know Superglue can be dissolved with Acetone (nail varnish remover) but is this safe for the blade metal?

chilli
never did her own armoury stuff

I've soaked my blades for as long as 24 hours (forgot it was in the tube) without damaging the metal. I don't think acetone works on metal that way. Usually I'll put the blade in the acetone when I leave for work and take it out when I get home. The wire falls right out and there's practically noresiduce to scrape away. if there is, it's usually at the extremities.

The tube should be copper, soldered shut at the bottom end so the acetone doesn't evaporate, and long enough to take the entire blade. Thetop of mine has a threaded connector that I screw shut while it's being used.

------------------
Sam Signorelli -- I'll be mellow when I'm
DEAD!

[flik]

I know people who have left blades in acetone baths for up to 6 months with no problem (they took a break from fencing and forgot about them). Acetone doesn't react with steel. You may not want to leave epee blades that have the black stuff in the groove and on the sides (FL has this)in the bath too long... the last FIE FL epee blade I soaked overnight had the stuff flaking off. Didn't affect the metal though, just what it looked like. A few hours doesn't hurt the stuff though - whatever it is...

[neevel]

Acetone won't do anything to steel. Nail polish removers are diluted acetone that can work very slowly with superglues. The key concern to take into account with pure acetone is that the stuff's vapors are harmful if you're exposed to much of them for long and (probably more significantly) rather flammable. This means that you do not want to have an open container of it for any length of time, and don't want to be using it in close proximity to any open flames (i.e., furnaces or gas stoves, dryers, and water heaters).

And in case you were thinking of just pouring pure acetone over the blade, that's right out. Not only is it bad from a safety/health/environmental standpoint, but it won't work-- the acetone needs some time to dissolve glues, and will evaporate quickly in open air.

The acetone bath I have is made up of a 36" length of 1.5" black steel pipe, a 4" length of 1.5" pipe, two threaded endcaps, and a threaded connector. The end cap for the bottom of the assembly is sealed on with pipe thread compound (otherwise you'll get acetone seeping out). The second endcap, the 4" length of pipe, and the connector are assembled with thread compound to form a long screw-on cap that will fit over the blade tangs, allowing the whole thing to be kept sealed except when inserting and removing blades. I can do 4-5 blades at a time in it.

To prevent spillage when inserting blades, it's best to keep a few junk blades on hand to act as ballast. That way you can keep the level of acetone in the pipe fairly low, and then put in the spare blades to bring it up high enough to cover the blade(s) you're soaking.

If you don't want to go to the trouble of making an acetone bath, just spend some time and effort scraping it out with a screwdriver or utility knife. Somebody who has a Dremel tool could do it for you in a minute or so with a cut-off wheel.


-Dave

[chilli]

cool neevel, thanks.

I am going to whip out my mig (no, really) and play with some plumbing supplies. But I am curious, will diluted acetone affect PVC at all? I all ready have several lengths with screw caps that I use to put blades for flights. Can I use these? (Don't want to create toxic sludge)
Got a dremel but, seems the best method is to be able to do several blades at once. Life's too short, and so am I.

Thanks All.

the dremel is good for a real fast clean out, especially if you want turnaround on the order of several hours.
One major caveat is what you use on the dremel. I've seen lots of very nice blades have their wire grooves widened and deepend too much by cutting blades, and then the wires pop out all the time. I've had better luck with the sandpaper discs, and brush attachments. I've also got a battery operated Dremel, which packs into the "mobile armory". But a chemical bath can be much better if you've got time and lots of blades. My $0.02, YMMV..

[Stryder]

Acetone will melt most PVC don't even think about it! (I hope you haven't already found this out the hard way)

The reason I avoid acetone and superglue is tha fact that acetone leaves residue on the blades. This residue causes any glue other than superglue to pop up.

Superglue works, but I avoid the whole issue by cleaning the blades out thoroughly with a screwdriver or knife, then using Duco "glue of the Gods"

On a clean blade Duco rarely pops up if it is applied correctly.

[attila]

Hi
I left a blade in old acetone for like a month ( I forgot about it) and when I pulled it out there was rust on the blade. So just from personal experience ,I would not leave a blade in acetone for a long time again. Acetone overnite and dremel the crap outta it if need be is the way to go.

[chilli]

Originally posted by orion11:
[b]I've seen lots of very nice blades have their wire grooves widened and deepend too much by cutting blades, and then the wires pop out all the time.[b]

Cripes, take a cutting blade to MY sword, no way. I have grinding discs. I didn't make PVC toxic waste this weekend. I waited to see what my trusted Fencing postees said
Think a new thread is due for putting the wire in, now that I have your advice on taking it out.
Ta, all.

[arcon]

Chilli, after you have removed the wire from the foil. Go down to one of the better hardware stores in your area and purchase a dental pick tool....yes, a dental pick....they're made of stainless. This is the perfect little tool for running down the grove of your blade to clean out the stubborn glue.......I dont think it cost over a couple of bucks and its well worth the money..............arcon

[Mergs]

Personally I use an EXACTO blade turned around and inserted with the sharp end into the holder. Or you can fold a piece of 220 grit sandpaper over and run it up and back the groove.