Making an Acetone Bath

[SJCFU#2]

How do you use the heat gun. I am supposing that the glues simply melt or what?

The glue breaks down under heat (and gives off some rather noxious fumes in the process - be make sure to have good ventilation).

[brtech]

Yeah, Use a paint stripper style heat gun. It breaks the glue bond. With CA glues, if done right, the groove comes out nearly clean. It's much faster than acetone. Clamp the blade in a vise. Hold on to a wire end with a pliers if it's short, your hand if its long. Heat the glue joint until the wire comes out easily; don't pull hard. Work your way down the groove. You can flip the blade in the vise if it gets hard to handle. When you have the wire all the way out, and the blade is still warm, box cutter blade or a piece of broken hack saw blade will clean the last bit of glue out (although I usually use a dremel). It's quite fast; 5 minutes tops, and if you are good at it, it's more like 3.

[Cookeit]

Where can I buy the cheapest/best acetone?
Home Depot or Lowe's?

[FoilyDeath]

Yeah, Use a paint stripper style heat gun. It breaks the glue bond. With CA glues, if done right, the groove comes out nearly clean. It's much faster than acetone. Clamp the blade in a vise. Hold on to a wire end with a pliers if it's short, your hand if its long. Heat the glue joint until the wire comes out easily; don't pull hard. Work your way down the groove. You can flip the blade in the vise if it gets hard to handle. When you have the wire all the way out, and the blade is still warm, box cutter blade or a piece of broken hack saw blade will clean the last bit of glue out (although I usually use a dremel). It's quite fast; 5 minutes tops, and if you are good at it, it's more like 3.

Any chance this could effect the durability of the blade? It seems like a lot of heat...

[forethought]

Where can I buy the cheapest/best acetone?
Home Depot or Lowe's?

It's going to be pretty much the same at either place. Also, Wal-Mart carries it too (yes, the 100% acetone, it's over in the paint ailse). Make sure you get the smaller container with the opening in the middle of the top instead of the one with the handle, it makes filling the bath a lot easier.

[brtech]

Any chance this could effect the durability of the blade? It seems like a lot of heat...

Nah, not even close. You really have to get the blade a whole lot hotter than the heat gun can do to affect the metallurgy/tempering/whatever.