Measuring or determining jewelers saw blade sizes

[AllanFink1960]

This might be more of a jewelers question but I am hoping someone in the gang can respond with something usefull.

So you find a random unmarked jeweler's saw blade on the floor under your bench. You pick it up and want to know for sure what size it is.

How do you even do that? What do you measure? How do you tell the smaller sizes apart from each other?
Am I stuck with comparing them to other blades of known sizes still in the packages, under the microscope?

Allan

 

[RoycroftRon]

You could count the teeth per inch of your known saw blades and make an estimate that way. There is an Illustration on page 79 in Oppi Untracht's "Jewelry Concepts and Technology", (A must have reference for jewelers/metalsmiths), that you could compare to a 4/0 to size 14 sawblade.

I find it easier just to lump those getaways together and just grab one that is fine for thin metals and a coarse for thicker metals when what you are sawing isn't a delicate or important job.

 

[monk]

i learned how to solve that problem years ago. simple. buy the finest size you would use, and the most coarse. with 2 sizes theres no problem. also, they're so cheap,when they fall to the floor give them a pitch. i hate usin the little &@*#$ ards anyway.

 

[Markofx]

The answer is at hand,

Don't worry about this one blade, and do this in the future. The most blade sizes you'll ever need are 2/0 4/0or 6/0 for very fine cutting of very thin metal. The next time you buy blades, measure how deep each size is from the teeth to the back and use a sharpie to mark the measurement on the container. Most full time engraver aren't concerned with blade thickness. But if you have to saw to a consistent depth, knowing the mm size lets you cut until you see the blade level with the metal your cutting. Then you know how deep your cuts are. I make all my crowns for abstract cut stones, so knowing how far to cut into a corner for a bend is critical. Also cutting the sides of the crowns with repeatable designs is crucial for quality work.
I hope this is useful.
Mark

 

[Karl Stubenvoll]

The only time I'm really critical about numbers is when I have to reorder blades. After a while, it is easier to visually chose a blade for the job at hand. The tooth spacing must be less than the metal thickness.

When buying, the premium varieties are only a few pennies more per blade and they are usually more than worth the difference. If you ever got a batch that would not cut a straight line, you'll know what I mean. Round back blades are best.

Here's a brass inlay I played with over thirty years ago. 20 gage stock with most of the work using 6/0 blades. You will want a drill press and very tiny drills for starting the cuts; drill at intersections of lines or their widest sections. These were filled with black epoxy and have held up very well. At the time, I had never picked up a graver.

 

[AllanFink1960]

Thanks for the speedy replies. Sounds like my frustrations with sawblades are not uncommon.

Anyone have any preferred brands? I think the ones I bought last were Hercules.

 

[TallGary]

Allan,

I like the Laser Gold blades from Rio Grande. They seem to hold up better than some of the others that I have used. Your mileage may vary.

Gary

 

[bitmaker]

I use Scies blades.The are only about .50 a dozen more than Herkules, and seem to hold up very good.

 

[cowboy_silversmith]

I use yellow dagger consistantly but if I can find Antelope blades again, I will use those exclusively.

Best regards,
Greg Pauline

 

[jimzim75]

No.1 get a Gesswein catalogue. Look up saw blades. There's a list of
teeth per inch, and they list the thickness of saw blades.
No. 2 get a digital caliper and measure the thickness and look it up in the catalogue.
Gesswien sells 5 or 6 different kinds of blades
You should find the info you need, or you'll at least be close.