Hacksaw blades

[Old SchoolParticipant @oldschool]

[Old SchoolParticipant @oldschool]

Can anyone recommend a source of good quality hacksaw blades for general use in my workshop. Most of my recent purchases have been very poor.

[Chris Evans 6Participant @chrisevans6]

The same question from me. I prefer "All hard" blades finding they cut better/straighter and last longer than the flexible ones. Like old school my last few batches have been poor.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

**LINK**

Starrett

Excellent service from their online shop, and top quality.

MichaelG.

[AjohnwParticipant @ajohnw51620]

I'll second starrett. I'm ok at the moment. Some on in a builders merchants in Pembrokeshire needed some decent ones and bought a load that were made in France. I bough several after trying one so still have a few left. They may not have any more now. They are on the road out of Milford heading towards Dale in case some one is in that area.

John

–

[steamdaveParticipant @steamdave]

Well, I must have had a bad batch of Starrett hand hacksaw blades. The yellow bi-metallic type – the ones where the teeth fall off the blade at the slightest provocation.

Tried different frames and different tensions; makes no difference. I've got some Bahco blades and they are excellent as far as I am concerned. Perhaps a bit more expensive, but if they do the job, it's money well spent.

Dave
The Emerald Isle

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by steamdave on 19/12/2015 14:06:07:

Well, I must have had a bad batch of Starrett hand hacksaw blades. The yellow bi-metallic type – the ones where the teeth fall off the blade at the slightest provocation.

.

Sorry [and surprised] to read that, Dave … I've never had a bad one yet.

MichaelG.

[Old SchoolParticipant @oldschool]

Thanks Michael which ones do you use bi metal or all hss?

[James AlfordParticipant @jamesalford67616]

B&Q sell Irwin blades which seem to last fairly well.

James.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Old School on 19/12/2015 16:20:06:

Thanks Michael which ones do you use bi metal or all hss?

.

RedStripe all HSS, 32tpi

Note: these have a slight wave in the teeth, which helps swarf clearance.

**LINK**

I bought the box of 50 at a very good price, when they had a Sale

… It's worth keeping an eye on their occasional offers.

.

MichaelG.

[Chris Evans 6Participant @chrisevans6]

The yellow Starrett and blue Eclipse blades have both been poor over the last few months. I tend to buy 10 at a time so stuck with them if poor quality. My "Donkey" power hacksaw uses Eclipse blades that last well.

[IanTParticipant @iant]

I've used Bahco (owned by Sandvik I think) in the past with every satisfaction but I'm currently using Lawson Hardflex (a US brand) 12" blades (spotted at a local car boot I'm afraid) that have proved to be very durable. I think any good quality 'brand' hacksaw blade should be OK, just avoid any B&Q/Wickes/Dyas/Screwfix/Tesco etc ( the list is endless) Own Brand or No-Brand junk…..

For my Junior blades – I'm using Eclipse blades that I was lucky enough to spot at a very reasonable price in a branch of Hurst's whilst on holiday on the IoW. So I brought quite a few packets of assorted tooth sizes. Several years back now though…so I must look again this Easter !!

I use bi-metal/flexible blades (rather than 'all-hard'  by the way. I cut mainly "softer" materials (like mild steel and brass) rather than stainless or more exotic stuff. Having a range of 'tooth' sizes is very useful and I use new blades for brass and then 'promote' them on to steel use once they are "run-in"…

Hacksaw blades are one of those things where it really is a waste of money to cut corners on price (same as files). Buy a good brand product from a reliable source Old School and you shouldn't go too far wrong.

Regards,

 

IanT

Edited By IanT on 19/12/2015 17:48:00

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Just checked the Lawson website – $50+ for Qty 5 blades. I purchased half a dozen packs for much less than that (so I'm feeling pleased with myself…)

Interesting spec – perhaps explaining the higher price….

**LINK**

Regards,

IanT

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by IanT on 19/12/2015 17:46:16:

… Buy a good brand product from a reliable source Old School and you shouldn't go too far wrong.

Regards,

IanT

.

Ian,

I think that was the gist of his original question

Unfortunately… It seems that some 'good brands' may no longer be what they were.

MichaelG.

Edited By Michael Gilligan on 19/12/2015 18:08:01

[Peter G. ShawParticipant @peterg-shaw75338]

Also, I think it is important to obtain a mix of teeth per inch. Currently I have Vanguard All Hard 32T (which I think were an offer at some time through ME), Eclipse 24T (flexible HSS) and two Faithful 18T Bi-Metal blades which I've so far used only on aluminium. For the Junior hacksaw I have a pack of 10 Eclipse 32T described as Spring steel blade, and a pack of Faithful 32T described as manufactured from high quality steel fully hardened and tempered (make of that what you will).

Most work is done with the 24T blades with the 32T blades reserved for narrower work.

Regards,

Peter G. Shaw

[Mick HenshallParticipant @mickhenshall99321]

Sandvik for me,last ages good value

Mick

[Barry QParticipant @barryq]

Although have used Eclipse blue blades in the past they seem to wear out quickly these days so now use Bahco Sandflex with no problems to date. Get mine from Axminster Tools but sure other outlets exist.

Barry

[“Bill Hancox”Participant @billhancox]

The last batch of blades I purchased a couple of years ago were a mix of Starrett and Sandvik. Both are lasting extremely well especially since I started to lube my blades with this **LINK** . I also noticed an improvement in blade life and performance when I purchased this hacksaw frame. **LINK**

Although I have not as yet tried them, I do have several "Ultra Major" HSS blades (France) that I found in one of my late father's tool boxes. Available in the UK here. **LINK**

Bill

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

A suggestion:

This thread has already revealed a wide range of opinions, based on the limited experience that we have each had with various blades. … I think we need a proper test; to provide some quantitative results.

Obviously; a small Power Hacksaw with a stroke-counter would provide a suitable test-machine.

If someone has such a machine available: We could each supply sample blades, and the results of a prescribed test would make a very useful reference for us all [at much less cost and effort than each doing our own subjective tests].

… The fee for an article in MEW should cover the running costs of the machine.

MichaelG.

[Nigel McBurney 1Participant @nigelmcburney1]

I do not use my Eclipse hacksaw much as i have a Rapidor and a Do All bandsaw,when you get older a hacksaw gets handwork, last week I changed my Hacksaw blade,looked in the blade box and there was a pack of eclipse blades 24 tpi, all hard I don't know where they came from,probably an auto jumble,as I don't recall ever buying new blades from a tool supplier in the last 30 years,anyhow started to use the saw and the blade kept jamming,the blue paint was rather thick and there appeared to be no appreciable set to the teeth,tried another one ,result same as before,had a look at the rest,all were marked with the Eclipse brand marks and made in sheffield,perhaps it was Sheffield somewhere in China or India,went back to some other Eclipse blades which I had in stock and all was well.I also buy my bandsaw blades from auto jumblers and s/h tool dealers as my saw has a built in welder, most of the blades have been Starret,though I did pick up a half used box of genuine Do All blade ,unfortunately only enough to make one blade,its cutting performance was far far better than the Starrett blades.

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

The yellow and green Starret ones if you can get them knock spots of any others I have used. Eclipse and Bahco are OK, but beware of eclipse look-alikes.

Neil

[IanTParticipant @iant]

You really will kick over a can of worms if you start talking band saws Nigel.

Like Religion and the Weather – in some woodworking circles, it's a topic that seems to divide opinion!

Regards,

IanT

[KWILParticipant @kwil]

I butt weld my own bandsaw blades from Starrett stock but have noticed more variability of weld quality inspite of post weld annealing. Maybe the base material has changed or is just plain variable quality.

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

I use a number of different brands, Eclipse, Bahco, and the locally made Patience & Nicolson, I find the P&N blades as good as any.

Ian S C

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

Yes, but what do we do with the old blades – I just can't bring myself to throw them away. There have been threads on what you can use old blades for. We need a thread on how to break the habit of just keeping them – for something useful !!
BobH

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