Anyone ever hear of Anker blades?

[oohlookitsarabbit]

There's an auction on ebay for a gross of German 2/0 Anker blades. Never heard of this brand but I have been having a hard time finding a 2/0 that tracks and turns for me. Really miss the Woodrunners and Great American Scroll Saw blades that I loved but can't get anymore.

Tried FD and Pegas but neither 2/0 will follow a line. Polars sort of work but struggle in the harder woods.

[dgman]

Susan, No I have never even heard of Anker blades. When I need a 0/2 blade I use Olsen 0/2R blades. They track fine for me. They don't last as long as FD blades, but they track great. I Bought a half gross of FD SR 0/2 blades, and they just don't track at all. I have tried all speed and feed rates with no success. So when it comes to 0/2, I stick with Olsen.

[oohlookitsarabbit]

Thanks Dan. I'll have to try Olsen too. Nice to know it's not just me The Anker listing interests me because they are unused blades in packaging indicating they were manufactured some time ago and I have had more success with the blades which are no longer available that with the ones currently on the market.

[UHMNL]

Never heard of them blades. Maybe a made-up name. There are two companies in Germany who make blades and I can't find nothing that either one ever made them blades.
Most blades have a burr on the right side what makes them cut to the right. To stay on the line you have to move the wood some drgree to the right, this makes it easy to stay on the line. If not, you will loose control and break a lot of blades. The FD-UR does not have this burr.
Mike

[dgman]

Hey mike, I would love it if you had FD UR in 0/2!

[oohlookitsarabbit]

Mike, Yes, I know I need to angle to the right. I've been cutting for 12 years and never had a problem cutting detailed intricate cuts with my old 0/2s. They were branded Great American Scroll saw blades sold by Berry Basket back when Rick Longabaugh, was running it. I'm sure they were repackaged from another manufacturer but don't know who. Both the FD and Pegas curve too wide on turns and just wander for me. For both my wood pendants and key chains I need to be extremely accurate. Is there any way to remove the burr to see if that helps? Like I said, the Polars track fine but dull really quickly in the harder woods. Love the polars for cutting clear cast acrylic!

Just ordered the URs to try them out and also the puzzle blades.

[UHMNL]

Dogman,
The way the blades are made it is almost impossible to make a smaller one as the # 1. It has to do with the teeth configuration. It cuts more straight then most other blades and some have told me that they last longer. It would be nice if the could make a # 2/0. I have to call the company tomorrow and will ask tem about it.
I believe that Berry Basket got some blades from the same company. Now that it is sold, the new owners have a relation ship with Lesley's patterns who is selling the FD blades. When they need blades they get them from Lesley's.
When a blade starts to wander many times it means that there is not enough tension or that it got loose in the clamp. I stack cut a lot of ornaments, 5 or 6 and use a # 2/0 and and they come out fine, some are very intricate.
Mike

[Rapid Roger]

Mike,
I have a question.
Would it be possible to hold a knife sharpening stone to the right side of the blade and run the saw for a few strokes to get rid of the burr so that it would track better?
I have never tried this, it was just a thought I had.
It would be more time consuming and I'm sure only the most concerned people would even care.
As I said, it was just a thought.

Rog

[kimb]

Hey Roger, I read a tip somewhere about holding a file or stone on the back sides of the blade to round the edges to make it easier to make sharp turns, but I was thinking the same thing about getting rid of the burr that way. Guess it wouldn't hurt to try it.

Kim

[Gabby]

Try turning the burr a little with a smooth hard piece of steel pressed lightly to the side, it won't take much so make it quick. try cutting and see if there is any improvement Chances are you may waste a blade or 2 trying that, and you might find it will want to wander the other way.
My nickel's worth.
Gabby

[tux_linux]

Now this becomes interesting.

With my new saw I'm much more in control of the blade then before. Now I notice a difference between a completely new blade and a blade that has been used.

I usually try to cut some not so small cuts before I use a blade for the really important spots.
I also try to have some used blades to be able to get right into the fret cuts.

Do you pre-cut your blades to make them more handy?

[dgman]

Hey Torsten, If I am going to cut a very delicate area with a new blade, I will cut a less delicate area first to see how the new blade will cut. If I'm satisfied with the blade performance, then I will go back and cut the delicate area. Sometimes a new blade will not cut as well as I would like. Instead of using or saving it, I toss it and try another blade.

[Danny]

I think all the above mention problems/conditions have a lot to do with the brand Scroll saw.  From experience with 2 past brands (Lowes specials) and using both for years and having some troubles cutting a straight line or a curve line.  Then I got my HEGNER....  Right from the beginning of using it I couldn't believe how I was able to follow ANY shape of a line and actually make call the cuts almost perfect.  I have cut many different projects since I got the saw from stacking 6 quarter inch red oak ply to 3/4" cherry/poplar and good ole pine.  Long story short is I feel the saw makes the world of difference in the quality of a persons ability to cut a project/follow a line.  My 2cents.LOL
                                 Danny  :+}

[oohlookitsarabbit]

I actually had some blades where you had to angle to the left, so I always test cut with new blades to get the angle right. I use a Dewalt and an Excalibur, so I don't think it's a saw problem. Maybe the problem with me and the 0/2s is that I'm only cutting 1/8" or 1/4" thick instead of larger stacks. Ordered some of the FD penguins as well to see if they agree with me more.

First serious scroll saw I bought was a Hegner. Mail ordered from the US distributor and couldn't get in to cut anything except Spanish Cedar or cheap pine. Constantly broke blades and the wood was chattering all over the place. Rep kept telling me I was the problem but finally took saw back and admitted the two blade clamps were not lined up properly. Returned to me and it still gave me fits so I sold it on ebay and bought the Dewalt which I love. Was so frustrated with the attitude of the distributor that I will never buy another Hegner. My Dewalt has 12 years of service and I've recently started having problems with it maintaining speed and a lot more blade slippage, so I'm transitioning to the Excalibur.

[LHayes]

Sorry you have had problems with the Hegner brand.  I have two of them in my shop...one for about 12 years is a 22" Polymax (belt driven) and a 18" Ver. speed.  I use the Polymax most of the time and love both of them.  I have tried nearly all the brands and really liked the DeWalt...but they would not hold up...at least the one's I had (I had 5 of them...kept taking them back when they would break).  I guess we all find the saw that is best for our use.  I also have a Porter Cable scroll saw...was on sale for $59 and just had to buy it.  I use it to teach people scrolling

Hawaiilad