How To Sharpen Your Miter Saw Blade?

If you are a workman, then you must be familiar with a Miter Saw. A Miter Saw is a tool with a circular saw blade. It is used to do crosscuts. It also helps in making miters. However, this mighty tool becomes useless if its blades are not appropriately maintained. While using a miter saw, we need to deal with a common problem of dull blades. Once the blades lose their sharpness, the tool itself becomes useless. It becomes incapable of cutting. so how to sharpen your miter saw blade?

Contents

How To Sharpen Your Miter Saw Blade – Step By Step Guide

In step 3, you need to mark one of the teeth of the blade as a starting point. You can use a piece of crayon to mark the tooth. Once you mark the starting point of the blade, it will be more comfortable and less confusing to keep track of your progress.
Step 3 may sound a bit childish to you, but trust us, it is essential. It not only saves you from putting in the unnecessary extra effort but is also helpful in saving time.

As you all are familiar with the miter saw blade, you must know that it is circular. It has many teeth, spread circularly in all directions. When you need to sharpen the blade, you need to point all these teeth. This can be quite a confusing task because of a similar appearance and a round shape; you might not understand where you have started the sharpening. As a result of which you might end up sharpening the same teeth over and over again. This will lead to a waste of time and effort.

Total Time: 30 Minutes

Step 1: Unplugging The Saw

A miter saw can be a pretty dangerous tool if handled carelessly. You need to be very careful and cautious while working on it. You must keep in mind that you should never work on it while connected to the power source. Switching off the power button is not enough, as in many cases, the saw got switched on, which resulted in accidents. Thus, the only way to work with a miter saw is to kill the power and take extra care. It has been responsible for many accidents.

Many modern saw designs are battery operated. Suppose your saw is also battery powered. It is advisable to remove the batteries as well as switch the machine off.

Step 2: Removing The Blade

Once you are done with step 1 and all ready for step 2, remove the blade. The blade can not be sharpened inside the saw. So, to sharpen the edges of the blade, you need to get it unattached from the miter saw. After removing the blade, you should keep it on the workbench. After mounting the blade on the workbench, you should use the clamps to hold it there.

Step 3: Marking The Blade’s Teeth

Step 4: Filling The Blade’s Teeth

After completing step 3, now it is time to move to the most crucial step. Step 4 involves the actual sharpening of the blades. You need to file the blades to sharpen them. While filing, you must make sure to put in equal effort and time on each blade. Start filing one blade (starting from the marked crayon point) after another.

In this step, you need a diamond file. Put the diamond file at the bottom. Make sure to start filling from the front of the blade tooth. Make sure that you move the diamond file along the edges. The motion should be forward and upward. You should keep in mind that the face of the diamond file lies on the flat part of the tooth’s thickness.

Step 5: Sharp The Blade From Both Sides

Now you need to repeat step 4 with each tooth of the blade. You need to repeat the same process on the flat part of the tooth of the blade. It is advised to complete the sharpening of one side of the blade correctly and then moves over to the other side. Once you are done with the first side, you should unclamp the blade and turn it over to sharpen the next side.

To turn the blade over, you need to be careful. Now that the edges of one side of the blade are already sharp, it can be quite dangerous to touch them carelessly. You must be cautious while turning the blade over. Once the blade is turned, lock it on the clamps and repeat the processes mentioned above.

Step 6: Testing

No process is complete unless you test it out. So, once you are all done, it is time to test and see the results of your hard work. Now, unclamp the blade and carefully take it off the workbench. Reinstall the blade in the miter saw carefully.

After fitting the blade properly into the miter saw, it is time to check it’s performance. Connect the miter saw to its power source (electricity or battery). Switch the saw on and start cutting. Use a wooden piece of board to observe the cuts. If the cuts are precise and more exact than before, then congratulate yourself on successfully sharpening the blade of your miter saw!

However, if the results are still not satisfactory, repeat the steps mentioned above until you get the desired results.

Things You Would Need To Sharpen Your Miter Saw Blade

Before plunging directly into the task of sharpening the blade, you need to prepare for it. You should first keep some of the necessary items handy. The prerequisite items for this job are as follows:

Workbench
Mounted Clamps
Crayon
Diamond File

1. Workbench

A workbench is simply a table. It is a useful aid in artistry. It is used to perform many functions. Workbenches come in many designs and sizes. The designs and sizes vary according to the task in which the bench is being used. It is useful from jewelry making to staircase making.

2. Mounted Clamps

Clamp is a simple tool specially designed to join or conflate two or more than two objects together. Clamps have a jaw-like structure. It is used for holding a workpiece. One of the two parallel jaws is fixed, and the other is adjustable. We can keep the object we are working on in between and fix it there with screws. It is mainly helpful while filing, sawing, etc.

3. Crayon

A colorful pencil or wax stick that is used for drawing. It can be used to mark the starting point while sharpening the saw blade.

4. Diamond File

A file is a very common device. It helps in sharpening the objects. The files are commonly used in the areas of woodworking, metalworking. There are many types of files. Each of them has different purposes. One of these is Diamond File.

A diamond file is made by embedding small particles of diamonds on the surface of some soft material. It is used on rigid materials like stone, glass, hardened steel, etc.

Causes Blunt Blades

The cause behind a blunt blade of a miter saw is generally its frequent usage. The wears down quickly with heavy use. If you are new in the field and do not know how to identify a blunt blade, you are in the right place! The way to understand if your miter saw blades are dull or not is to look at their shapes. If the blades appear to be round and less edgy, it is time to sharpen them.

Now, if this is the case with your miter saw, do not worry. It is not the end of the world! In this article, we will discuss all the miter saw blades. We will analyze the complete process of sharpening the blades of a miter saw.

Final Thoughts

Whether you are a professional or an amateur, a pro or a beginner, you will definitely benefit from our guide on how to sharpen you miter saw blade. If you are into wood or metalworking, you will face this issue sooner or later. So being ready for it will come in handy.

As you now know, sharpening the blades of a miter saw is a straightforward and easy process. It takes only about 15 to 20 minutes. However, it is a continuous process. As we mentioned earlier, the more you use the saw, the duller the blades will be. So, you need to sharpen the blades from time to time.