6 Reasons Why Your Blades Wear Out Fast
Machine knife and slitter blade wear is inevitable in industrial cutting and converting, but excessive or premature wear is often a sign that something’s not right.
Whether you’re converting plastic film, foam, fiber-reinforced composites, or other demanding materials, replacing slitting knives too often can lead to downtime, higher operating costs, and inconsistent results.
Understanding why your industrial blades wear out quickly and how to prevent it can make a significant difference in both productivity and profit. In this article, we’ll explore the most common reasons for accelerated machine knife wear. We'll provide you with helpful advice on how to prolong the life of your cutting tools in the upcoming post “How to Prevent Fast Blade Wear & Tear”.
Reasons Why Industrial Blades Can Wear Out Too Soon
The Wrong Blade Material for the Job
One of the most common causes of accelerated wear and tear is the use of standard tool steel blades in demanding applications. Cutting abrasive or composite materials, such as glass-fiber-reinforced plastics (GFRP), aluminum composite panels (ACP), or recycled polymer plastic films, can quickly dull such machine blades.
For slitting abrasive and tough materials solid tungsten carbide, coated cutting-edge knives ( e.g. ceramic or zero-friction coated blades ) offer far greater resistance to abrasion and thermal fatigue. Material selection should be based on both substrate characteristics and cutting environment (e.g. dry vs. lubricated, high vs. low temperature).
Low-Quality or Non-Optimized Blades
Blades produced with inadequate hardening, poor surface finishing, or inconsistent tolerances degrade faster even when geometrically correct. Look for blades with controlled heat treatment processes, precise edge grinding, and surface coatings or polishing that enhance wear resistance and reduce friction.
Incorrect Blade Geometry or Edge Profile
Even a high-quality converting knife can wear out prematurely if it has the wrong design not adapted for your application. Blade geometry, including sharpening bevel, edge thickness, and tip radius, directly influences cut quality and wear resistance. A blade with too steep bevel may produce a sharp cut initially but will dull faster under high load. Conversely, a thicker edge increases durability but may require more force and generate heat. Optimizing the edge profile for the specific material type and cutting method (razor slitting, shearing, lathe, crush cutting, etc.) ensures a balance between sharpness and durability.
Contaminated or Abrasive Cutting Material
Contaminants like sand particles, glue residues, or added metal fragments (e.g. titanium additives ) act as micro-abrasives, especially when cutting recycled materials, adhesive or coated and laminated materials. These accelerate edge breakdown and may even cause microfractures and chips on the blades.
Sollex has many successful cases where we have developed a cutting solution for hard-to-cut materials. One example is the development of a machine knife for a successful roofing material manufacturer to cut roofing felt paper, which consists of abrasive particles such as sand as well as bitumen and other difficult-to-process components.
Incorrect Pressure or Misalignment
Overcompensating with blade pressure to achieve a clean cut often backfires. Excess pressure increases friction, heat generation, and edge deformation, all of which reduce blade life. Additionally, misalignment in blade holders or anvils can cause uneven wear across the edge, leading to premature failure. A proper setup with fine-tuned pressure control, alignment, and tension adjustment is critical, especially in precision converting lines.
Incompatible Cutting Technique
Different cutting methods, such as shear cutting, crush cutting, or razor blade slitting, require specific blade designs. Using the wrong type of blade for the cutting technique can lead to uneven wear or even production failure. For example, high-speed film slitting benefits from ultra-sharp industrial razor blades, while thicker materials with multiple layers may require hardened rotary knives with a specific grind profile.
Need Help Finding the Right Converting Blade?
Let Sollex help you optimize your cutting process and design machine knives and industrial razor blades for your cutting material and application. Contact us for expert advice or explore our product range:
- Circular knives ( top male slitting knives, bottom female knives, rotary knives, perforating knives, crush cut knives etc)
- Slitting razor blades ( slotted razor blades with straight and rounded corners, razor blades with 3 slots, injector slitting blades, titanium-, zero-friction-, ceramic-coated razor blades, solid tungsten carbide blades )
- Knives for recycling (die-face cutter blades, granulator knives, rotary knives, pelletizer blades)
- Custom-made cutting solutions designed for your slitting machine and cutting process
If you have any questions about ordering or product specifications, please contact us at +4635-15 75-00 or order@sollex.se.
