Why there is no stock — and what you get instead

A cutting blade only works when its geometry matches the machine it runs on. Diameter, bore, thickness, edge angle, hole pattern, the way it clamps — change any one of them and the blade either will not fit or will not cut. That is why we do not keep finished blades on a shelf: a stocked blade is a guess about someone else’s machine.

The trade-off is honest: you wait for the blade to be made. What you get in return is a process where every step has a named owner and a time, and a drawing we keep on file so the second order does not start from zero. The rest of this page is that process, including where it usually slows down.

The whole process at a glance

Stage	Who	Time
Drawing, sample or dimensions received	You	Day 0
Drawing check and quotation	Us	Within 24 hours
Drawing approval	You	As fast as your side allows
Sample blade made and shipped	Us	7–10 days
Trial on your machine	You	Your call
Production run	Us	30 days from the approved drawing
Inspection and dispatch	Us	Before the blade leaves

The production clock starts when you approve the drawing, not when you first write to us. Everything before that is the part where most of the calendar time actually goes.

Step 1 — Send the drawing, or the worn blade

Two ways in, and both are normal:

• You have a drawing. A 2D PDF or DWG with dimensions, tolerances, edge angle, material and quantity. If there is a 3D file, send it too, but the 2D drawing is what we quote from.
• You do not have a drawing. Send one or two worn blades. We measure them and draw the part ourselves — that is the reverse-engineering route, and a large share of first orders start there.

Photos alone are rarely enough to manufacture from, but they are useful early: they tell us the blade family, roughly what condition it is in, and whether the job is worth quoting at all.

Step 2 — Drawing check and quotation, within 24 hours

Before we put a price on anything we check that the drawing closes. Missing dimensions, tolerances that contradict each other, a hole pattern that cannot be drilled where it is drawn — these come up more often than you would think, and they are cheaper to fix on paper than in steel.

The quotation states the unit price, the steel grade we propose and why, the sample lead time and the production lead time. If something in the drawing will shorten blade life or raise the cost, we say so at this stage rather than quietly quoting what was asked for.

If the drawing has gaps, you get a written list of questions instead of a vague price. That exchange usually costs a day or two — it is the first place where calendar time goes.

Step 3 — You approve the drawing

We issue the final drawing with the tolerances and edge specification spelled out, and you confirm it. This is the point of no return on geometry: once material is cut, a change means starting again.

This is also where the 30-day production clock starts. Not at enquiry, not at payment — at drawing approval. If your side needs an internal sign-off, that time sits outside our lead time, and it is worth knowing before you promise a date to your own production team.

Step 4 — Sample blade, 7 to 10 days

The sample is free; you cover the freight. It is made to the approved drawing, so trialling it is a real test of the geometry and not an approximation.

When you run it, note three things: whether the cut is clean from the first stroke, whether the blade holds that quality through a full shift, and what the failure looks like if it does not. Those three answers decide whether the production run goes ahead as drawn.

Step 5 — If the sample does not cut right

Tell us what you see rather than what you think the cause is. “Burr on the underside”, “chips after two hours”, “cuts but leaves the web attached” — each of those points to a different fix, and we can usually tell from the description whether it is geometry, material or the machine setup.

If the geometry needs to change, we redraw and make a second sample. Not every job gets there in one pass, and we would rather spend another ten days on a sample than ship a production run that disappoints.

Step 6 — Production, 30 days from the approved drawing

Minimum order for production is 100 pieces. The run is made to the drawing you approved — the same drawing the sample was made from, so what you trialled is what you receive.

If the specification changes mid-run, the clock restarts from the new approval. That is not a penalty; it is simply that the material and the setup change with it.

Step 7 — Inspection and dispatch

Before the blades leave we check dimensions against the approved drawing, inspect the edge, and count the quantity. Matched pairs stay together and are marked so they go onto the machine in the right order. The blades ship by whatever method you choose from Shenzhen.

Where orders actually get delayed

Almost never in the workshop. In practice:

• A drawing with missing dimensions. One or two days of questions and answers before anyone can quote properly.
• Internal approval taking a week. Perfectly normal, but it is calendar time, and it sits before the 30 days rather than inside it.
• A sample that is trialled but not reported on. We cannot start production without knowing whether it worked, and we will not assume.
• A specification change after approval. Restarts the production clock.
• Ordering during a peak period. We will tell you at quotation if the workshop is loaded, rather than promising a date we cannot hold.

Questions about the process

Can I skip the sample and go straight to production?

Yes, if you already run a blade made to this drawing and you are only reordering. For a new geometry we advise against it — the sample is where a wrong assumption gets caught cheaply.

Does the 30 days include shipping?

No. Thirty days is production from drawing approval; freight time depends on the method you choose. Tell us the date you need the blades on site and we will work backwards from it.

What if I need it faster?

Ask at quotation. Sometimes the workshop can pull a job forward, sometimes it cannot, and the honest answer at the start is worth more than a promise that slips later.

Do you keep my drawing for the next order?

Yes. Repeat orders run from the drawing on file, so you do not re-measure and we do not re-check. Quote the part number or send a photo of the blade and we will find it.

What do you need from me to start today?

A drawing, or one worn blade with the machine model. Either is enough for the 24-hour quotation step.