Jason,

bad batches of blades DO occur, although it would seem not all that frequently. It is hard to believe that ALL blocks at your facility  contain hard inclusions (unless you are specifically dealing with bone & calcified tissue).
Other things that might contribute are the way you treat your blade - wiping it with a Kimwipe before cutting for example, or touching it with forceps when picking up sections. Lastly, it may be that there is a contaminant in the wax, dust from nearby renovations might become incorporated in the embedding wax, thus giving rise to scratched & torn sections.

Best regards




-----Original Message-----
From: "jason m" 
To: histonet@pathology.swmed.edu
Date: Thu, 02 Sep 2004 11:34:40 -0700
Subject: [Histonet] blade sign

anyone have tips for minimizing blade sign? i start at one end of fresh 
blade and work to the other end before throwing out the disposable blade.=20
sometimes however, blade sign appears even with a new blade. is it just that 
some blocks have hard spots that nick the blade?

thanks.
J.

_________________________________________________________________
Take advantage of powerful junk e-mail filters built on patented Microsoft  
SmartScreen Technology. 
http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=en-ca&page=byoa/prem&xAPID=1994&DI=1034&SU=http://hotmail.com/enca&HL=Market_MSNIS_Taglines 
  Start enjoying all the benefits of MSN  Premium right now and get the 
first two months FREE*.


_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet



Louise Renton
Bone Research Unit
University of the Witwatersrand
Johannesburg
South Africa
.......so what IS the speed of dark?

_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet