Extended life cutting blades for hand-held cutting tools

A cutting blade set for use in connection with a hand-held cutting tool having a motor and a casing configured to carry the blade set, the cutting blade set comprising:

• a reciprocating cutting member that pivots about a transverse axis of the casing;
• and
• a pair of fixed-cutting blades configured to be attached to the casing in a spaced-apart relationship, wherein the reciprocating blade is configured to reciprocate between the pair of fixed-cutting blades, and wherein each of the fixed cutting blades comprises
• a body having a hole and spaced-apart first and second shear faces, the hole being configured to be located at the transverse axis of the reciprocating cutting member, and the first and second shear faces defining a thickness of the body;
• a first guide surface extending between the first and second shear faces, the first guide surface being at least substantially normal to the first and second shear faces;
• a first shear edge at the junction of the first guide surface and the first shear face, the first shear edge having a first section forward of the hole and a second section different than the first section aft of the hole;
• a second shear edge at the junction of the first guide surface and the second shear face, the first and second shear edges being generally parallel to and spaced apart from one another by the thickness of the body;
• and
• the hole in the body extending between the first and second shear faces, the hole being configured to interface with the casing such that the blade can be attached to the casing with the first shear face facing inward and only the first section of the first shear edge positioned at a cutting zone for shearing a workpiece, the hole being further positioned such that the blade can be attached to the casing with the second shear face facing inward and only the second section of the first shear edge positioned at the cutting zone.