aclose

hi all.
i'm looking to pick up some blades for a new 10" table saw.
unless you can convince me otherwise, i'll be going with thin kerf blades for my new collection.

Rip Blade

Combo Blade

Plywood/man-made materials Blade

Dado Blade

i'll probably only pick up a Rip & Combo since those are the two i'll use the most. and then i'll pick up a Plywood & Dado as needed for projects. are there any other Blade types you'd recommend? i 'assumed' the Combo Blade would serve fine for crosscuts. i have a mitersaw with a decent blade that i use for all stock less than 10" anyway.
Pros/Cons on various brands? i believe Freud and Forrest are two top brands. any others that deem serious consideration?
this will be my first set of blades. i don't think i need to break the bank the first time around, but would like them to last. that being said, i know i will be replacing/upgrading them in the future. but i'd like the best blade for my buck.

pianoman

I`ve bought many blades over the years and I look for blades that can be sharpened easily...large carbide tips. One blade I really liked was an Amana. I also like the tripple chip design. I mainly stick with Freud! I do have a thin curf rip blade. Rick

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Rob

You can take care of your plywood, crosscutting and ripping needs with the Forrest WWII thin kerf.

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TS3660

I'll second that. And why would you buy a rip & a combo? If you're going to buy a rip, buy a crosscut. If you're going to a combo, leave it at that.

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Bud

"Capitalism is the unequal sharing of wealth: Socialism is the equal sharing of misery"

Joe Lyddon

I'm not sorry I bought my Forrest WWII 1/8" kerf blade...
Stiffer than the the thin kerf...

I love it!

Every cut is as smooth as glass... Yes, it really does happen!

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Joe Lyddon
www.WoodworkStuff.net
My Small Gallery

TexasTimbers

I agree. I use thin kerfs in some situations but after having ripped many a BF with a 16" blade with a vibration damper and a thick 3/16" kerf, I can tell ya the difference is phenomenol and Joe is right . . . glass does happen.

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skymaster

Amana,Freud,Forrest all good blades. DONT waste your money on a combo blade it doesnt do anything well. Dedicated rip, and a good crosscut will be the 2 blades that you will do 99% of all your cuts with. Totally agree with tin kerf, thick blade really need lot of power usually 3 hp or better

skymaster

deleted double post

TS3660

1/8" is great....IF you have the power. I think aclose bought a 3hp saw so IMO he is best off staying away from thin kerf. As for me, well, I only have 1 1/2 hp so I have to stay with thin.

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Bud

"Capitalism is the unequal sharing of wealth: Socialism is the equal sharing of misery"

knotscott

Go full kerf if you've got 3hp+. High quality TK's are a terrific choice for smaller saws. The 30T WWII and Infinity 010-060 are an incredible compliment to each other. The 30T WWII cuts about as cleanly as the 40T but handles thick material far more effortlessly. The 60T Infinity has Hi-ATB teeth for splinter free crosscuts in wood or sheetgoods, but handles materials to over 5/4" very well. Both are outstanding with complimenting strengths to each other and both have excellent versatility...enough so that you can actually leave either in the saw for general purpose duty. Choose the 30T for thicker materials, the 60T for ply or ultrafine crosscuts, but both will cover a wide range of duties if you don't get a chance to change them. Add a 24T FTG ripper as needed. If you insist on a true 40T combo blade, I'd go with the Infinity Super General, Freud Fusion, Ridge Carbide, Tenryu Gold Medal, or WWII 40T.

Saw Blade Comparison

aclose

great, thanks for the replies.
the table saw i will be buying for is a 3HP 10" cabinet saw. so it will have the power to move a full size/thickness blade. i didn't think the thickness would really be that relevant aside from taking a bigger bite out of the material i'd be cutting. if it really makes that much difference then i'll go with the full kerf blade and stick with them.

i've heard good things about the Forrest WWII, but are they really the be all end all saw blade? wouldn't i be better off with a dedicated ripping blade and crosscut blade? or does this one blade really handle both tasks that spectacularly?
i've also heard good things about the Freud thin kerf combo blade, and have used that blade on my small portable table saw.

knotscott

The WWII is a good example of a 40T general purpose blade that will do a good job at alot of tasks but excels at none of them....it does however off alot of versatility in one blade. A comparable quality dedicated blade that's designed to do a specific task will do it's task to a higher degree than a multipurpose blade like the WWII 40T...but there's never a free lunch. The downside of using specific blades is that you need multiple blades and need to change the blade for each specific task, plus they offer little versatility to do other tasks. Also, rip blades make a rougher cut than general purpose blades, crosscut blades cut cleaner but slower and are more prone to burn than general purpose blades, but each does it's stated task to a higher degree than general purpose blade. It's a matter of opinion and preference what's acceptable to you, and depends on what you cut. Many folks find that a good general purpose blade does an acceptable job at most tasks. For most tasks, I tend to use my WWII 30T or 40T (or comparable) ... I get glue ready edges from both, I get more efficient ripping in thick woods with the 30T while maintaining good cut quality, the 40T has a slight edge in ply, and crosscuts. I'm more likely to use a 24T ripper than an 80T pure crosscutter, because I cut a fair amount of thick hardwood but if I'm working with some 1/2" exotics, I'll go for the cleanest cut possible, which is a Hi-ATB grind with a high tooth count.

If I had to chose just two blades, I'd go with the 30T WWII and the 60T Infinity 010-060 to cover a huge range of tasks and still maintain very high performance at each end of the spectrum. It's quite possible that you'll find you need nothing else, but you can always add a 24T ripper as needed. I can't imagine that you'd need something better than the 60T Infinity for plywood or sheetgoods, unless you end up needing a "high mileage" sheetgood blade like a triple chip grind that resists dulling better. Before you plunk down a chunk of money buying alot of blades to cover every possible scenario, let me ask....what types of materials will you be working with most?

JON BELL

Forest Forest Forest.Has anyone tried a Tenryu.I put their 80t melpro in my miterbox,which was positioned on the floor at the time.I made the cut and thought oh no why didn't it cut?But it did.It had cut so smoothly that I couldn't tell it had cut.Been hooked ever since.

knotscott

Yep...tried the RS25540, RS25550, and their Gold Medal GM25540 that's comparable to the Forrest. The GM is excellent, the other two are very good values more comparable to the Freud bargains. All made in Asia.

Edit: Bargain alert!! Amazon has Freud dado sets on sale for 25% off. The SD508 is $150 with free shipping. :)

BobbyfromHouston

I like Freud blades. I use a 24-40-60-and 80 tooth set. I use the 24 and 40 tooth blades the most.

Butch

I've bought 6 blades from Mike, and they're all good deals that won't break the bank...plus they do sharpening services,too!! give Mike a try....



mjackson@leitztooling.com

I am not available on Mondays for the most part.I get my weekly shipment from Germany then and have to take care of the backorders . Please be patient if I don't get back to you right away,I'm a one man operation.
The following Delta/Leitz blades are specially priced for you . Bores can be opened or bushed for an additional $5 each . If you are not sure what you want, just email me the info (machine type, bore size, what you want to cut , how good of cut quality you need) .Shipping is actual UPS charges plus one dollar ($1). When asking for shipping quote please let me know how many blades,what size they are , and zip code . We take Mastercard, Visa and Paypal, you can mail payment (personal check and money orders) also but I can't ship til payment is rec'd. If you reside in the following states, I will need to collect sales tax.. Thanks to everyone who has left positive feedback.
TAX is collected for these states:
Mi.=6% , In.=7% , Pa.=6% , NC=6.75% , Va.=5% , Wi.=5% , Mn.=6.5% , Tx.=8.25% , Wa.=8.8% , Ca.=8.25% ,FL=6%,IA= 6%,TN=9.25%,SC=6%,GA=7%,AL=8.5%

THANKS, Mike Jackson
Leitz Tooling Systems

8"
SPECIAL DEAL ON 8" blades-Buy 2 and get a free Delta 8" 34 tooth Thin Kerf blade.

Delta 8" 35-590 48 tooth ,5/8" bore ,TC&F,.110 kerf,+5 degree hook $10
Delta 8" 35-751 64 tooth ATB,5/8" bore,.086 kerf,+10 degree hook $10 **only 15 pcs left**
Delta 8" 35-591 24 tooth ATB,5/8" bore,.118 kerf,+10 degree hook, $10

10"
10" SPECIAL-Buy any 10 10" blades and get a free Delta 35-626 10" 60 tooth ATB blade.

LEITZ PRO SERIES 10” 30 tooth neg hook ATB 5/8” bore great for chop saw or radial arm quick work $10

Delta 10" 35-626 60 tooth ,ATB, 5/8" bore, .125 kerf, +12 degree hook $10
Delta 10" 35-629 48 tooth, TC, .156 kerf, 1" bore,+10 degree hook, $10
Delta 10" 35-610 10 tooth ,Square,.125 kerf ,5/8" bore,+20 degree hook,$10
Delta 10" 35-614 48 tooth, ATB,.125 kerf,5/8" bore,+12 degree hook, $10 **only 15 pcs left**

Irwin (NOT Leitz made) 10" Marathon 36 tooth ATB,thin kerf,5/8" bore. Don't know how I got these as they are not Leitz made blades. Anyways, I have 4 pcs, for $20 you get all 4. Looks to have a positive 10 or so degree hook. These are not the same quality as the rest of my blades.

12"
Delta 12" 35-654 80 tooth, ATB ,1" bore, neg 6 degree hook,.125 kerf, $25


14"
Delta 14" 35-670 14 tooth, square,1" bore,.157 kerf, + 20 degree hook ,$10

16"
Delta 16" 35-699 120 tooth, ATB, 1" bore, .173 kerf, +10 degree hook, $30
Delta 16" 35-695 84 tooth, ATB, 1" bore, .173 kerf ,+10 degree hook, $30

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clarionflyer

I, personally, don't see all the big hoopla with the blades. I've had 1 dado set (Delta) and 3 combo blades that work nearly perfect. Unless you're running a production line, I would just go buy a mid to high level (CMT, Freud, WW2, etc) combo blade and forget about it.
I've had 2 high end Sears (not sure who makes these) 40 tooth blades and a Freud 40 tooth blade. All have cut nearly perfect with no problems.
Smooth... square... no hanging fiber... what the heck else do ya need?
Granted, I don't run huge amounts of wood, but for the average guy I think the combo's are excellent.