# Olsen blade test



## Chippygeoff (12 Nov 2014)

I finally received my order of Olsen blades from America. I had ordered three different types, double tooth, reverse tooth and mach speed. As I only wanted the minimum quantity of each type and size I had packets of a dozen blades with the idea I would test each type to see what was the best blade siuted for cutting 20mm thick hardwoods for the things I make.and here is my conclusion.

I had a number of hearts to cut out between 5 and 8 inches across and on some there were some internal cuts. I started off by using a number 7 double tooth blade to cut the outside of some of the hearts. I found the blade to be very accurate. I was happy with the speed of the cut and it did not seem to vary if I was cutting across the grain or with the grain. The side of the hearts were exceptionally smooth with very little fuzziness on the underside. With this blade there are no upward facing teeth, just double sets of teeth well spaced out.

The next blade I tried, again cutting the outside shape of the hearts was a reverse tooth number 8 blade. Looking at the blade with normal eyesight it was difficult to determine the configuration of the blade so looking at it under the magnifying lamp by the scroll saw I could clearly see from the bottom of the blade 8 teeth facing upward and then a gap with the remainder of the teeth facing downward. The first thing I noticed after starting to cut the outside of a heart was that the blade was considerably slower than the double tooth blade. The finish on the side was good and there was no fuzziness to speak off, I just ran a piece of sandpaper round the edges and it was as clean as a whistle. 

The final blade in my test was the mach speed 647R. I used a number 7 to cut the outside of the last two hearts and then used a number 5 blade for the internal cuts and as internal cuts go there were no small ones and only one tight cut where I had to back the blade up and reverse up the cut line to start on the new line. On looking at the blade under the magnifier I could see that the teeth were well spaced out, which signified rapid sawdust removal. The bottom 5 teeth were facing upward and then the next tooth was at right angles, or 90 degrees to the blade, and then all the remaining teeth were facing downward. On starting to cut the outside I was amazed at the speed at which it cut and initially I struggled to keep up with it. It cut as quicly across the grain as it did going with the grain. Like the double toothed blade it was very accurate and I had no problem following the line of the pattern, even at the fast speed the blade was moving at. On removing the heart from the rest of the wood the sides were exceptionally clean and were even glossy. Another surprise was that there were no fuzzies at all.

CONCLUSION. When I looked at all the Olsen blades that were available, which was vast, there were basically three choices that I felt would suit the things that I make and I ordered accordingly. The double toothed blade is good and In feel this would be a good all round blade and if I were just scrolling as a hobby this would be my first choice. With the reverse toothed blades I found them slow going. The 20mm thick oak I used was kiln dried so this is a very hard wood to cut. Having said that I feel this would be the perfect blade for cutting birch plywood of any thickness but using the right blade number to suit the thickness being cut. The mach speed blade is in a world all on it’s own, every thing it did it did exceptionally well; it went way passed all my expectations. It was very fast, left very clean sides and left no fuzzies to speak of and I tried these blades on Oak, Sapele, Maple and Beech. Once I had got used to the blades behaviour it cut through all these hardwoods with ease. It was easy to follow the lines on the patterns and even on a difficult hardwood like the Maple it performed very well indeed. It is a little more expensive than the other blades but cheaper than some of the Pegus blades and obviously a lot better than FD blades. At least I have not had any of the Olsen blades break on me and I think as I go on I will find that they wear out rather than break.

Most saws have a top speed of around 1400 and when I first started using 20mm thick hardwoods it was like watching paint dry as it was so slow cutting. Those of you who have this sort of speed would benefit greatly from using the mach speed blade. I am fortunate that I had my hegners speed increased to 1650 and with the mach speed blade I can now cut the things I make in half the time. A truly amazing blade. You can guess which ones out of the test I will now be ordering in bulk.


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## ChrisR (12 Nov 2014)

Geoff.

Very interesting.

Many thanks for bench testing the blades and then taking time to post your findings.

I will certainly consider, when next ordering blades, but at this time have a lot of stock.

Could I ask please, who did you order from in America.

Thanks again.

Chris R.


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## Claymore (12 Nov 2014)

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## Chippygeoff (12 Nov 2014)

Chris. I had originally wanted to order from the wooden teddy bear company but had one of those senior moments when I was on the internet and clicked on the wrong site, they had all the blades you could imagine from various manufacturers. When I was finalising the order I had a problem with the shipping as there were just four options and I had to click on most of them before the site allowed me to finalise the order. The next day I had an automated invoice e-mailed to me and was shocked to discover I had been charged $30 for shipping. Despite sending 2 e-mails to the supplier, Blackstone Industries LLC. I have yet to get a reply. The wooden teddy bear company charge just $11 for shipping, they also do some fantastic patterns.

Brian. I looked at the woodworks site and they are quite a bit more expensive than buying from America. If you order from the wooden teddy bear company it will take no more than a week to get your order. I feel both sizes will suit your intarsia but if I had to make a choice between the two I would go for a number 5. They will be brilliant as some of the pieces you use are quite small and even on the larger pieces you should have no problem following the line on a pattern.


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## powertools (12 Nov 2014)

Thanks for the in depth report. 
I think based on your recommendations I will give them a try, I have only ever used Niqua blades and have been happy with them but perhaps I should experiment with others.


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## jasdon79 (12 Nov 2014)

Thanks for another great report. I look forward to giving them a try where the mach blades reverse teeth or all facing the same way ?


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## finneyb (12 Nov 2014)

Geoff,

Thanks for that, useful. Can you say what stroke you were using eg 10mm or 20mm 
If it was 10mm the reverse tooth may have been at a disadvantage as there must be a gap where the teeth change direction ie less teeth cutting and a smaller stroke would not help. 

Brian


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## Chippygeoff (12 Nov 2014)

Hi Brian. I never gave it a thought about the stroke, I should have taken that into account. I am on the long stroke.

Jasdon. Just copied this from my initial post. Hope it helps. The bottom 5 teeth were facing upward and then the next tooth was at right angles, or 90 degrees to the blade, and then all the remaining teeth were facing downward


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## scrimper (12 Nov 2014)

A very interesting report. 
I tried some Olson blades 15 years ago and did not find them any better than the Niqua one I normally use but after reading this may give them another try.


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## martinka (12 Nov 2014)

Chippygeoff":1cqa56nu said:


> Hi Brian. I never gave it a thought about the stroke, I should have taken that into account. I am on the long stroke.



The saw being used would make a difference too. The difference in stroke on the Hegner is only 6 or 7mm, unlike the Axminster's 10mm.
I can't work out how much difference it would actually make. On the downward stroke, the blade has less wood to cut as part of the cut has already been made on the upward stroke, and vice versa. Hmm, I think my brain is going to explode. 

I used Olson blades when I got my first scroll saw but at £5 per dozen they were too expensive for my taste. I guess the shop that sells those caters for scroll saw newbies that don't know any better, which is what I was at the time.


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## Chippygeoff (12 Nov 2014)

Martin. I did a little bit of working out. I looked up the cost of the Olson mach speed blades, taking into account that they are more expensive than the other Olsen blades. From the Wooden Teddy Bear company they are $3-50 per dozen (£2-22) or $42-00 per gross (£26-63). I then looked up the UK website for Woodworks who sell exactly the same blades and for a dozen blades they wanted £4-94 and for a gross they wanted £59-28. I think the cost of postage would be a bit cheaper here but overall it would be far cheaper to buy from America. I shall be ordering 4 gross tomorrow and that will cost me £106-52 plus about ten dollars for postage. If I bought the same blades here in the UK I would be paying£237-12 plus a few quid postage. I will have to wait a week for the order to come but I am in no rush as I have more than enough blades to last till the new ones arrive.

Martin, they would be over £5 a dozen including postage if you bought some at todays prices and like you that would be way to expensive for me.


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## finneyb (13 Nov 2014)

Chippygeoff":31zyofz8 said:


> Martin. I did a little bit of working out. I looked up the cost of the Olson mach speed blades, taking into account that they are more expensive than the other Olsen blades. From the Wooden Teddy Bear company they are $3-50 per dozen (£2-22) or $42-00 per gross (£26-63). I then looked up the UK website for Woodworks who sell exactly the same blades and for a dozen blades they wanted £4-94 and for a gross they wanted £59-28. I think the cost of postage would be a bit cheaper here but overall it would be far cheaper to buy from America. I shall be ordering 4 gross tomorrow and that will cost me £106-52 plus about ten dollars for postage. If I bought the same blades here in the UK I would be paying£237-12 plus a few quid postage. I will have to wait a week for the order to come but I am in no rush as I have more than enough blades to last till the new ones arrive.
> 
> Martin, they would be over £5 a dozen including postage if you bought some at todays prices and like you that would be way to expensive for me.



Geoff,

Be prepared to pay VAT on such a large order when it comes thro customs? At the moment I suspect you are not paying US sales tax; because it's an out of state sale. VAT would add 20% to the bill. I don't know enough about it but I know there is a cost threshold where they let it through without charging VAT, I assume not worth collecting small amounts.

Even paying the VAT it is still cheaper

Brian


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## martinka (13 Nov 2014)

From the uk.gov website:
" If you order or purchase goods other than alcohol, tobacco, perfume and toilet water from a country outside the EU then you have to pay:

Customs Duty on goods with a value that exceeds £135
import VAT on goods with a value that exceeds £15

Note that on all goods from outside the EU, Customs Duty is waived if the amount of duty calculated is £9 or under."


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## Claymore (29 Nov 2014)

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## Chippygeoff (29 Nov 2014)

Hi Brian. I did not have that problem that you encountered with the 7 blades and I think this is because we both do different things. In the main the pieces of wood I use are round about 11 x 6 inches and they are usually rectangular or oval. I love the mach speed blades for the very fact they are quick and as my outside cuts are usually one continuous line I can really go fast. I have found that the more tension I have the quick the cut and I suspect you needed more tension on your curves for the cut to remain straight. I will be so pleased when all my FD blades have gone.


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## toesy (30 Nov 2014)

I buy all my blades from Woodenteddybear takes 2-3 weeks to arrive.

Get some of the Olson PGR455G, PGR457G, PGR459G or the double tooth version - Best blades I have used to date. 

The Mach blades are thinner than the PGT blades and can bend on the curve from my experience, when cutting 18mm+ thick wood.

As Geoff has said they are very quick cutting and the tension has to be spot on,.

my 2 pennies worth


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