Table Saw Blade Advice Needed...

[DamoF]

Eyup folks, hope we're all doing OK and getting plenty making done

I'm looking to replace my 10" table saw blades and my head is about ready to pop...

Usage:

-Hard and soft wood ripping, sometimes up to ~70mm thick
-Ripping birch ply and normal ply
-Occasional cross cutting using a sled.

I'm aware I won't get this all from one blade so I'm prepared to buy a couple but can't spend silly money. Maybe £30 to £40 max per blade? Something I can get resharpened a couple of times. Nothing too rough to cut down on finishing time.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as the smell of burning ain't too nice...

Many thanks in advance

Damo

 

[deema]

Ideally you would buy 3 blades, each specifically for the jobs you’ve highlighted. Lookup Swedex and download their manual. It has IMO the best section that explains blade selection. Buy good quality blades, they will last longer and cut far better. Swedex, Omas, CMT Chrome, Leitz (Atkinson Walker used to be great, but not tried since they went into receivership and started up again) are my go to blades. However, decent blades will mean you need to increase your budget / blade. I’d buy them when you need them, starting with a RIP blade that will be the cheapest, lowest tooth count.

 

[clogs]

if your stuck for choice......get a cheap and cheerfull blade to do the donkey work and a qual blade for the special jobs....
this way you will get the feel of the difference..
I have a 300mm chop saw and the blade, 90 odd teeth cost a hundred squids......but only get used on special jobs.....
norm chopping I still use a 90 tooth blade but about 1/4 of the price, u can see and feel the diff....
as for sharpening I have found it costs as much to have them resharpend as buying a new blade.....

 

[srp]

https://www.cutting-solutions.co.uk/wood_cutting_saws.htmlGive them a call, very helpful. I’ve bought all my blades and planer knives from them.

 

[RobinBHM]

how about freud blades

£50 for 2:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Freud-Tw...823317&hash=item3b2003be13:g:ZDQAAOSw3dNe~QZ4
in my experience from running a joinery company the cleanest cut comes from the sharpest blade not the number of teeth.

A just sharpened rip saw blade will cut cleaner than a not so sharp fine blade blade.

Ive always found a combi blade works great for most cross cutting and the super fine blades dont give much of an improvement if any. Mind you Im happy to be proven wrong.

 

[marcros]

I have used cutting solutions in the past. The couple of blades that I have had have been well priced with plenty of carbide on. I particularly like the fact that I could tell Doug what I wanted to achieve with the blade and he would tell me what I needed.

Freud are also good, and not crazy money. What puts me off those is that there isnt anybody to tell me what I need. On a previous table saw I had a thin kerf freud combiner's blade (had to make a new riving knife) which was very good and did most of the ripping and cross cutting that I asked of it. The saw wouldn't cut 70mm, and for the saw limits I would probably have changed to a dedicated rip blade, but for the odd cut it would have managed.

 

[RobinBHM]

yes those freud blades are 2.8mm kerf

not the standard 3.2mm

so best to go for what suits the riving knife

 

[deema]

From my own experience, I’ve found that the price of the blade seems to reflect four things
The quality of the carbide used in the teeth, better quality retains its sharpness for longer and cuts better.
Amount of carbide used over tooth. Cheaper blades use the minimum which almost makes them disposable As they have little potential for re-sharpening.
Flatness of the blade. Hardneed, tempered and often with and tensioning ring to maintain its fairness during its working life seems to create a blade that is not only quieter, but also produces a much finer cut surface. For instance, with Swedex blades the stuff comes off so I can hardly tell if it’s been machine planned or sawn. Cheaper blades tend not to be flat and are noisier.
Quality of the tooth grind. Not a huge difference, between expensive and budget, but noticeable.
Finally noise reduction, the more expensive blades with ‘noise’ reduction stuff which seems to be a fancy way of dressing up a few laser cuts are actually much quieter than those without. I have had two identical saws with different manufacturers blades of the same tooth count / geometry side by side cutting the same stuff one after the other to see if there was a difference. It wasn’t just a small difference it was major.

 

[DamoF]

Sterling answers, massively appreciated guys. I'll distill this information and post up what I end up getting.

Again, thank you all! ♥

 

[DamoF]

OK, sooooooooo I think I have narrowed it down to these two:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00JBJAIG2/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_HLoFFbP6ZJAMV
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00JBJA8C6/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_lCoFFbYQ1KRYQ
I figure the rip blade will get the most use, I tend to use the festool rail saw for the bulk of breaking down plywood, using the table saw only when the sheet is a more manageable size. So the 80 tooth blade will be used for both plywood and cross cutting.

Does this seem like a decent set up? I can't really afford to buy three blades so hopefully this'll be a good compromise.

Thoughts?

Thanks

 

[marcros]

what are you making with sheet goods? I would probably use the tracks alone with that and save buying the 80t at all. it depends a bit on whether you need multiple pieces the exact same width? there are workarounds, but they won't be as quick as setting the ts fence and cutting.

 

[ScottandSargeant]

Make sure the pin holes match your machine and your riving knife is correct for the blade Thickness...The suffix on CMT sawblades signifies different pin hole positions (ie M in this case).
The riving knife thickness should be stamped on it.

 

[DamoF]

what are you making with sheet goods? I would probably use the tracks alone with that and save buying the 80t at all. it depends a bit on whether you need multiple pieces the exact same width? there are workarounds, but they won't be as quick as setting the ts fence and cutting.

Mostly furniture, sound diffusers, shelving units. I do often have quite a lot of repetitive cuts. Just finished some diffusers with 33 of the same strips.

Make sure the pin holes match your machine and your riving knife is correct for the blade Thickness...The suffix on CMT sawblades signifies different pin hole positions (ie M in this case).
The riving knife thickness should be stamped on it.

What do you mean by make sure the pin holes match my machine? I just assumed the pin holes in the blade were for sound quietening or balance or something. Also, I just clocked that these are pretty thin blades, my riving knife is deffo not that thin... Nowni need to decide whether to get different blades of a new riving knife. Then set up the fence to match the measure again...

 

[DamoF]

Also, I've got the AW10BSB2 from Axminster.

 

[deema]

Typically saws that take large blades need to have blades with holes into which a dog or pin fits to help ensure that the blade continues to rotate in heavy cutting.

 

[DamoF]

Typically saws that take large blades need to have blades with holes into which a dog or pin fits to help ensure that the blade continues to rotate in heavy cutting.

Ah OK, I don't think that applies to me and my saw. No mention of it in the manual I don't think...

 

[chris.gid]

I just got one of these for my DeWalt jobsite saw and really happy with it. I mainly work with Birch Ply and then switch to the DeWalt rip blade that came with the saw for any ripping of real wood (not ply). I was previously using a Saxton 80t blade which was pretty good as well.
CMT 281 Sawblade TCG D=250 d=30 z=80 B=3.2

If the quality of my CMT is anything to go by their other blades should be very good.

 

[DamoF]

I have decided to go with a decent 40T and a decent 80T (both CMT 285's) and will get a wee £20-30 24T for rough ripping.

Will be spending about £130 for all three but I guess its worth it, its not like I ever buy new clothes anyway. I suppose I'll be upgrading the chop saw soon too.

Will be making a cross cut sled once I get a couple of jobs out the way and can put the new blade to use

Thanks again for the help, you guys made easy what I was struggling with. A wealth of knowledge, truly appreciated.