Freud Double Sided Laminate / Melamine Blade


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I have one I use as a crosscut blade and not for melamine or laminate.  Works well for what I want and the number of teeth leaves a fairly clean edge.  Not the blade I originally went to buy and if I had my choice I'd rather have bought that one.  The store was out of those because they had a special on them and I went with the next best available.

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Yea so what I got is 3/4" MDF with Veneer on both sides and need to trim them up. I saw this blade and have read mixed reports on them,  I need to make these cuts in the next day or so, and my local shop has one $104 +tax  Amazon $85 so its a bit to spend and want to be sure it really does what they claim. I have the Feud 80 T  Laminate blade and am delighted with it , however as said need to cut the two sided stuff and would rather not destroy the bottom side ... any info on use for my aplication would be great  thanx  guys !!!! 

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I got mine at Peachtree Woodworking for around 60-70$ the red coated thin kerf version. To get good results on the underside you need a zero clearance throat plate or something similar. In a pinch you can double face tape a piece of 1/4" Masonite to your saw after setting the fence, then slowly raise the running saw blade to cut thought the Masonite .

Another trick is put quality blue or green masking tape over the cut and rubbing it smooth before you cut, then gently peel it off at a shearing angle afterwards.

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Yup ok thanx all, But what Im asking is If anyone has used this with a board 3/4" MDF  that has Both sides Covered in Raw wood Veneer , and chip out on the back side when cutting...

I have the forrest version so no experience with the feud. I make mdf slab doors but only use it for trimming ends on the crosscut. It does just fine on both sides. BUT I buy full sheets backed flat or QS veneers, that may make a difference. My guess is the veneer quality is going to play some part.

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So I thought I would post up my results as others my encounter this situation,  First off I did not drop the frog skins on the Freud double side blade as it was just a bit pricy and as well I just couldn't get enough good things on it side to warrant the purchase.

In the end I really believe I was over thinking this as I do. So the panels have one side of Tamo Veneer and the other Sapele. The Tamo if far more brittle than the Sapele so I went with the Tamo to the favorable side of the saws , on the rips for the table saw the Tamo on top and on the cross cuts on the radial arm saw the Tamo was down. I used a Veneer saw ,strait edge and Blue tape to score the edge.  It worked like magic, not a spec of tear out on ether side. The gear was a 5 hp table saw with the Freud 80T full kerf Mel blade and on the radial arm saw a 2.75 hp same blade but thin kerf. I will add both blades are very new with less than 10 Lf cut on them. This system was really easy to apply and for future projects even when cutting on the right side a good way to ensure no chip out on your nice veneer , thanx again all for your input !!! LDWS

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The OP's blade is a TCG blade. While it cuts melamine well and will last longer than high ATB blades, it won't work well for cross cutting plywood (or veneered MDF). Only ATB melamine blades can be suitable for cross cutting veneered sheet goods.

For the cleanest crosscut of veneered goods, a 1/4" MDF under-sheet works well. Add a 1/4" top sheet when cutting stacks of veneer to size.

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The OP's blade is a TCG blade. While it cuts melamine well and will last longer than high ATB blades, it won't work well for cross cutting plywood (or veneered MDF). Only ATB melamine blades can be suitable for cross cutting veneered sheet goods.

For the cleanest crosscut of veneered goods, a 1/4" MDF under-sheet works well. Add a 1/4" top sheet when cutting stacks of veneer to size.

UMM , ok  HUH?  Well as per todays experiences the score & tape scenario worked perfectly ... PDQ (Pretty D^#&M Quick)  on rips and cross cutting Raw Veneer. I guess if I need an OP's or aka TGC blade for melamine If Im using it, I wont pick the ATB blades, unless Im cross cutting Veneered sheet goods.   

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For any veneer cutting its important to have an 80T alternate bevel blade with a triple chip tooth on it. The other thing to watch is the tooth angles, for melamine, a negative rake angle is favourable, anything less that negative 3 degrees should be fine. For cleaner cuts on melamine a low top bevel angle will prevent most chipping. For cleaner cuts on veneer, a steep top bevel angle is favourable as it 'scores' the grain before actually cutting through it

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 In a pinch you can double face tape a piece of 1/4" Masonite to your saw after setting the fence, then slowly raise the running saw blade to cut thought the Masonite .

 

 

This is also a quick, and dirty way to refresh a sled, or create an exact kerf dado sled after the dado sled has been used for wider cuts.

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In the end I really believe I was over thinking this as I do.

I think a bunch of folks just under estimate how well a combo blade cuts. 99% of the time a sharp ww2 is all you need. I do alot of mdf slabs and am just to lazy to swap out blades. I shipped 20 doors for a facer yesterday with just a ww2 with no issues. Laying out a few more sheets this morning and see no need to swap out blades.

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UMM , ok HUH? I guess if I need an OP's or aka TGC blade for melamine If Im using it, I wont pick the ATB blades, unless Im cross cutting Veneered sheet goods.

My apologies, I thought the acronyms used were pretty standard/basic.

OP = Original Poster

TCG = Triple Chip Grind

ATB = Alternate Tooth Bevel

ATB's score the outer edges of the kerf first and work better when cross cutting veneer. Those pointy tips dull relatively fast when cutting melamine.

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dalrun,  OHH ok I see , yea Im really new, not only with woodworking but as well posting on a forum, so Im not so hip on proper vernacular at times regarding both , but im learning . Thanx for the clarification !!  and welcome to the forum, lots of great craftsmen, and craftswoman here that Im learning from everyday and as well in hopes my input has value to others as well .LDWS 

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It didn't help that I wasn't paying attention to who was saying what. The blade you used was much more suitable than the one you were considering. While I haven't used that particular blade, you shouldn't need to use a veneer saw or blue tape to get a nice clean cut from it.

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dalrun,  Yea I do get great cuts from the 80 T Freud that I have but only on the top side, The panels that I was cutting had Veneer on the top as well and the bottom side ( blade coming out of the board) that shredded that side of the board / veneer hence me searching for an answer on how to elevate this with the possibility of the double side cut blade I was inquiring about. LDWS 

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You grabbed the best blade for the job IMHO.....a Hi-ATB like the Freud LU80 with a very steep top bevel angle will give the cleanest possible cut in brittle veneers, ply, and fine crosscuts. It won't hold an edge for as long as the TCG you were looking at, so is not a great choice for high volume applications, but for a hobbyist it's a great choice.  

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