Table Saw Blade?

[Keggers]

I've used several different brands of blades. Mostly Forrest and Freud blades. Both are good blades, but the Forrest blades stay sharp longer. I use my tablesaw almost every day, and the WW2 is a great blade. Thin kerf blades are ok for underpowered tablesaws, but they can bend a little when sawing thicker stock. And that's NOT a good thing! I like the full kerf blade.

[knotscott]

Hi Renzo - I've tried most of the premium 40T general purpose (GP) blades. Ridge Carbide TS2000, Infinity Super General 010-044, Infinity General 010-040, Forrest WWII (and WWII 30T), Tenryu Gold Medal, CMT 213.040.10, DeWalt DW7657 (now Delta 35-7657), as well as many slightly less prestigious 40T, and many of the 50T ATB/R combo blades. Most are excellent and it's very difficult to tell the cuts from most of these apart. The Infinity Super General left the cleanest cut with the most polished edge of any of these....I can recognize the cut edge that the Super General leaves because it's shinier and smoother than the others. The Freud Fusion is very similar to the Super General. I had unacceptable results from two different CMT 213.040.10 blades purchased many months apart from two different suppliers, so I hesitate to recommend one.

Blade selection is very much proprietary to your saw and what you cut. These blades are all made to very high precision standards using the best carbide available, and are sharpened to perfection. There are some differences in kerf width, tooth shape and side angle geometry between all these GP blades, which makes some slightly better at certain tasks. Even within the classification of "general purpose" blades, it's usually more a matter of matching the right blade with the right saw and right task that it is one being clearly superior to another...there's never a free lunch, and there's no fairy dust involved....for every design choice there are pros and cons. How you define "best" is the real key. Blades like the WWII, 7657, CMT, and Gold Medal have a fairly traditional ATB grind with a 10° to 15° top bevel, whereas the Super General and Fusion have a Hi-ATB grind with steeper 30° top bevel and also have a dual angle side grind. The TS2000 has a combination of ATB grind and flat tooth rakers every 5th or 7th tooth (can't remember which). The blades with a lower ATB grind have somewhat higher tearout characteristics, but are more efficient when ripping. The Hi-ATB grind tends to have lower tearout in ply and crosscuts, and the dual side grind puts more tooth on edge of the work piece and which leaves a more polished edge....the same characteristic that does the polishing can also be a bit more prone to burning if the alignment isn't good or the wood is particularly prone to burning. The Hi-ATB is also somewhat more prone to tip abrasion and dulling, but a hobbyist should still quite a while between sharpenings. Forrest now offers a 48T version of the WWII with a 25° top bevel that I assume is intended to compete with the Super General and Fusion.

There are pros and cons with choosing full or thin kerf blades too. Most full kerf blades hover near 1/8”, while most thin kerf blades are about 3/32”. There are also some “mid kerf” blades that fall in between, like the Tenryu Gold Medal with a kerf of 0.110”. It's important to that your splitter or riving knife isn't thicker than your blade's kerf or it'll bind mid cut. Even though the width differences appear very small, a full kerf blade is typically 33% thicker than it’s TK counterpart. A wider kerf blade makes a wider cut, thus taking more wood and requiring more power to make the cut at the same speed...a similar principle to a lawn mower’s width of cut. There will also be a proportionately higher amount of sawdust with a full kerf blade, more wood consumed in the process, and even somewhat higher noise levels. Wood savings can be a consideration, though a minor one for most hobbyists. You’re likely to encounter situations where a full kerf blade will bog a smaller saw more easily than a TK would, most notably in thicker materials. The wider the kerf, the more power required to pass the blade through the material. Slowing down the feed rate can help compensate somewhat for the additional power requirements, but slower cutting means more of a tendency to burn the wood, and less ability to cut efficiently in thick materials. Full kerf blades tend to be more stable than their TK counterparts due to the increased steel thickness and body mass, but require more power to spin. The heavier mass of a full kerf plate will handle the stresses of heat better than a TK blade, so is often a more suitable choice for high volume applications. If you’re using a saw that’s under 3hp, a TK blade will pose less resistance to your saw, which can increase motor life. A high quality thin kerf blade with proper tensioning during manufacturing will rival the cut quality and performance of a high quality full kerf blade, and can be a very suitable choice for smaller saws. FWIW, I've never encountered flexing with a good TK blade, it's likely that you won't either.

For your saw, my choice would be two blades....the Forrest WWII 30T TK ($90), and the Infinity 010-060 60T Hi-ATB blade (very similar to the Forrest WWI, and on sale for $60). You'll have two blades that are capable of staying on the saw for most general type applications but that have opposing strengths and weaknesses, which makes them an excellent compliment to each other. The 30T WWII cuts about as cleanly as the 40T version but handles thick material notably more efficiently. The 010-060 will rip up to ~ 5/4", plus it excels in ply and fine crosscuts when the need arises....it also makes an excellent blade for a CMS or SCMS. Two blades for ~ $150 that will stay sharp longer than a single blade, have better performance in a wider cutting range, and both are excellent general purpose blades. You get the benefit of separate blades without the need to change for every task. Food for thought...

[Renzo]

Knotscott,

Thanks so much for your reply. It was very thorough and extremely helpful.

[Renzo]

Went with this!

[Sac]

Went with this!

Good choice my friend.. I really do like mine..

[Don65]

I am actually testing a couple new full-kerf Tenryu blades. They are every bit as good as a WWII or Freud Fusion. But to be honest, I am not sure what kind of feedback I can give the company at this point. These blades are all so good that its hard for me to tell any difference at all! So if your choice is between WWII, Fusion, and Tenryu, get the one that's cheapest or on sale. No experience with the SawStop blades so those could be a steal if they are just as good and cheaper too.

I was given a Tenryu blade from my uncle and now I'm a big fan. I've ben getting great results.

[knotscott]

I was given a Tenryu blade from my uncle and now I'm a big fan. I've ben getting great results.

It's worth noting that like many companies, Tenryu offers several different lines of blades that aren't equal, so you can't go by brand alone and expect to be comparing apples to apples. Their Gold Medal 40T is their premium 40T general purpose that's the most comparable to the WWII....model GM25540. It's made in Japan and is a world class blade. The Tenryu Rapid Cut series is a good value line that offers more variety and good performance on a budget, but is not made to the same standards as the Gold Medal. I've tried the RS25540 and the RS25550...the RS25550 is a 50T ARB/R combo blade that's fairly comparable to something like the Freud LU84....this series is made in China.

[Renzo]

Well the blade sure is quiet compared to the included crappy one. IF nothing else I don't hear the metal clipping the side of the insert unevenly

I crosscut some maple, holy geez is it smooth.

I also ripped some (for a project im starting.. one of those elevated dog bowl holder thingies).

There seemed to be quite a bit of burning when i ripped. The maple was 4/4 and not that it matters but was 5 1/2" wide and i was ripping about 1 1/2" off"

Should I expect this? Or was i feeding too slowly?

Thx

Renzo

[Sac]

There seemed to be quite a bit of burning when i ripped. The maple was 4/4 and not that it matters but was 5 1/2" wide and i was ripping about 1 1/2" off"

Should I expect this? Or was i feeding too slowly?

If I remember correctly Maple will burn pretty easily, but I would say check your TS setup. Make sure that you blade is parallel to the miter slot. And then make sure that you fence is parallel to your blade. The best way to do this is with a dial indicator. That is the one that I would recommend. I have a different one and I wish that I would have waited to get this one. I have read good reviews about it. You can watch Marc's videos on TS setup, part one here, and part two here. Good luck.

[stahlee]

I have several WWII blades, both thin and full kerf. I prefer to have a handful of blades around so I have extras to use when I send out blades for sharpening. Plus it's cheaper and easier to send out 3 or 4 blades at a time for sharpening. I use the thin kerf as much as the full kerf blade and have never experienced any flex. I know people always talk about it, but it seems it's just talk. At least from my standpoint.

Has anybody actually had a blade flex? I mean a good blade.

[Beechwood Chip]

Has anybody actually had a blade flex? I mean a good blade.

I was thinking of asking the same question. I've never had a problem with blade flex on my Freud LU83R010 . Currently $55 at Amazon, so it's not an especially high end blade.

[Renzo]

Hi

Yep the blade and table saw are setup/calibrated correctly. The blade is 90Degrees and the fence is parallel

[singlespeed68]

I have both, the Frued and the WoodworkerII, they are both good blades, but I seem to use my WoodworkerII the most.

It just seems to cut smoother and a little cleaner.

[knotscott]

...There seemed to be quite a bit of burning when i ripped. The maple was 4/4 and not that it matters but was 5 1/2" wide and i was ripping about 1 1/2" off"

Should I expect this? Or was i feeding too slowly?

Thx

Renzo

Renzo - Maple does burn somewhat more easily than other woods, it could be related to alignment, and there's also the blade geometry to consider. The Fusion has a dual side grind with a very low side clearance, meaning that it puts more carbide to the edge of the wood than some blades, which gives the edge a more polished look...it can also be somewhat more prone to burning. Alignment is really critical so it's worth double checking. Having wood that's flat and straight is also helpful. You might also try raising the blade a little higher. That blade shouldn't be dirty yet, but clean it often.

[..Kev]

Please do not respond to Luckazz, he is just trying to stir something up.