Originally Posted by
Jimmy Harris
It depends on what you're cutting. If you're resawing expensive veneer, then kerf absolutely matters. And you probably want a smooth surface to minimize flattening and smoothing afterwards, because smoothing thin veneer can be hard. But if you're resawing boards in half for drawers or whatever, then it probably matters a whole lot less.
Even good bandsaw blades tend to give a bit too rough of a surface to call it finished, in my opinion. So I don't much worry about a rough surface because I'm going to be planing it afterwards anyway. And a wider kerf blade does tend to cut straighter on longer boards, just because it can recover from deflection easier. There's more wiggle room in the cut for the blade to get back on track, should it veer off slightly. And I don't really mess with veneer or super expensive exotics so saving fractions of an inch doesn't do me anything. But I do only have one bandsaw, so having a resaw blade that can also do long rips and gentle curves is a plus to me, so I don't have to change blades as often. So a wider kerf is actually an advantage to me. But it won't be to everyone.
But regardless of what your cutting, sharp always matters. Unless you're trying to burn wood with a dull blade, which I don't know why you would, I can't think of a reason where sharpness wouldn't matter.