rip saw blade

[joshua shumaker]

Hello i am newbie here, this is my first post.

I am looking to rip a lot of ash 5/4 and 8/4 stock. some of the stock has been air dried and some was kiln dried. i have the "zip code saw" currently set up for 110. i could switch it to 220 no problem i have the load as i have a new house. my question is what rip blade does everyone recommend and should i switch the saw to 220?

Thanks

joshua

[Jim Kirkpatrick]

Josh, Welcome to The Creek! You can not go wrong with the Freud Fusion glue line ripping blade. http://www.amazon.com/Freud-LM75R010-10-Inch-8-Inch-Arbor/dp/B001V5J4QY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1259871838&sr=1-1

You will be ok with 110. for the 8/4 it may be a good idea to rip it in 2 passes.

[Jim O'Dell]

I bought a Forrest 24 tooth rip blade last spring for my contractor saw. Hadn't used it until last weekend, and only on some pine then, but man did it make quick work of it! Total different cut than my 50 tooth combination blade makes too. If I hadn't paused in the middle of the cut for a second, the cut would have been glue up ready. Don't have any hardwoods to rip at the moment, or I'd let you know how it does with that type of wood.
I got this on a really good special through Amazon, I think my final price was about 53.00. It is a thin kerf. I tend to buy things when I have money available and there is a special price on it, whether I need it right then or not. :rolleyes: Jim.

[Tom Veatch]

Got a link to this video (http://www.woodsmithtips.com/2009/12/03/rip-blade/)in my e-mailbox just a few minutes ago. Talks about rip blades. You might be interested in seeing it. I might mention that I have the precise blade - the red one - that the presenter talks about as giving a lower quality cut. It gives me glue line quality cuts, so don't take everything you see published (including this post) as being absolute gospel.

[joshua shumaker]

yupp i got that in my in box today too. I am trying to give my family ideas for Christmas. Thanks so much for the fast and informative responses. I like this place. why didn't i find it earlier?

[glenn bradley]

I run a 24T Freud industrial thin kerf on my 22124. Cuts 8/4 like buttah. I also switched back to 110v on a dedicated circuit with proper wire size, etc. and see no difference from when I was on 220v dedicated circuit with proper wire size, etc. There has been discussion that is over my head about faster startup and such at 220v but as far as using the saw, I experience no difference. If I did, I'd switch back as I have plenty of facilities now. I do see a massive difference from when I was on the original 110v garage circuit along with a couple light fixtures ;-).

[Prashun Patel]

No need to upgrade. I have a Jet Proshop, which has about the same power as your saw. I'm on 110.

There are 2 diffs between cheap rip blades like mine and ones like the Freud or Forrest:

1) Cut quality: I like jointing to fine tune thickness anyway, so scratches of the tsaw don't bother me.

2) Longevity: most blades cut reasonably well at first. How long they stay sharp is what you pay bucks for. That being said, I've been ripping maple and walnut 8/4 - even 12/4 with a cheapo Oldham ripping blade from HD. Been trying to kill the blade so I can justify me a Freud, but it won't quit.

I agree with cutting on 2 passes. Or, 'rip and flip' to avoid having to change the blade height.

The glue-line blades are best for stock thinner than 1.5". A thin kerf blade might help if you think you're underpowered. But I don't think you will be.

[Michael Poller]

I have the 24 tooth thin-kerf version and it works great.

Way better than using a combo blade.

And it does indeed give you glue-able joints.

Running on a Griz 1023 3HP cabinet saw.

[Rod Sheridan]

I use a 24 tooth standard width FS Tools rip blade.

Check local industrial saw shops for premium blades at reasonable prices.

Regards, Rod.

[scott spencer]

Joshua - I had the 22124 for 3 years. It did very well on 220v with a good thin kerf 24T FTG ripper...the FTG are very efficient at removing chips. Your circuit may respond differently than mine, but mine definitely benefited from 220v, and there's really no downside except for the cost. Startup and recovery from load are faster, which really helped with the heavy stuff. The best rippers I used on this saw were the Freud LU87R010 (http://www99.epinions.com/review/Freud_10_in_x_24T_Saw_Blade_Thin_Kerf_Ripping/content_427607625348) and the Infinity 010-124 (http://www.infinitytools.com/Glue-Line-Ripping-Saw-Blades/products/1195/)... both did very well with that saw. You'll get glueable edges from those blades, though they won't crosscut for beans. I would not suggest a full kerf ripper on that saw for thick material.

The LU87 (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=16429&source=googlelps) is ~ $40 with free s/h from Rockler with code V0712

[Myk Rian]

Josh, Welcome to The Creek! You can not go wrong with the Freud Fusion glue line ripping blade. http://www.amazon.com/Freud-LM75R010-10-Inch-8-Inch-Arbor/dp/B001V5J4QY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1259871838&sr=1-1

You will be ok with 110. for the 8/4 it may be a good idea to rip it in 2 passes.
The glue-line blade is for stock 1" and less.
I use the Freud Diablo D1024X 24 tooth Thin Kerf ripping blade. You can get it at the HoPo.

[Peter Quinn]

Pretty much any low tooth thin kerf rip blade will do it. I like freud and Amana personally for rip blades.

On the 110/220V question, I think it makes absolutely NO DIFFERENCE AT ALL. 220V allows you to run a smaller gauge of wire for the same number of watts by doubling the volts and cutting the amps in half. This is important for a 5HP machine that would be drawing better than 40A at 110V and require 6AWG wire which is expensive and hard to work with. But from both the motor's perspective and the meters perspective it is the same thing. Some will argue 220V may run a bit cooler under heavy loads? Some will argue that is BS. My FIL (professional electrician) argues it is no difference at all.

Most times I hear people say their machine ran better at 220V is because they were starving it at 110V. Say its a 1 1/2HP machine that really wants to start and run at full load on a dedicated 20A circuit run in 12/2, but it is actually being run on a regular 15A circuit, possibly run in 14/2, possible also feeding a few lights or some other devices. So it does start, and it does run, but not so well under full load conditions. You switch to a 220V circuit that was run for the purpose using the correct amps and wire gauge, and this circuit is a home run not a branch circuit 100' from the panel, and this circuit is NOT feeding any lights or other devices because it is 220, and viola, the machine seems to run better? Run your saw on a good 110 volt dedicated machine circuit sized for its needs and it will be all it can be without going 220V. And if you don't have good machine circuits in the shop, its a good tome to add a few run in the voltage of your choice.

[Larry Edgerton]

I run FS Tool rips in both my MiniMax and my Powermatic. Best I have found but the saws are 7 hp and 5 hp respectively. I don't like thin kerf rips. One wobble and you are jointing anyway so I use heavy blank blades.

That will be 2 cents, thank you.........

[John Thompson]

I run Amana 20 T rip blades on my 5 HP as I am taking it to the jointer anyway and leave it 1/8" proud to take 1/16" off each side once ripped. With 8/4 ash I would ditto what Knotscott said about a 24 T TK as that ash is pretty hard and the 8/4 is going to produce more waste. A true rip blade has fewer teeth with a flat grind but.. it also has more gullet space to remove waste and there will be plenty of that with 8/4 stock.

Good luck...