miter saw blade equivalent to makita blade?

[Ken Platt]

Folks - -

I've been very happy with the blade that came with my makita ls-1013 10" miter slider, but it needs to go out for sharpening, so I figured I'd pick up another. The makita blade is labeled "Makita Makblade 721414-A", but this doesn't seem to be available as a retail blade. It has 64 tips, but otherwise I don't know what the specs are. I don't necessarily mind spending the $$ for something like the Forrest, but I assume the makita blade wasn't that pricey and since I felt like it did everything I needed, I wouldn't mind saving a few bucks and getting a lower end blade.

So, does anyone know who actually manufactured the makita blades? Or know of a good equivalent blade? Thanks -

Ken

[Brian W Evans]

Ken,

I, too, like the blade that came with my Makita (mine's a 12", though). In general I think Freud blades are a good balance of price and quality. In fact, all of my TS blades are Freuds. Freud makes some 10", 80T blades in the $50-$60 range. Some are labeled (on Amazon) as crosscutting blades and some as finishing blades.

At these prices, you can afford not to be thrilled and keep the blade for rougher work after you go buy a Forrest.

[Dave Sweeney]

Earlier versions of the LS1013 came equipped with the A93550 70T blade. That blade is still available from the looks of this Google search (http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=Makita+A-93550&cid=2137013923722672639&sa=button#p). I'm 99% sure that that's the blade that came with my FIL's saw and it is one sweet blade.