Any one looking for a new blade?

[Jim O'Dell]

I thik I've found a winner!!! With my little bonus I got at work for last month, I ordered 2 new blades...one for the Hitachi slider that I have been wanting ever since I got the saw (the factory blade on it stinks except for rough carpentry work) and a new combo blade for the Grizzly G0691. 156138156140 Both are Infinity blades. I caught them on sale, and David graciously applied the extra 10% off for being a member here at SMC. And free shipping to boot!!
These blades are beautiful, just looking at them. The Nickel Armor plating makes it very industrial looking, and should help out with the rusting problem I have experienced with my Forrest WWI 30 tooth. Now I haven't cut much, and haven't mounted the SCMS blade yet at all, but the 50 tooth combo blade was unbelievable when I used it to cross cut a 4 quarter piece of QSWO that is about 4 1/2" wide. The cut edge is perfect, almost polished. 156139 And no splintering at all. Scott Spencer has mentioned this and the Infinity Super General blades as being very nice blades in his blade comparisons and recommendations, but this was way beyond my expectations. I now feel that I can send my 60 tooth blade out for sharpening, as it is in dire need of it. I believe I have a blade that will do whatever I need to do, even ply and laminate work!!
Just thought I'd let you know of a great blade if you are in the market for a new one! Jim.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Jim,
I'm happy to hear you mention rusting (rust colored discoloration) on your Forrest blades. I have a blade caddy I set on the floor in my chop and the outer side of the first blade oxidized. My shop is dry and climate controlled so I don't have any rust problems. I cleaned up the blade and put one of the Forrest dado blades on the outside of the stack. That also discolored. Then I put a Lennox blade there with no problems. I never bothered to ask of anyone else had a problem.
fmr

[Jim O'Dell]

Mine was obviously where I had handled the blade. My shop is not climate controlled, but neither one of my Systimatic blades have done this over the years. Jim.

[Ryan Hellmer]

I've had the 50 tooth combo-max lite on my 1 HP Walker Turner saw for about 2 years now. Literally cut miles of wood (mostly white oak) and it's still cutting great. I too really like the Nickel Armor and plan to buy more infinity blades when the need arises. Money aside they have been amazing. It's even better that they are 30-50% cheaper than many comparable blades.

Ryan

[ed vitanovec]

Jim,

Thanks for the feedback on these blades, I am going to buy some in the future. What brand of riving knife do you have?

Regards!
Ed

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Jim,

Where have you been buying your Infinity blades?

[Mitchell Andrus]

For Pete's sake, Jim. Will ya set your favorite cold, condensation sweating beverage on the freaking saw already? The factory-fresh, too-clean-to-be-real, dusted daily, steel wool-struck finish is making the rest of us look bad.
.

[Harold Burrell]

For Pete's sake, Jim. Will ya set your favorite cold, condensation sweating beverage on the freaking saw already? The factory-fresh, too-clean-to-be-real, dusted daily, steel wool-struck finish is making the rest of us look bad.
.

+1 on that one! Even if it is not rusted yet, it should still (at the very least) be covered in sawdust.

[Gene Howe]

I saw a little spot of dirt on the saw table.....oh wait... that's a mite of dust on my screen.:D

[Jim O'Dell]

Jim,

Where have you been buying your Infinity blades?

Here: www.infinitytools.com/ (http://www.infinitytools.com/) David is great to work with. I just ordered a router bit last night that I found I needed over the weekend to replicate the arms for the chair my wife is refinishing. My current template bit is too short. At least, that's what I told my wife. :rolleyes: If I had known the need, I could have saved the shipping expense and gotten it with the blades.
Remember guys, I was just redoing the whole saw alignment, had the top off to ream the mounting holes out, moved the fence to the right, and mounted the recently finished extension table. Should I take a picture of the floor??? :D Actually, I usually use my table brush a the end of the day. Jim.

[scott spencer]

It seems to me that I use to have an Infinity Combomax too....I let a friend borrow it when my shop was closed for the winter in 2009, and now he doesn't want to give it back! :rolleyes: (he already had a 40T WWII...)

[Bill Huber]

From what I see on the Infinity site it looks like the Super General has a aluminum infused blue PTFE coating but yours does not.

Am I looking at the wrong blade, the Super General they show now will be in 7/30/2010.

http://www.infinitytools.com/10-x-40T-Super-General-Saw-Blade/productinfo/010-044/

[Jim O'Dell]

Bill, I got the regular combo blade. It was on sale for 59.90. Reg 69.9 IIRC. It has the regular Nickel-Armor coating, unlike the blue coating on the SG blade. Try this page: http://www.infinitytools.com/Combination-Saw-Blades/products/1196/ Jim.

[Matt Winterowd]

I think it's interesting how different folks swear by different blades. I suppose it has something to do with what kind of work you're doing and maybe even the particular wood you're cutting. I've tried the Forrest WW2 and just didn't feel like it deserved all the hype. Too much tearout and burning. (Yes, my saw is properly tuned). Next I tried the Infinity Super General, and there was less tearout and burning, but it took more feed pressure and even caused my 3hp PM2000 to labor a little on cuts. I just recently scored a Ridge Carbide TS2000 on sale from Woodpeckers and it's the first blade that I've been thoroughly satisfied with. Clean, smooth, easy cuts, both crosscutting and ripping and it was only $89.

Maybe cheaper is better :rolleyes:. Maybe I would have been happier with the $69 Infinity!

[Dave Lehnert]

One of the best blades I ever purchased was a 100 tip 10" blade from Penn-State ind. purchased it at one of the truck sales they use to do about 12 years ago. $28. It cuts so smooth the end looks like glass.

I have always like Freud brand blades. Seem to be the best bang for the buck.

[Jim O'Dell]

I think it's interesting how different folks swear by different blades. I suppose it has something to do with what kind of work you're doing and maybe even the particular wood you're cutting. I've tried the Forrest WW2 and just didn't feel like it deserved all the hype. Too much tearout and burning. (Yes, my saw is properly tuned). Next I tried the Infinity Super General, and there was less tearout and burning, but it took more feed pressure and even caused my 3hp PM2000 to labor a little on cuts. I just recently scored a Ridge Carbide TS2000 on sale from Woodpeckers and it's the first blade that I've been thoroughly satisfied with. Clean, smooth, easy cuts, both crosscutting and ripping and it was only $89.

Maybe cheaper is better :rolleyes:. Maybe I would have been happier with the $69 Infinity!

Matt, I think part of it is the sharpness (or lack there of) of the blade a particular person has been using. :D I like my WWII 30 tooth also, just wish it wasn't a thin kerf blade, and was a little dismayed that it rusted on the body like it did when none of my other blades ever have. Yeah, my dad's old cheap steel blades do that, but the 2 Systimatics I have never have. Jim.

[Bill Huber]

Bill, I got the regular combo blade. It was on sale for 59.90. Reg 69.9 IIRC. It has the regular Nickel-Armor coating, unlike the blue coating on the SG blade. Try this page: http://www.infinitytools.com/Combination-Saw-Blades/products/1196/ Jim.

So if the Regular Combo Blade is that good the Super must be really something.

Thanks.

[scott spencer]

So if the Regular Combo Blade is that good the Super must be really something.

Thanks.

It is....I can literally identify boards cut by the Super General just by looking at the shiny edge it leaves.

[Matt Winterowd]

It is....I can literally identify boards cut by the Super General just by looking at the shiny edge it leaves.

See, this is just what I mean. That's not been my experience with that blade. Is there that much variability in these things coming out of production? If so, then again I think that may argue against paying top dollar for blades. Get a good deal on a coated blade, and if it doesn't perform right out of the box, get it sharpened.

[scott spencer]

See, this is just what I mean. That's not been my experience with that blade. Is there that much variability in these things coming out of production? If so, then again I think that may argue against paying top dollar for blades. Get a good deal on a coated blade, and if it doesn't perform right out of the box, get it sharpened.

Even within the classification of "40T general purpose blades", some are better at certain things than others because their geometries are different. Blades with more of a standard ATB grind like 40T WWII, TS2000 (ATB/R grind), Gold Medal, DW7657, and even the former Infinity General 40T ATB blade are all more efficient when ripping thicker stock because the Hi-ATB teeth don't grab as much wood per tooth as teeth with a lower bevel angle, but no other general purpose blade I've used leaves the polished edge that the Super General does (due to the geometry of the double side grind putting more tooth edge on the wood). It's also pretty amazing in sheetgoods like plywood, melamine, and crosscuts in general.

There are a lot of other factors in play besides just the blade too, but I suspect the blades tend to take the bulk of the credit (or blame), depending. Some blades do better with the blade raised slightly higher, some slightly lower, some favor certain materials and certain types of cuts, some are more "foregiving" than others, etc. There's definitely some variability in the blades too, but with the way the processses are CNC controlled, you'd think variability would be really low. Sharpening is a huge factor, but I suspect the better manufacturers literally have sharpening down to a science...handling after sharpening might be a variable though. A good sharpening on a lesser blade may or may not give top notch performance, depending on the blade, but there's no guarantee that the body is flat, balanced, and tensioned properly.

[Matt Winterowd]

That's a fair point, Scott. You're describing the smooth, polished edge as the desireable quality of the cut in the case of the Super General. I did not have any particular qualms about the finish of the cut with that blade, but rather that it seemed inefficient and produced a lot of drag through the cut, particularly rips. It probably makes sense that the contact that I feel as drag is what burnishes the surface of the cut. But I'm not looking for a burnished edge, just a lack of tearout, burning, and what seems to me to be a comfortable pace of cutting on my saw. I can see how the particular geometry of a given blade would be more suitable for my expectations in that regard than it would be for someone else.

[scott spencer]

...I can see how the particular geometry of a given blade would be more suitable for my expectations in that regard than it would be for someone else.

Exactly the reason I find it difficult to a declare a "best" blade for other people's use. There's a plus and a minus for every given parameter....defining "best" is often the variable.

[Dan Karachio]

Now I am even less sure what combo blade to buy...