New super thin kerf TS blades?

[Bill White]

I've been seeing several adds about the really thin combo TS blades, and I'm wondering if any of you have tried them. Sounds good, but I am concerned about blade flex and the finish the blades deliver. They a expensive too. What about fitting to your splitters/riving knives?
Eager to hear from ya.
Bill

[Dale Cruea]

Several years ago I got into the "thin blade revolution". Then I noticed that my joints were no longer really square in either direction. From the face of the board or from the edge. After fighting this problem and cussing my table saw I read a article on blades.
I was in a wood working store shortly after that and they had a 1/8" planer blade. No more out of square joints. I now look for the thickest blade I can get. My thin blades didn't work well with stabilizers either. Better but not what I wanted.
Just MHO.

[johnny means]

What is the upside to an ultra thin blade? Reminds me of when cell phone manufacturers were all racing to make the smallest phone possible. Then we all realized they only need to be small enough to be hand held, but should be big enough to see the screen and have usable key boards. With out getting into uber exotic materials 1/8 seems to be the threshold for making a stout 10" blade. I'm waiting for someone to start adding an extra 32nd to the thickness of the standard blade. That would be the real improvement.

BTW, every thin kerf blade I've ever tried, I hated.

[Greg Peterson]

I am assuming the ultra thin kerf is likely to appeal to low power TS. I stick to a regular kerf for ripping but use a thin kerf for cross cuts. Seems to work fine for me.

[Don Morris]

Went through the thin kerf thing but like Dale above now use only 1/8" blades. Don't have to re-center or re-measure or re-place my zero clearance inserts every time I change blades. The extra wood I lose isn't worth it.

[Curt Harms]

What is the upside to an ultra thin blade? Reminds me of when cell phone manufacturers were all racing to make the smallest phone possible. Then we all realized they only need to be small enough to be hand held, but should be big enough to see the screen and have usable key boards. With out getting into uber exotic materials 1/8 seems to be the threshold for making a stout 10" blade. I'm waiting for someone to start adding an extra 32nd to the thickness of the standard blade. That would be the real improvement.

BTW, every thin kerf blade I've ever tried, I hated.

The only real need I've seen for real think kerf blades is cutting slots for inlays in stringed instrument fingerboards. I think if all table saw blades cut a .120" (1/8") kerf, life would be simple. Most are close but some are off enough to be irritating.

[Aleks Hunter]

I tried a thin kerf bade once on my 5 hp table saw.I think it lasted for about a half hour I think before it became warped. To be fair I was ripping some thick sugar maple for an endgrain up butcher's block. I m going to ripping some clear cedar for a strip kayak this winter and I will try the thin kerf blade again for that, using a feeder. softwoods with no knots shouldn't be a problem. But beware of the thin blades with thicker hardwoods.

[scott spencer]

Keep in mind that not all TK blades are created equal. The better quality TK's perform a lot better than the cheapies...they can be a real blessing on smaller saws, but I think $175 for an ultra TK blade is waaaay too expensive. There's less incentive to use TK's with a bigger saw.

[Tom Walz]

Typically thin kerf is for low power or for better material yield (think window blinds).

Thin kerf is a big deal in sawmills but there the saws are typically guided. They still need regular maintenance to bring them back flat and true.

Tom

[Rick Fisher]

I am a more a fan of sharp .. My sharpener guy always tells me my blades are the easiest to sharpen because they are only borderline dull..

Get 2 high quality blades and have them sharpened sooner than you normally would.. they still last for years.

Right now I have a Woodmaster II spelling off a Tenryu Gold line 40 .. Always a sharp blade on the saw.

[John TenEyck]

I really like the Diablo TK blade on my Unisaw. It cuts so well in most materials that I rarely take it off. I've had no problem with cuts being square/square, warping, etc. I tried it 'cause it was cheap. I keep using it because it works well for me.

[bill kaminski]

Have to say +1 for full kerf blades. I wanted a new rip blade, friend of mine who has a saw sharpening shop recommended one by AGE. It measures .145 thick and does cut very well. I cross cut w/ FK...w/stabilizer. Works for me. bill

[Jerome Hanby]

I've got a pair of those some of those silver Freud Avanti blades I bought when someone here posted a great price at HD. They are TK and I guess they cut alright. To be honest I don't mount them very often, they are 60 tooth and I usually run a rip or crosscut blade and have some cheapo Irwins I use when I'm cutting crap like Borg plywood or MDF. I just figure my workmanship is suspect enough without introducing a greater possibility of blade deflection. With that said, I'll probably try to pick up a TK rip and crosscut pair of blades before I start my workbench. I have some massive 8/4 beech and I'm not sure my table saw has enough oomph to cut that with a regular blade without strain.

[David Kumm]

Specifically has anyone used the Total Saw Solutions ultimate thin kerf blade for an extended period? Dave

Make that Micro Thin Kerf.

[Harvey Pascoe]

Since I rarely ever work with greater than 4/4 and always with wood costing at least $30 bf I have switched to using 7.5" x 1/16" kerf Matsushita blades. They cut clean and with incredible ease and stay sharp far longer then my WWII blades. They only cost $17 and when dull I just toss them. If you can use a blade that will only cut to 6/4 give it a try.

[Kyle Brooks]

I use a full kerf 1/8" blade made by Freud. Called the premier fusion. I have not used a WWII or a Tenryu but can tell you that I love my FPF. It cuts straight and smooth. Stays sharp as long as you don't run nails or other things that don't belong there. Mine is a P412 model which is a 12 inch blade with a one inch arbor. Like the guys have already said, HP of the saw and blade width run hand in hand. Just my 1 1/2 cents.

[Chris Friesen]

If you don't need full depth of cut, you can get some extremely thin blades designed for circular saws. They work just fine on a tablesaw, and have less issues with warping than a full-sized blade.

[Dell Littlefield]

Aleks, Mac McCarthy used a 7 1/4 inch blades for ripping cedar strips. He built canoes full time and recommended the Matsushita blade. He said he had ripped miles of strips. I bought one and used it for the three I built and have used it for ripping hardwood with good results.

[Dick Strauss]

I think there is at least one 10" blade that I've seen advertised as having a kerf of 0.040" (maybe made for cutting the cross-slots in the necks of guitars). I guess as long as the cut is shallow and you feed slowly, it might work fine.

Here is some interesting reading on thin-kerf looked at from a milling standpoint...
http://www.thinkerf.com/Downloads/ThinKerf.PDF