Forrest Dado King

[Jefferey Scott]

Who owns one or has used one? I bought an Oshlun dado set but am returning it due to what I consider excessive tear out in crosscutting maple ply. So I ordered a Dado King to replace it. I know it's a lot more than the Oshlun, but this is an important project I'm working on and it's worth the money to me if it crosscuts cleanly. I own two of their blades and they are solid performers, so I'm hoping this is too. Any opinions?

Jeff

[David Kumm]

I have a 10" and it is great. It is older and I've heard rumblings that Forrest quality is less consistent than in the past so let us know if you have any issues. I generally use them for sharpening although Woodworkers Toolworks are great too. Dave

[joe milana]

I've got about 10 Forest blades, and I will agree with Dave, there are inconsistencies between the blades, but I also have a Dado King, and have been extremely happy with it. Some complain about the infamous "bat ears". but they don't bother me. One thing I will say about plywood is I have two sources, both give me USA A-1 & B-2. All the ply looks the same, but the ply from one of the sources just seems to tear out more than the other. I have no idea why, but point is, it's not the blade.

[Joe Spear]

I got a 6" Dado King on sale for about $200 three years ago. It works great. I did have a Harbor Freight 8" and a Freud 6" stack at one point. The HF worked, but the cuts were a little sloppy. The Freud was fine, but the Dado King is better.

[Peter Quinn]

Ive used a few different models of dados, I own a forrest dado king and use one at work, its the best dado set I've used to date against some decent competition. With a ZCI freshly cut and a backer, tear out is minimal.

[Alan Schaffter]

This joint was made with a Forrest Dado King and an INCRA I-BOX- it doesn't get much better than that. If there are bat ears you really can't see them. Any that you may get will be much less pronounced than with a regular WWII with ATB grind.

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/data/2404/medium/IMG_4146.JPG

[James Baker SD]

I have the Forrest set as well, but I do not like the plastic shims, especially if you need more than one. They love to drop down into the threads on the arbor and interfere both with proper tightening and the width measurement. Get the magnetic shims and its a really good set.
James

[Van Huskey]

The DK is the best dado set I have used, I love mine. It is equal to the best of the others I have used and better than the rest.

[Mike Heidrick]

alan we just need to get you some good router bits now.

I also own the DK and love it. I also like my Ridge carbide set for the RAS.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Love my Forrest Dado King.... Works great. Rumor has it that Carbide Processors also carry some nice blades

http://www.carbideprocessors.com/saw-blades/dado-sets-and-blades/

[Larry Edgerton]

Ive used a few different models of dados, I own a forrest dado king and use one at work, its the best dado set I've used to date against some decent competition. With a ZCI freshly cut and a backer, tear out is minimal.

Same here. I have one on my Minimax that has been around for twenty years. Needs a sharpening now, but it should. I have three other saws and a dado for each of different brands, and the Forrest is the best.

Larry

[Robert Strasser]

I just received a Forrest 8-inch Dado King today. I spent some time comparing it to a brand new Freud Super Dado that I also have.

I'll make this short. Both blades cut great. I have no complaints about that.

I found only three differences that I consider worth mentioning.

The Freud cuts slightly oversize. The 1/8-inch chippers are a little oversized. In the 3/4-inch width, the Freud is around 0.755 to 0.760 inches.

The Forrest blade has undersized chippers. So to get 3/4-inch I added 0.020 of shim.

The second difference is the weight of the 3/4-inch setup. The Freud weighs 7 pounds and 5 oz. The Forrest only weighs 4 pounds and 15 oz. The Freud's extra weight makes a difference on my contrator saw. The Freud blade causes a longer and rougher start. The belt actually came off the motor twice during my testing. I had no such problem with the Forrest.

The third difference is the price. The Forrest costs about $70 more than the Freud.

[Matt Meiser]

Based on your other thread I have to ask--are you using a ZCI? They are pretty much a must with a dado blade and ply IMHO.

[Jefferey Scott]

Based on your other thread I have to ask--are you using a ZCI? They are pretty much a must with a dado blade and ply IMHO.
Hey Matt, yes indeed I am using a ZCI with it. And I still got tear out with the Oshlun set, although it was minimal. I will say that I just got my Dado King today from Amazon so I haven't tried it out yet. I will tomorrow and I'll report my results in this thread. I got my new Forrest Duraline Hi A/T plywood blade yesterday and it cuts like a dream on the plywood even without the ZCI, although I am using one with that blade too. Perfect crosscuts in the ply, so I'm hoping the Dado King will do the same. I now have over 5 bills invested in Forrest blades and that's a lot, but I've got no complaints thus far.

[Gordon Eyre]

I bought mine 7 years ago and never looked back. This is a great set and cuts nice flat bottomed dados.

[Alan Schaffter]

The Freud cuts slightly oversize. The 1/8-inch chippers are a little oversized.

The Forrest blade has undersized chippers. So to get 3/4-inch I added 0.020 of shim.

In the case of the Forrest, that was confirmed by a Forrest engineer a few years ago here or on another WW forum.

It certainly is something you must watch closely, especially with today's odd sized plywood. You must choose the right shims, install them carefully (I don't like the plastic shims either), and test cuts are essential if you want accurately sized dadoes and box joints that fit properly (unless, of course you have an I-BOX :D ).

[Jerry Hillenburg]

I have used a 8" Forrest Woodworker dado set since the mid 90s. No tearout whatsoever so long as you use a zero clearance insert..http://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gifhttp://www.zoominto.com/zoomapi/ZoomButt.gif

[Van Huskey]

You must choose the right shims, install them carefully (I don't like the plastic shims either), and test cuts are essential if you want accurately sized dadoes and box joints that fit properly

The beauty of the Bridge City Kerfmaker

[Jefferey Scott]

The set I received today has magnetic shims included. They must have discontinued the plastic shims?

[ian maybury]

Just wondering how it's possible to get zero clearance with a dado cutter. For one depth of cut yes, but subsequently surely only for the deepest cut done using the particular insert? Or is the idea that you should maintain a collection of inserts for differing depths of cut? Or is that the it's the zero clearance to the sides that does the business?

ian

[joe milana]

Just wondering how it's possible to get zero clearance with a dado cutter. For one depth of cut yes, but subsequently surely only for the deepest cut done using the particular insert? Or is the idea that you should maintain a collection of inserts for differing depths of cut? Or is that the it's the zero clearance to the sides that does the business?

ian

It's the sides that matter.

[ian maybury]

Thanks Joe.

ian

[Mike Heidrick]

The beauty of the Bridge City Kerfmaker

That thing is cool.

[Van Huskey]

That thing is cool.

HAve you watched the "how to" video on halfinchshy.com ? He really shows how elegant a solution it is. Since getting one I haven't cut a one pass dado since, it is just too easy to be perfect with no setup.

[Jefferey Scott]

I used my new Dado King today and I'm very pleased to report it cross cuts my pre-finished maple plywood with no tearout. Nice clean cuts. I'm very satisfied with this set. Below are pictures of the Oshlun Dado set and the Forrest Dado King set for your perusal. A zero clearance insert was used in both examples along with a reasonably slow feed rate.

Oshlun:

235128

Forrest:

235129

[Jim Becker]

When I had my cabinet saw, I used a Forrest Dado King...outstanding product. The only reason I don't own it now is because my slider isn't really accommodating of dado sets...and I was sad when I sold it. (But happy for the dude who is undoubtedly using it cheerfully in his shop)

[David Weaver]

When I was using power tools a lot, I used another person's DK, and then I bought my own and used it only a tiny little bit. never had a bad cut from one. I sold it to someone on here when I sent my TS down the road.

It was a super clean cutting piece of gear, in both cases, and my buddy's had some miles on it. It doesn't leave you wanting for much.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Wow, very nice comparison pictures.

[kenneth kayser]

My Forrest is much better than the Freud which I have sold. Essentially no tearout except on the end of the cut, if no backer is used. Agree that the plastic shims are a nuisance because they drop into the thread of the arbor. Magnetic are nice.

Bad experience with Forrest re-sharpening (10" blade). They tried to charge me for re-aligning. I checked the blade before I sent it, and it was within .001. They removed the charge. I now have my local Woodcraft sharpen them. Really pleased. Shipping eats you up for any non-local sharpening.

[Larry Fox]

I have one and it is a very solid performer. I winced at the price but it is one of those cry once type of purchases.

[scott spencer]

My Forrest is much better than the Freud which I have sold. ...

Just curious....are you talking about the better Freud model SD508 with 24T outside cutters/4T inside chippers, or the less expensive SD208 with 12Toutside cutters/2T inside chippers? The SD508 should compared pretty well with the Forrest.