Freud glue line blade for Bosch 4100-09 table saw

[Vince Sefcik]

I have a Bosch 4100-09 table saw and I’m considering purchasing a Freud glue line rip blade. The Bosch manual states that the blade kerf width should be .092” or wider and the plate thickness should be .088” or less. The Freud LM75R010 blade has a kerf of .091” (slightly undersize) and plate thickness of .071” (OK). The Freud LM74R010 blade has a kerf of .118” (OK) but the plate thickness is .098” (too thick). So both are slightly out of spec with the Bosch documentation. Has anyone used either of these two blades in a Bosch 4100 table saw? If so, did you have to remove the riving knife (something I really don’t want to do)? If neither will work, do you have a recommendation for another glue line rip blade. Most of my work is with 3/4” cherry and oak. Thanks.

[David Kumm]

Have you measured the riving knife. You mainly want the kerf wider than it. A glue line rip is usually a pretty heavy thick blade to minimize vibration and that doesn't work to your advantage on a small saw. Will you run the narrow kerf blade with a stabilizer? It may be necessary if you are to acheive the really smooth cut. Others will have to speak to the Freud blades, I run a TK Forrest WW2 on my older Bosch portable. Either blade should work but more kerf means more stress on the saw. Dave

[Michael Dunn]

I just bought this saw myself last week. I dot have an answer for you, but I am also interested in the replies.

[John Schweikert]

I've owned the 4100 for several years, use it a lot. You never need to remove the actual riving knife, it simply has multiple positions, above the blade height to completely retracted all from a simple locking lever below the insert plate.

The thickness of the riving knife is exactly 0.092" on my saw using my caliper. The Freud 24 tooth thin kerf rip blade I use has teeth which are 0.098". and it all works just fine. A blade with total 0.091" thickness would be a problem with the knife.

You can always make your own zero clearance insert (I've made a bunch) and use a splitter such as the Micro Jig System (which I have also done). The splitters come in various kerf widths.

The plate thickness of a blade only matters w.r.t. the riving knife in order to keep the blade teeth inline with the knife, so the teeth aren't off centered to one side causing the knife to bind.

One of the most important adjustments I made has been getting the riving knife dead on for all notched height locations. It was off originally and so my thin kerf blades would have issue, the knife would catch at the start and bind through the cut. The manual explains how to adjust the knife.

Your options are basic, use the Freud blade which is 0.091 and make an insert with a splitter built in or get a thin kerf rip blade which is wider than the riving knife. I see no issue in the second blade you mention having a thicker plate than Bosch recommends. To me that doesn't matter. If a blade has teeth which extend out beyond the width left and right of the riving knife with the blade mounted, then it all works fine.

Simply put, the knife must fit inside the kerf cut, best with no pressure on either side of the cut.

[Vince Sefcik]

John,

Thanks for the detailed reply. I had the belief that the plate thickness shouldn't be an issue as long as the kerf is wider than the riving knife. I did find two web sites in which people were using a Freud P410 blade on the Bosch 4100 and the P410 blade has a plate thickness of .098”, the same as the Freud LM74R010. So, I'll give the LM74R010 a try. I do make my own zero clearance inserts and will make another for this new blade.

[Mark A Johnson]

I don't have the Bosch, but the Freud blades work well. I've used several different models of their blades. If there is a problem with the knife, you might want to measure the thickness of the knife. As other have mentioned, use a zero clearance insert (which will help with a cleaner cut) and a Micro splitter for your safety. Don't cut anything with out a splitter of some type.