Forrest STIF05 5-Inch Saw Blade Dampener and Stiffener

[Kent Adams]

Does anyone have one of these and if so, can you give me your experience with it? I have a 5hp TS, and Forrest claims this reduces vibration on the blade for more accurate cuts.

315294

[Keith Hankins]

Yes I had one. Got it for the RAS. I also wanted it to cut down on the whine. It did do that, but there is a trade-off. You lose cut dept. If you are going to run thin kerf blades, maybee. However if running full-kerf 1/8" blades, I don't see it as necessary. I sold it with my thin kerf blades. I only run full kerf blades (forrest) on my 5hp ICS and no issues.

I would save my money.

[Kent Adams]

Yes I had one. Got it for the RAS. I also wanted it to cut down on the whine. It did do that, but there is a trade-off. You lose cut dept. If you are going to run thin kerf blades, maybee. However if running full-kerf 1/8" blades, I don't see it as necessary. I sold it with my thin kerf blades. I only run full kerf blades (forrest) on my 5hp ICS and no issues.

I would save my money.

Is there a reason why you don't run thin kerf blades?

[Kevin Womer]

Had one, bought it with the recommendation of a Forrest rep. Should have saved the money, I don't think it is needed with an 1/8 inch blade. The cut quality is pretty good anyway, and I couldn't tell the difference with or without it when I used it. Probably better suited for a thin kerf blade, but I don't use TK blades anymore since I upgraded to a cabinet saw.

[William C Rogers]

I have one. I got it with a used saw I bought. I only used it with thin kerf blades. Not real sure if there is much of a benefit with premium blades. I now only run thick kerf and don't use it at all. Just don't see any reason to.

[Jerry Thompson]

I had one and have no idea where, in the mess, it is anymore.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Is there a reason why you don't run thin kerf blades?

Have one. not used in many years. on a 10" blade, your run out of room on deep cuts pretty easy. PLus, I use dado sets a lot, so no go there.

If I had a bigger saw with 12" blades, I would be all over it.

on thin kerf - yeah there are reasons I don't use them

1. I can get there just as effectively with a purpose-made blade; 40t rip; 30t rip; 20t rip
2. I also have panel blades, etc. Switching between thin-and full-kerf blades means recalibrating the sightglass on the rip fence. No thanks.

[Keith Hankins]

Is there a reason why you don't run thin kerf blades?

I had thin kerf to start on WWI (RAS) & WWII. They sold to me to save lumber over time with the less waste mantra. I used them for a long time, and they did fine. They whine more (IMO) and on some cuts that were angled at 45, I got a tiny bit of deflection. To compensate, I would cut close then run a final one. On dense hardwoods it was worse. At the time I had my Grizzly 1023slx and splitter was a microjig which is made for the thickness of the blade, so it would have cost a bit of money to chuck the MJ and zero clearance insert to make the change. So I just kept it.


I upgraded my 1023 to a 5hp Sawstop ICS. The built in splitter/DC (love it), is for a full thickness blade, so I had to get new blades. I just went full thickness and don't miss the old. yea I might cut a bit more and lose some to waste, but it won't add up to much over time.

I sold (gaveaway) the RAS, and I sold the WWI, WWII, and the stablizer as a package deal. Someone got a good deal on the blades and I got enough to get a new WWII so it was a win win.

I'd keep my money.

[Keith Hankins]

I had one and have no idea where, in the mess, it is anymore.

I love the Avatar!

[Matt Day]

I have some from Veritas and I use them with all my blades on the TS, and plan to use them on my RAS too. The washers that came on my used table saw were beat up and these were quick fixes. The Veritas ones come in a slightly smaller size that doesn't impede depth of cut, and are recommended with blades up to 10".

[Paul McGaha]

I use one. I have a bad spot on the arbor of my unisaw and I use the stiffner as a spacer. I put the stiffner between the blade and the nut. This idea from Mr. Kent A Bathurst.

I run regular kerf blades.

PHM

[Paul McGaha]

I had one and have no idea where, in the mess, it is anymore.

Jerry, that is an eye hurting picture in your avatar. For safety concerns (I'm sure you don't want to cause a creeker to go blind) you might choose some other picture.

PHM

[Jerry Thompson]

Nothin' but the best Keith.

[Jerry Thompson]

Paul, you will have to wear rose colored glasses.

[Tom M King]

I have one, but I'm sure it hasn't been used in at least 20 years.

[Kent Adams]

Have one. not used in many years. on a 10" blade, your run out of room on deep cuts pretty easy. PLus, I use dado sets a lot, so no go there.

If I had a bigger saw with 12" blades, I would be all over it.

on thin kerf - yeah there are reasons I don't use them

1. I can get there just as effectively with a purpose-made blade; 40t rip; 30t rip; 20t rip
2. I also have panel blades, etc. Switching between thin-and full-kerf blades means recalibrating the sightglass on the rip fence. No thanks.

I never thought about the sight glass needing to be adjusted.