Trying To Decide On A Dedicated TS 10" Crosscut Blade

[Ben Rivel]

Building up my new table saw setup and I currently have the following:


Sawstop 3HP PCS
Forrest Woodworker II 40T
Forrest Duraline Hi/AT 80T
Forrest Dado King
Incra 1000HD Miter Gauge
Incra Miter Express

And I am pretty sure Ill be adding a Forrest Woodworker II 30T Ripping blade for rough ripping of thicker stock (if that matters).

I am thinking I would like to add a dedicated crosscutting blade to the setup to hopefully provide finer crosscuts than the Woodworker II 40T will and to not use the Duraline Hi/AT for anything other than laminates and thin veneers keeping it sharp for those tasks. I am considering the Forrest Duraline ATB in either 60T or 80T (LINK (http://www.forrestblades.com/10-duraline-saw-blade-60-teeth-atb-tooth.html) or LINK (http://www.forrestblades.com/10-duraline-saw-blade-80-teeth-atb-tooth.html)) for a dedicated crosscutting blade for use with the Inrca miter gauge with or without the Incra Miter Express. I MIGHT be convinced to try a Frued blade, but so far nothing has made me feel a need to leave the Forrest lineup. Is there a different Forrest blade I should be considering or perhaps another brand that just is just that much better? What do you guys suggest?

[Steve Wurster]

I have the Freud LU85R010, and the cuts it produces are just incredible. The blade says "glass smooth" on it, and that's just what I get.

I do not own any Forrest blades.

[Joe Spear]

There is the Forrest Woodworker I, which is for crosscutting. It is a very good blade. The Forrest Duraline is excellent for plywood and laminates.

[Bruce Page]

Another vote for the Freud LU85. It's an excellent cross cut blade.

[John TenEyck]

I have and like the Freud LU85, too, but the Popular Tools LM1080 cuts even smoother on my TS. It's no good on anything thicker than about 4/4 stock but that's its only limitation. Tear out free cuts on solid wood, veneer plywood and even Melamine. No experience with Forrest blades, however.

John

[Ron Kellison]

Ridge Carbide and Tenyru both make very good blades. I have a Ridge combo blade on my TS and a Forrest Chopmaster on my Hitachi slider. The cut is glass smooth from both blades. You won't go wrong with a Forrest blade but there are others worth considering.

[Myk Rian]

Freud crosscut for the reasons above.

[Kent Adams]

Forrest Plywood Veneer, if you're cutting sheet goods. I have all those blades you listed as well as this one. It's a great blade. I owned the Freud LU85 but prefer the cut and stability of the Forrest PV. You've not said what you're crosscutting though.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi, I use an FS Tools 60T ATB for crosscuts.

It's a great blade.............Regards, Rod.

[Bill Adamsen]

For general use I have a 300mm (12") 60 tooth combination which sports 12 sets of five teeth leading with a raker followed by ATB with a 4mm (.157") kerf. It s Canadian made but I'm not sure who actually makes it (Laguna AT00812060). From the specs, it looks like it could very well be that same blade Rod mentions above - but I'm not sure. I have five of these and they really cut well. I can cut most plywood without a scoring blade and it meets my standards ... paired with scoring it could cut virtually anything chip free to the most finicky inspection.

But, preferring not to adjust scoring, for engineered surface materials and finicky plywood have a Duraline AT 100 tooth (300mm/12") and it cuts beautifully. I suspect most blades in its class (HATB, ATBFR) work just as well. It is a 0.125" kerf which means all adjustments on the saw are out of whack when switching between the Laguna and Forrest. It would not work for a general purpose blade.

[Ben Rivel]

There is the Forrest Woodworker I, which is for crosscutting. It is a very good blade. The Forrest Duraline is excellent for plywood and laminates.
I had thought about the Woodworker I, but it seems Forrest only makes it in a thin kerf for the 10" size now and those are not recommended for use with a SawStop, so Ill be staying all 1/8" kerf.

And thanks guys, Ill check out the Freud LU85. I have heard a lot about it.

[Ben Rivel]

So looking a bit into the Freud LU85 Ultimate Cut-Off Blade (LINK (http://www.freudtools.com/index.php/products/product/LU85R010)) I see its not a 1/8" kerf blade. Ill have to check with SawStop to see what they think of that. Also I thought I remembered reading the red coating on Freud blades doesnt interfere with the SawStop sensing ability, but Ill double check with them on that too I guess.

[John TenEyck]

It has the same plate thickness as Freud's other full kerf blades.

John

[Ben Rivel]

It has the same plate thickness as Freud's other full kerf blades.

John
But wouldnt match my other Forrest blades that are 1/8" kerf. I wonder how close Freud's 10" diameter is to the Forrest blades 10" diameter. That difference might mean more brake to blade distance adjustments too.

Hmmm... More to think about.

[Jon Nuckles]

My Freud Industrial is significantly less than 10" and does require additional adjustment when changing blades. SawStop technical support is aware of the issue with Freud blades. Freud appears to make its blades to a metric standard and markets them as 10" blades in the U.S. Great blades, but I am going to use something else in the future on my SawStop PCS to avoid the extra adjustment.

[Ben Rivel]

My Freud Industrial is significantly less than 10" and does require additional adjustment when changing blades. SawStop technical support is aware of the issue with Freud blades. Freud appears to make its blades to a metric standard and markets them as 10" blades in the U.S. Great blades, but I am going to use something else in the future on my SawStop PCS to avoid the extra adjustment.
Yep, thats what I had read elsewhere too. Looks like Ill be sticking with all Forrest blades I think. Now to try and find a good price on the Duraline 10" 60T (DU10607125) or 80T (DU10807125). Looks like no one really sells those except Forrest and they want a fortune for one. I bought all my other Forrest blades from Acme Tools as they were the lowest and used a 10% coupon with free shipping no tax. Those were some sweet prices. Doesnt seem like they carry the non-Hi/AT Duraline ATB's though.

[Alan Lightstone]

Red coating is not an issue for Sawstops. I use multiple Freud blades on mine with that coating.

[Eric Schmid]

Hi, I use an FS Tools 60T ATB for crosscuts.

It's a great blade.............Regards, Rod.

+1 on this. Full 1/8" Kerf. Stiff body and lots of carbide. Recently went through a lot of hickory with this blade and their 60T rip blade. Very smooth cuts.

[Rick Potter]

On the red coating issue....a year ago,I called SawStop and specifically asked about them, as I have several. They told me there is no problem using those blades.

[Ben Rivel]

Red coating is not an issue for Sawstops. I use multiple Freud blades on mine with that coating.


On the red coating issue....a year ago,I called SawStop and specifically asked about them, as I have several. They told me there is no problem using those blades.

Good to know. Thanks guys!

[Kent Adams]

Yep, thats what I had read elsewhere too. Looks like Ill be sticking with all Forrest blades I think. Now to try and find a good price on the Duraline 10" 60T (DU10607125) or 80T (DU10807125). Looks like no one really sells those except Forrest and they want a fortune for one. I bought all my other Forrest blades from Acme Tools as they were the lowest and used a 10% coupon with free shipping no tax. Those were some sweet prices. Doesnt seem like they carry the non-Hi/AT Duraline ATB's though.

Thin kerf blades are probably not as much in demand as full kerf blades in this price range.

[Jim Andrew]

I bought Tenryu blades for my Hammer tablesaw, and they are amazing. The 80 tooth solid wood crosscut cuts so well, if I need to do a rip, I just go ahead and rip with it. Works great. Best blades I have ever had.

[Allan Speers]

Ridge Carbide and Tenyru both make very good blades. I have a Ridge combo blade on my TS and a Forrest Chopmaster on my Hitachi slider. The cut is glass smooth from both blades. You won't go wrong with a Forrest blade but there are others worth considering.



+1 on Tenyru. Their best blades are more expensive than Forrest, but there's a reason. That's real industrial quality stuff. Check out Carbide Processors for this and other top industrial brands, at fair prices.

Nothing wrong with Freud, of course, but they make (very) good stuff for the "Joe Woodworkers" of the world.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I am thinking I would like to add a dedicated crosscutting blade to the setup to hopefully provide finer crosscuts than the Woodworker II 40T willI'd send the WWII out to be sharpened to use for the dedicated cross cut blade and pick up a Freud LM75R010 30T Glue Line Rip blade. I use a plain old Borg off the shelf 40T (either Freud or Ridgid) blade for baby butt smooth crosscuts on my Ridgid TS3660 contractor saw. I can't imagine a blade like a WWII would deliver any lesser quality cut unless it was really dull. The glue line rip is - - awesome...

[Randy Rose]

But wouldnt match my other Forrest blades that are 1/8" kerf. I wonder how close Freud's 10" diameter is to the Forrest blades 10" diameter. That difference might mean more brake to blade distance adjustments too.

Hmmm... More to think about.


My most repeatable measurements of a new LU85R010 came up with .120 kerf and 9.850 dia. ( Mititoyo dial calipers)
Have no idea how that relates to SawStop adjustments.

I will say however, that I achieved chip free cuts (applied painters tape) breaking down a sheet of 3/4" Walnut ply with woefully thin veneer of no more than .03125.


I have always had good results with this blade, only bought a fresh one due to concern of the cost ( and thin veneer) of the sheet goods mentioned. At approx. $70 they are a good value.

[Mark W Pugh]

OK, I'm one of the "Joe Woodworker", as mentioned in a previous thread. My question, what differences would I observe if I used a Freud LU85R010 blade vs all the other, more expensive blades?

I mean, is there a huge noticeable difference?

Edit I don't want to start a war , but why does a $179 blade cut so much better than an $80 blade? A lot of answers on threads are, "they just perform better". That's not really a why. I know a lot of you professionals prefer certain manufacturers, but why specifically? Is the carbide better, do they really give a 200% better cut, etc? Just trying to educate myself.

Thanks

[Rich Engelhardt]

Mark,
The person to ask is Tom Waltz from Carbide Processors.
Tom's written several things - both here and on the CP website - about different grades of carbide & why this bit or blade is better than that bit or blade.

The real down and dirty- short and skinny on it is - - better carbide/thicker carbide is harder to sharpen, but takes longer to dull & can be resharpened more times than lesser or thinner carbide.

If a $179 blade can be resharpened three times more than an $80 blade, it's really cheaper in the long run to buy the better blade.

Anyhow as a non-pro, that's what I've gleaned from reading about it.

[Justin Ludwig]

Building up my new table saw setup and I currently have the following:


Sawstop 3HP PCS
Forrest Woodworker II 40T
Forrest Duraline Hi/AT 80T
Forrest Dado King
Incra 1000HD Miter Gauge
Incra Miter Express



You already own a dedicated crosscut blade. ??

[Kent Adams]

He's explained that he wants to save that one for laminates.

[Ben Rivel]

Looking more into the Forrest Ply Veneer saw blade it sounds like a good crosscut blade and cheaper than the Duraline non-Hi/AT. (LINK (http://www.forrestblades.com/10-ply-veneer-saw-blade-cross-cuts-on-wood-veneers-70-teeth-thin-kerf.html)) Acme Tools has that one available $120.

[John Schweikert]

I've used a WWII for years, have 3 of them. Worked fine, but the carbide on two blades has been less than stellar with chipping. One I have that was resharpened a year or so ago used fresh after a casual week or so had a lot of fine carbide chipping. Now using a Tenryu GM-25540 10" and believe it's a better blade to the WWII. Works great for crosscutting too.

I'd also recommend Carbide Processors. Have one of their rip blades and that thing is superb, better than the Freud industrial rip I own. I don't own a wood specific blade in the 60 to 80 tooth set, haven't needed to. The 40's work great.

[Rick Potter]

I would like to make a suggestion for owners of WWII blades. When I got my first one about 20 years ago, I took it to a local sharpener who ruined it. The amount of side clearance between the teeth and the body is fairly tight, and the sharpener ground off too much. Now the blade is almost useless, as it burns everything badly. All it needed was a touch up.

I understand that some sharpeners are better than others, but my suggestion is to only send your blades to Forrest for resharpening. YMMV

[Ben Rivel]

I would like to make a suggestion for owners of WWII blades. When I got my first one about 20 years ago, I took it to a local sharpener who ruined it. The amount of side clearance between the teeth and the body is fairly tight, and the sharpener ground off too much. Now the blade is almost useless, as it burns everything badly. All it needed was a touch up.

I understand that some sharpeners are better than others, but my suggestion is to only send your blades to Forrest for resharpening. YMMV
Can you send it to Forrest to fix? Thats a shame. But yea Im not the type to try and save a buck on stuff like that. I will only be sending my Forrest blades back to Forrest.

[Randy Rose]

Can someone please measure and post the dimensions of a WWII ?

Inquiring minds want to know
Thank you.

" Joe Woodworker"

[scott spencer]

Can someone please measure and post the dimensions of a WWII ?

Inquiring minds want to know
Thank you.

" Joe Woodworker"

My WWII is ~ 9-7/8" (never sharpened).

FWIW, my Infinity and CMT blades are ~ 10" even. The 80T Hi-ATB full kerf Infinity 010-080 "Ultrasmooth" and CMT 210.080.10 are both extraordinarily clean cutting cross cut blades....either should rival your Duraline without breaking the bank.

[Randy Rose]

^ Thank you Scott.

We have now determined that that the Freud is a full .025 less in diameter ( 0.0125 on radius) than a WWII.

[Ben Rivel]

Red coating is not an issue for Sawstops. I use multiple Freud blades on mine with that coating.


On the red coating issue....a year ago,I called SawStop and specifically asked about them, as I have several. They told me there is no problem using those blades.
Decided to give the Forrest Ply Veneer a try as a dedicated crosscutting blade. 70T, ATB and 1/8" kerf sounds like what I was after and the reviews are good. Of course it's backordered from my usual site (Acme Tools) so it'll be a bit till it comes. Oh well.

[Phillip Gregory]

I put in another vote for the Freud LU85R010. It's a very nice crosscut blade as long as you don't try to cut anything thicker than about 8/4. If you want to cut thicker stuff than that, their Cabinetmaker's Crosscut 60 tooth would be a bit better.