Forrest Woodworker II -- This is wrong, right?

[Tim Lynch]

I received this blade yesterday from Amazon (it was the $64 sale). It was packed inside a bigger box. Everything about the packing was in good condition, including Forrest's box and the rubber coating on the blade.

When I started to peel the rubber coating off, nearly every tip was missing the outside point and had a fracture along the outside back edge of the tooth.

I stopped peeling the coating and tried calling Forrest, but they were closed. I'm pretty sure this is wrong. I would expect sharp points on the outside edge, but I'm curious about the line along the back of the tooth that I say looks like a fracture.

Whattya think?

No doubt I'll get good service from Amazon and/or Forrest. I'm also wondering if anyone else had issues w/ their $64 sale blades.

Tim

[nick brigg]

maybe thats why it was 64 bucks? hah

[Jared Cuneo]

I don't see a lot of difference in those pics from my WWII, except the welds look a little more 'dirty' and I paid $105 for mine :( , but the tooth shape looks correct.... ? Don't take my word however, I'm but a newbie.....

JC

[Jim Dunn]

Not sure but it kinda looks like a relief cut on the blade to me. If it were a fracture it would not be uniform in shape on each tooth.

[Phil Thien]

The two sides of the cutting edges sorta look rounded-over to me.

[Joe Spear]

I have two 40-tooth WWII's, a regular-kerf WWII and a thin-kerf and also a 30-tooth WWII. They all have crisp, straight edges and points on the teeth. Your blade looks like somebody did a bad job of sharpening it. A brand new blade should not look like that. On Tuesday Forrest should be back to work. Call and tell them what you got. I'm sure they will make good on it for you. Amazon should take it back, but I'm not sure how long that would take. I think Forrest would like to know about a situation like this. You need a new blade, also, not just a decent sharpening, because each sharpening takes some life off the blade.

[Allen Bookout]

The two sides of the cutting edges sorta look rounded-over to me.

Same here. I went out and looked at the one on my saw that I have been using and the new one and both sides of each tooth come to a point and are really sharp on both blades. It looks to me like that you got a bad one.

The welds look really rough also compared to mine. Mine are clean as a whistle.

[Chris Rosenberger]

I went out and checked my $64 blades. They look fine. It looks to me that the blade has not been finish ground.

[scott spencer]

I'm sure Forrest will make it right for you. Give 'em a call Tuesday, and/or send them an email with those pics.

[Bruce Benjamin]

Maybe Forrest is now outsourcing their manufacturing to a Chinese mental institution. :D That's the worst looking saw blade I've ever seen. Even the HF blades look better. That's got to be a mistake. Make sure whoever takes it back doesn't make you pay for any more shipping charges.

Bruce

[David DeCristoforo]

I find it hard to believe that those pictures are of a new "top quality" saw blade. I've sent blades out to local shapening shops to have broken teeth replaced and they often came back looking like the blades in your pictures. I think someone either made a mistake or is trying to put one over on you. Let's hope it's the former.....

[Gary Keedwell]

I"m on the side of the fence that says that they skipped the finish grind.

Gary K.:rolleyes:

[dan mahler]

I also ordered the thin kerf Forrest from Amazon ($64). After reading this thread since I didn't open the package yet I figured I better!


I am no expert but when purchasing other new blades they sure don't look like this new Forrest. IMHO it looks used but re-sharpened? There are rust spots on it too! I may have to call Amazon on Tuesday.


Tim, thanks for opening this thread.

ForrestBlade1 (http://home.comcast.net/%7Edandc.mahler/ForrestBlade1.jpg)
ForrestBlade2 (http://home.comcast.net/%7Edandc.mahler/ForrestBlade2.jpg)

[Jared Cuneo]

That packaging looks incorrect. All of the WWII's that I have seen came in a glued shut green and white 'envelope', not a box like that.....And after looking at my blade in the shop, the others are correct, very sharp edges.....

JC

[Tim Lynch]

For the record, my box and blade looks just like Dan's.

I certainly expected more after reading so much about Forrests! Let's hope there's an explanation as well as a shiny new blade.

[Gary Keedwell]

Wanted to add that my last Forrest blade had a tooth fall off. Never happened to me in 20 years of woodworking.

Gary K.:confused:

[Jim Becker]

That packaging looks incorrect. All of the WWII's that I have seen came in a glued shut green and white 'envelope', not a box like that.....And after looking at my blade in the shop, the others are correct, very sharp edges.....

JC

That's normal Forrest packaging...(Dan's photos).

[Matt Meiser]

In Dan's picture though, that blade doesn't look like a shiny new blade. It doesn't have any scarring near the arbor hole like its been run, but it looks to have corrosion on the plate and just generally looks pretty nasty. Its almost like these are seconds or something. Neither of my Forrest blades was in that kind of condition when I got them, or even now for that matter.

[Allen Bookout]

It sure looks like something funny is going on here. I think that I will start a new thread "Warning $65 Amazon Forrest WW 11 blade buyers (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=64702)" because if I had not seen this thread I would not have looked at mine for several months as I am running two others at this time. I was lucky as mine was OK but I would have hated to find out later when I needed to use it that it was defective.

[Chris Rosenberger]

That packaging looks incorrect. All of the WWII's that I have seen came in a glued shut green and white 'envelope', not a box like that.....And after looking at my blade in the shop, the others are correct, very sharp edges.....

JC

All of the Forrest blades I have purchased have come in a box. I bought my first one in 1989.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Most likely these blades were clearanced through Amazon from a third party vendor. They most likely had them in stock for quite a while. Amazon bought the whole lot, and resold them. The rust you see is caused by a reaction between the moisture in the air and the acid in the cardboard. Forrest is too cheap to put a piece of vapor emiting paper on each side of the blade, which would have prevented this. My first WWII had a waffle pattern on it when I first opened it up. The waffle matched the pattern of the cardboard perfectly. I now put a piece of wax paper on each side of blade before storing in origoinal carton. I own two WWIIs but find other blades to represent a much greater value. My first one lost three teeth and had to be top and side ground after ripping a couple pieces of oak. There wasn't any hardware present in the oak, for those of you who will say I must have hit something.

[Phil Thien]

That's normal Forrest packaging...(Dan's photos).

My new Forrest blades (two) have all come in a green and white envelope. The package Dan shows is how my blades are returned from Forrest after sharpening.

[Jim Kountz]

I have never seen a forest product look anything like that! All of you guys who say yours looks like that of the OP.....You got screwed to put it bluntly. Im glad now that I missed the sale:-)

[Lee Hingle]

Jim,
I'm glad I missed the sale also!
Lee

[Greg Funk]

I have never seen a forest product look anything like that! All of you guys who say yours looks like that of the OP.....You got screwed to put it bluntly. Im glad now that I missed the sale:-)
Very unlikely that Amazon won't make it right...

[Jim Kountz]

Very unlikely that Amazon won't make it right...

You're right Im sure, just a hassle thats all. Should have never happened in the first place though.

[Dan O'Connor]

I got both the 40 and 30 tooth. I didn't remove the rubber from the blade because I don't think they look like new blades. They are covered in scratches and rust blotches. Hopefully, Forrest will exchange them.

[Scott Whiting]

IMHO the blade in the original photo has been run and hit something. Look at the way the point is rounded and the carbide seems to be missing in an expanding path behind the tip. This was most likely a return from somebody who originally claimed a defect when in fact it was careless use. The damage can certainly be sharpened out. My guess is Forrest isn't going to stand behind the Amazon $64 sales blades, I could be wrong.

As far as rust on a blade goes it is pretty common on industrial blades that haven't been coated. During monsoon every blade that goes through my shop gets rusty. We just try to keep it polished off to a minimum. As soon as the dew point drops below 50 again in the fall the problem ceases to exist.

[David DeCristoforo]

"I certainly expected more after reading so much about Forrests!"

And well you should. If this is typical "fit and finish" for these blades, all I can say is I'm glad I never bought one!

[Gary Keedwell]

As Ricky would say, "You got some splaining to do" It will be interesting to see if and how Forrest explains this.:rolleyes:
Gary K.

[Steven Triggs]

This really shouldn't be a big deal. Having ordered A LOT of stuff from Amazon, there have been a couple of times where the item I received appeared to have been used. I assumed someone returned it and an Amazon employee made a mistake and put it back into inventory. Whatever the cause, in both cases I contacted Amazon and they sent me a replacement and had me print out a pre-paid return label to send back the item.

I would guess they'll do the same for the OP...

[Allen Bookout]

IMHO the blade in the original photo has been run and hit something. Look at the way the point is rounded and the carbide seems to be missing in an expanding path behind the tip. This was most likely a return from somebody who originally claimed a defect when in fact it was careless use. The damage can certainly be sharpened out.

This does not explain the welds and the unfinished look of the blade. I would be very suspicious of this blade and would not want to trust it unless Forrest or a very good trusted source did the repair work. You are probably right that it was a return from someone not responsible for their own actions and on top of that it might even be a older blade that had previously been repaired by a curmmy shop.

I am not suggesting that anyone should keep that blade, just some thoughts.

[Tim Lynch]

It is interesting because although the blade has a number of radom scratches on it, it does not look like it has used. I would expect to see some rub marks around the rim of the blade and probably signs that it had been tightened onto an arbor, etc.

I sent an email to Forrest with a link to this thread to see if they would have a look. I used Amazon's return feature and have been notified that a new blade will be shipped. I have 30 days to return the old blade using their return label and will be reimbursed for shipping.

[Mike Spanbauer]

I picked up one of the full kerf blades during the sale as well. I hadn't checked it until I read this thread though. I just examined mine and it's just as I would expect (same as the other 3 I have owned). The OP's blade does appear to have had a sloppy grind / sharpening job done w/ the outside edge.

The welds don't concern me as they look pretty much like all brazing welds on my other blades (WW II's, Ridge Carbide, Freud LU, Systimatic, Infinity).

Sorry to hear your blade was a bad one, but I'm certain Amazon will exchange or refund your money to satisfy you with the only loss being the time to mail it back.

mike

[Scott Whiting]

Tim. FWIW I think using Amazon's return feature was the correct move.

As far as the saw being used: Carbide is like a lot of other man made materials in that the exit damage is worse than the entry damage. The only way that damage could occur is with the blade spinning.

[Chris Rosenberger]

After the posts questioning the quality of the Forrest blades sold in the recient sale at Amazon. I decided to do a side by side comparison with the Amazon sale blades & blades I bought over the past several years at Indy Woodworking shows. I always buy a blade at the show, if I need it or not. I think I will skip buying a blade this year.
If not for the serial numbers I would not be able to tell one blade from the other. In the picture there are 6 blades. 3 just purchased from Amazon & 3 purchased at Indy shows.

[Andrew Williams]

Tim... I have two of these blades. One is brand new from the same sale, the other is about a year old. If you want to look at them to compare, drop me a line.

Andrew

[mike roe]

guess ill have to look at mine.
this shakes my confidence in amazon's sale items.

[Steve Rybicki]

I got one of the sale blades - my first Forest blade. I can't say how disappointed I was when opening the box. It looked like a piece of junk. Scratches all over and black krud behind every tooth. I swear I've gotten $15 blades that looked twice as good. It really doesn't look used, but it appears to have made in the dark by trolls using fired-charred stone-age equipment. My last blade was a Freud which I thought was a work of art and it cut great. I'm not sure if I'll ever buy another Forest product after this.

[scott spencer]

After the posts questioning the quality of the Forrest blades sold in the recient sale at Amazon. I decided to do a side by side comparison with the Amazon sale blades & blades I bought over the past several years at Indy Woodworking shows. I always buy a blade at the show, if I need it or not. I think I will skip buying a blade this year.
If not for the serial numbers I would not be able to tell one blade from the other. In the picture there are 6 blades. 3 just purchased from Amazon & 3 purchased at Indy shows.

So what do you use for a back up when your blades are being sharpened?

;) :D




.

[mike roe]

ok I took a second look at my amazon sale blade - it came in the cardboard fold up box shown previously in the post. no scratches, rust, or marks - the welds looked ok... not super clean but not really bad. super sharp - very square carbide (as square as can be as its ATB) no odd bevels on the carbide

so i guess its ok???

[Wayne Dobson]

I received this blade yesterday from Amazon (it was the $64 sale). It was packed inside a bigger box. Everything about the packing was in good condition, including Forrest's box and the rubber coating on the blade.

When I started to peel the rubber coating off, nearly every tip was missing the outside point and had a fracture along the outside back edge of the tooth.

I stopped peeling the coating and tried calling Forrest, but they were closed. I'm pretty sure this is wrong. I would expect sharp points on the outside edge, but I'm curious about the line along the back of the tooth that I say looks like a fracture.

Whattya think

I really don't see anything wrong with it but then I'm not there either, maybe just compare it to your other blades or one someone else has.

No doubt I'll get good service from Amazon and/or Forrest. I'm also wondering if anyone else had issues w/ their $64 sale blades.

Tim

The struggle continues

[Allen Bookout]

I got one of the sale blades - my first Forest blade. I can't say how disappointed I was when opening the box. It looked like a piece of junk. I'm not sure if I'll ever buy another Forest product after this.

I know how you feel but somehow I get the feeling that this has nothing to do with Forrest other than their name. They just have too good of a reputation to protect to have anything to do with this. It seems to me like there must be a third party involved trying to make a fast buck. I hope that either Amazon or Forrest lets us know what happened when they figure it out. Forrest may be looking for the hanging judge before this is over.

[Andy Howard]

I too jumped on the amazon sale, and bought two blades. Both seem very sharp, but dont look quite as finished as others I have.

Is it possible these blades were produced for industrial use rather than retail distribution? I am sure a huge factory running these 24 hrs a day cares much less about appearance and much more about price.

Does Forrest produce less refined (apearance wise) blades for industrial use?

Andy

[Scott Whiting]

"Does Forrest produce less refined (appearance wise) blades for industrial use?"

NO

[Randal Stevenson]

Maybe I am a bit naive here, but Forrest has some special grind 10" blades. Could this be one that received one of those grinds, and wasn't completed? (brazing cleaned up and grind pattern marked like #6, or #1)

[Greg Funk]

Just received my blade and the carbide tips all look very sharp with well defined edges. In general, these blades look like they are a little more 'hand made' than Freud blades. The serial number is handwritten and the brazing is not as good a quality (I see little bubbles in the brazing) as those on a Freud. The carbide tips look like they have been sharpened with a finer grind than other blades.

The back of the blade has a fair amount of minor small pitting and it has a 'B' stamped on it. There is also discoloration and a little wear around the arbor hole. It doesn't exactly look like a brand new blade but I would be surprised if Forrest would try and sell re-manufactured blades as new as this would be illegal and expose then to unnecessary liability.

Greg

[scott spencer]

Anyone hear back from Forrest yet?

[Tim Lynch]

Nope. I have an email into them, but no phone call. I might try them this afternoon.

[Eugene A. Manzo III]

I also could not pass up a $64.00 spare Forrest Blade and mine had some markings on it in like blue marker then black over it and did not appear all that new to me. I called Forrest and they assured me ALL the Blades Amazon sells are NEW and not rework. He also said if you want to send it
in to them they will inspect it. So I guess Forrest seemed pretty confident
everything was ok but I also think they need to present a better Product
when opening up a new blade. I also agree Freud blades always look VERY
NEAT CLEAN and FLAWLESS. I bought Forrest Blades because of their reputation and a US company. I also have to say my first blade looked like
hell but it also performed very well. I'll recomend they up the quality of the
product out the door so it appears as it should 1st class.:o

[Allen Bookout]

The back of the blade has a fair amount of minor small pitting and it has a 'B' stamped on it. There is also discoloration and a little wear around the arbor hole. It doesn't exactly look like a brand new blade




Mine looks like brand new. It has a "G" stamped on the back instead of a "B". I wonder what that means.

Come to think about it I do not remember Amazon saying that they were new blades. I just assumed that they would be if it was not stated otherwise.

Eugene, Your post was not up when I was writing mine. I guess that they are new blades if Forrest says so.

[Tim Lynch]

Mine has nothing stamped on the backside...

I looked at the Amazon shipping. The first blade shipped from Philly, the replacement blade from Nashua, NH. I suppose that's a good sign anyway.

[Charlie Plesums]

That packaging looks incorrect. All of the WWII's that I have seen came in a glued shut green and white 'envelope', not a box like that.....And after looking at my blade in the shop, the others are correct, very sharp edges.....

JC
The Forrest blades I have seen for sale in Woodcraft and other retail outlets came in the pretty "envelope." That is how I got my first WW II.

My other two WW II blades were purchased direct from Forrest, and came in the brown cardboard shipping boxes that they also used with the sharpening service.

I don't think the color of the packing is significant, but the condition of the blade is definitely what I expect and get from Forrest.

[Dick Strauss]

Could it be that these blades were internal reworks due to a manufacturing issue? If so, Forrest should have never let some of these out of the factory. IMO they could still sell them as new. I believe that remanufactured means it was a customer or store return back to the factory (but I could be wrong).

???????

[Dave Sinkus]

I didn't get in on the $64 sale, but bought one from Amazon at 74.99 on August 16th.

I received the blade in the typical Forrest box with the tooth cover and shipping grease? I used DNA to get the stuff off of the blade. It was shiny and new.

[David DeCristoforo]

This thread has been up for several days now and it's been puzzling me. I contacted Forrest and asked them to take a look at the thread. The person on the other end of the line gasped when she saw the pics. Hopefully they will respond and answer this question.....

[Greg Funk]

I took the opportunity presented by the recent Amazon sale to purchase a Forrest blade which I had never used before. Having tested it recently I am very impressed with the cut quality and will likely buy another in the future.

I think someone just forgot to sharpen the OP's blade. Not a big deal. No company has a 0% defect rate.

Greg

[Tim Lynch]

Got my replacement blade from Amazon and it looks fine. Razor sharp edges. Overall, the blade and welds look the same as the defective/unfinished blade, but the carbide is definitely in better shape.

The serial numbers are fairly close. One telling difference might be the fact that the good blade has the letter G stamped on the back in ink. The bad blade has no letter at all. It's quite possible that the letter is the QA inspection mark, and so the bad blade left the factory when it shouldn't have. Things happen, as they say.

Now I just need to send the defective blade back to Amazon and give the new blade a try!