Best blade for circular saw / sheet goods?

[Brad Ridgway]

I don't have enough room / money for a panel saw, and still going back and forth on a sliding table for my GI M-185L.. so i've been cutting plywood with 2x4s on my driveway and a 10 year old dewalt circular saw.

A couple of weeks ago, i got tired of the splintering i was getting with my general purpose blades and bought a dewalt "laminate/sheet good" blade. Initially it cut ok but it was very very slow! Today it just started smoking. That may in part be my fault as i wasn't using it on sheet goods all the time and got lazy on blade changing, but even so, this hasn't held up well - teeth appear to be rusted, not just pitched after a couple of weeks (and i treat my stuff well)

Anyway, i'm hoping for something that cuts faster/smoother than this - but maybe on a limited powered saw, i'm out of luck in finding something that will perform close to my Freud laminate/ply blade does on the table saw... i've found tons of posts on recommended 10"s blades for table saws, but didn't see anything on the circular saw - would appreciate any pointers...

thx
-brad

[Bill Ragland]

I don't have enough room / money for a panel saw, and still going back and forth on a sliding table for my GI M-185L.. so i've been cutting plywood with 2x4s on my driveway and a 10 year old dewalt circular saw.

A couple of weeks ago, i got tired of the splintering i was getting with my general purpose blades and bought a dewalt "laminate/sheet good" blade. Initially it cut ok but it was very very slow! Today it just started smoking. That may in part be my fault as i wasn't using it on sheet goods all the time and got lazy on blade changing, but even so, this hasn't held up well - teeth appear to be rusted, not just pitched after a couple of weeks (and i treat my stuff well)

Anyway, i'm hoping for something that cuts faster/smoother than this - but maybe on a limited powered saw, i'm out of luck in finding something that will perform close to my Freud laminate/ply blade does on the table saw... i've found tons of posts on recommended 10"s blades for table saws, but didn't see anything on the circular saw - would appreciate any pointers...

thx
-brad

I have a Freud Diablo 40T Finish blade in my circular saw for cutting large panels. Maybe about $15, can't remember exactly. Same process, on top of 2x4 in the garage. I have not cut plywood with it but have cut a lot of melamine particle board and it leaves a decent edge on the panel. On plywood I would suggest putting painters tape on the cutline on both sides. That will reduce tearout/chipout.

[Jim Becker]

Prior to buying my guided saw system, I was using exactly that same blade as Bill mentions in my old B&D circular saw to cut sheet goods down. Very nice cut for the money.

[Randal Stevenson]

How often do you cut plywood? If a lot, then I would look at one of the guide systems, like the one in the bottom of this forum, or other brands as suit your needs/taste and budget. If not very often (just a few big projects every once and a while) google a sawboard. You trim off the end and the blade runs along side it, helping to eliminate chipout on the good side. As to the blade recommendation, Freud has a pretty good 7 1/4" blade. It is a 40 tooth diablo, that the borg carries for around $15.

[Tom Cowie]

Freud no question. They make a very good CS blade. Remember the more teeth the slower it will cut. If you force it through it 's going to burn again:)
Tom

[Burt Waddell]

I agree 100 per cent with the 40 tooth Freud Diablo blade. Along with this add the Eurekazone base to your saw and use a AC-1 insert (Total cost about $30.) This setup will create a "zero Clearance" insert and do wonders for cut quality.

Burt

[Keith Beck]

Brad,

Another tip is to make a ZCI for your circular saw when using it to cut plywood. I made one for mine by using double-sided tape to stick a piece of paneling over the base then plunging the blade through. Of course, that'll probably mean that your blade cover won't work anymore so be careful of that.

Keith

[Charles Wiggins]

Brad,

I've been using an Oldham plywood blade, a 734b, I think. I got it because it was available and inexpensive. It did great to begin with as well, but I need to replace it.

As far as cutting the sheet goods, I made a straight edge guide out of 1/2" thick baseboard molding and a sheet of hardboard. I just glued the molding along the edge of the hardboard and used it as a straightedge to trim the hardboard to width. The hardboard edge gives me an alignment reference. As long as I put the cutting jig over the 'good' side of the cut I can run the hardboard right up to the line and cut right against the line.

I put a sheet of 1" thick polystyrene (foam wallboard) on the floor and put the sheet on top of it. I have a couple of notches cut out of the edge of the sheet for clamp clearance, so I can clamp the guide to the work. I NEVER try to cut anything over 1/4" thick in one pass. My rule of thumb is 1 pass per 1/4", so I will take 3 passes to cut all the way through 3/4" ply. Making the first pass shallow and the last pass directly on top of the foam really minimizes tear-out.

Happy cutting!

[frank shic]

brad, you said the blade was smoking?!? are you sure you had the blade installed in the right direction? i've done the same thing before with a cementboard circular saw blade. i've used the eurekazone in the past with the freud 40 tooth blade and although it does not give you a chip-free cut on melamine, it works wonder on plywood.

[Rob Diz]

I agree 100 per cent with the 40 tooth Freud Diablo blade. Along with this add the Eurekazone base to your saw and use a AC-1 insert (Total cost about $30.) This setup will create a "zero Clearance" insert and do wonders for cut quality.

Burt

I couldn't agree more. I have not had any splintering, and an edge that could easily be the smoothest I have ever had with a CS. I don't know if you will get the same results without a ZCI function you get from the EZ system, but it would seem worth the $15 to try the blade alone before taking the plunge on the EZ system.

[Brad Ridgway]

thanks everyone you guys are awesome...

Ya i have cheesy two piece guide rail i clamp down now. It's ok, but a better rail (the festool stuff seems a bit pricey for me though) wouldn't be a bad idea and i definately like the ZCI idea...

A lot of what i'm builind gis shop stuff / cabinets, so the bulk of my work is ply. The Freud seems popular - done!

thx again
-brad



btw, ya smoking, no joke... and i know it was right direction (teeth pointed counter clockwise looking from the nut). I think i just pushed it and put it through some material it wasn't intended for either...

[Stan Welborn]

Another vote for the Diablo. I purchased it after someone here recommended it. Dino I think. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the cut.

[Nick Clayton]

I use an Amana 40T blade(FC-520) for sheet goods and trimming interior doors. I also used double sided turners tape to fashion a piece of hard board to the bottom which I then plunged the blade through creating a zero clearance setup. Hope this helps:)

[Charles Wiggins]

Well, all you guys convinced me! I got a $10 Borg giftcard for my birthday and a 10% discount card, so I decided to get a 7 1/4 40T Freud Diablo blade for cutting sheet goods. (My Oldham blade was wearing out anyway.) Just got home and can't wait to use it.

[glenn bradley]

I also run the Diablo.

[James Ayars]

I use a 15 year old Craftsman 12 amp saw for a lot of stuff and got tired of the Irwin 24t combo blades. Nobody around here sells Freud so I went with a Dewalt 36t thin kerf blade for repair job I was doing. I was cutting 3/4" AC plywood and it was like a had a brand new saw.

James