How high should the blade be on my TS be?

[Arturo Villegas]

Great to be here!
My first post here, so take it easy on me.

I was just wondering how high should my blade on my table saw be from my material when cutting? Is 1" to high?

Thanks,

[Dick Bringhurst]

I don't think there is any set rule. I adjust mine so the bottom of the gullet is just exposed above the wood you are going to cut. Dick B.

[Mike Cutler]

I set mine to so that a full gullet is exposed. Doesn't make it right, just the way I was taught;

Welcome to Sawmill Creek Arturo. Nice to meet ya'

Mike

[Joe Chritz]

Just above the gullet is what I have always been told as well. Apparently on some difficult to cut things like melamine and with certain blades the height can make a difference on quality of cut.

Lower is always better from a safety stand point as long as it is cutting fully. Less blade out is less the possibly hit.

Joe

[Alan Turner]

Arturo,
Just barely expose the bottom of the gullet, as others above say. The reason for this is to reduce the number of teeth in the stock at one time. Give a count both ways and you will see a marked reduction by raising the blade just about 3/8" or so. With fewer teeth in the stock, the pushing is easier, there is less heat build up, and the cutting action is a bit more downward oriented, all of which is good.

[Steve Patrick]

Surely if the balde is raised fully say, will there not be less teeth in the stock? Two small arcs of teeth when the front and back of the blade is almost vertical will contain fewer teeth than two long ones when the blade is nearer horizontal. Am I missing something?

[Prashun Patel]

Steve-
I tend to agree with you. The lower the blade height, the more drag on the blade and also the more forward force on the stock.

I believe the traditional argument for keeping the blade height low is to minimize damage to a slipping hand. The argument AGAINST low blade height is to minimize the chance for kickbk. "Just below the blade gullet" is probably the optimal balance btn the two.

[Michael Weber]

May not be correct methodology but if you will raise the blade just high enough to barely cut through the stock you will really reduce the amount of wood dust and chips that is generated above the table and thrown at the operator.

[Curt Harms]

Forrest advocates running blades higher while Freud advocates running them lower. Difference the blade/tooth design? I suspect so the gullet clears is a pretty good compromise.

Curt

[Prashun Patel]

May not be correct methodology but if you will raise the blade just high enough to barely cut through the stock you will really reduce the amount of wood dust and chips that is generated above the table and thrown at the operator.

I wouldn't do this. I've had more binding and kickback threats and burning this way.

I think it's better to use the guard and a dc to reduce dust.

The blade cuts more efficiently when the front teeth can slice as close to perpendicular thru the wood as poss.

[Howard Acheson]

Here is the answer you will get from Freud. Blades are designed to cut best at the proper height.

QUOTE

When using the correct Freud blade for the application we recommend 1/2 of the carbide tip (1/8" to 1/4") above the material. They are designed for proper angle of attack and number of teeth working at that height. You should have 3 to 5 teeth working in the wood for ripping and 5 to 7 for crosscuts. For tricky materials like veneered plywood or laminate you may need to vary a little to get the best performance (raise the blade slightly if you get chipping on top and lower if there is chipping on bottom). Different manufacturers may have other recommendations for their blades.
__________________
Charles M
Freud America, Inc.

CLOSE QUOTE

[Nissim Avrahami]

I don't see any danger setting the blade high as long as you are using blade guard.....but, as Kelly Mehler said in his article that, only 5% of the woodworkers are using the guard....well....
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/articledisplay?id=14789

Also, please look at the pictures on that article and note the blade height that Kelly Mehler is setting...high...

In my opinion, high blade = less teeth in the wood = cooler blade = less blade deformation due to overheat = less motor power required = cooler motor = higher feed rate.

Just have a look on the Band saw, the teeth are going perpendicular to the wood and you can resaw 5" or more thick wood with a ¾~1HP motor...if it was a table saw, you would need much more Horses...

It's true that low blade is better for less chipping when working with plywood, melamine and plastic laminated man-made boards if you don't have scoring blade because of the low angle of attack of the "out" teeth.

Some people say that the cut will be cleaner with "low blade" - less tear-out at the "outlet side" of the teeth...ok...now, lets cut a 3" thick Oak and set the blade "low", i.e. 3¼"~3½" above the table top...look at the teeth angle of attack at the bottom..very high angle...now, don't change the blade height and cut 1" thick Oak...what is the difference...it's the same angle of attack...
To see it in "colors" please have a look here
http://www.waterfront-woods.com/Articles/Tablesaw/tablesaw.htm

If we are talking about "clean cut with minimum chipping"...because there are so many "Hook angles", it looks to me that we would need a different "hook angle blade" for every thickness of wood...the hook angle for 1" thick wood will not be good for 2" or 3" thick wood....

If there is a blade or arbor "run-out" it will be better to set less "high blade" for vibrations as John Thompson suggested (I don't have any so I'm setting the blade to "full high" when cutting Oak).

Regards
niki

[Anthony Whitesell]

I raise my blade so the full tooth is showing at the center and change tooth count to vary the number of teeth in the wood. With that said, I also only have 40, 60, and 80, standard (not combo or anything fancy) blades.

[Mark Valsi]

a wise man once told me . . .

How high to raise the blade ?

How much of your fingers do you want to cut ??

[Ben Cadotte]

For years I was the "safety" type of ehight. About 1/8" over the top of stock. Then I read up on "propper" use of the blades and now raise so the gullet is clear.

[Joe Chritz]

Interesting response from Freud. That makes perfect sense that the blade manufacturers would design the teeth to hit and the correct angle at a specific height.

Joe

[Richard Dragin]

I was taught the rule of thumb is raise the blade as high as the amount of thumb you want to cut off.

[J. Z. Guest]

Higher Blade = Less teeth in the wood at a given time = cooler teeth with less burnt pitch on their sides. There will be more tearout in the bottom of the workpiece. A higher blade height is more dangerous because there is more blade exposed to hurt you in the event of an accident. Lastly, a high blade is more likely to be a factor in kickback because the rear of the blade tends to lift the workpiece up.

Lower Blade = More effort from the saw, due to the teeth being in the workpiece nearly the whole top arc of the blade. But cleaner cuts on the bottom of the workpieces, and less chance of kickback because the rear of the blade is not trying to lift the workpiece. Once the workpiece is lifted, it doesn't take more for it to be "caught" and thrown at you by a sharp, carbide tooth. More chance of burning the wood with a lower blade, since the teeth are in the wood through the whole top arc of the blade rotation.

For me, the bottom line is to have the blade high enough so the full tooth clears the workpiece and a bit more. If I'm experiencing burning even though I know everything is lined-up, I can raise the blade. Ditto if the saw seems to be bogging. But I'm damn careful then; always use featherboards and a hold-down shoe while feeding the workpiece.

[Nissim Avrahami]

I went to the garage and took a few pics.

This is the blade height (base of the gullet) for 3/4" thick wood.
Please note the angle of attack.
82933

And this the "correct" blade height for 1¼" thick wood.
Please note the angle of attack.
82934

And this is the "correct" blade height for 3" thick wood.
Please note the angle of attack.
82935

So, what is the difference if the blade is set for 3" thick wood but, I'm cutting only 1¼" or 3/4" thick wood...I mean, I will get the same tear-out in all the 3 cases.
82936

Is the saw blade makers are actually telling me that "our blade has the minimum tear-out only for 3/4" thick wood (or maybe for 1" or 2" or 3") but, cannot give a tear-free cut for any thickness" (up to the blade height limit).

On the Band-saw, the angle of attack is one for any wood thickness but on circular saw blade, the angle of attack will change, depends on the blade height.

Oh, and I don't see any danger of setting the blade at "full height" for 3" thick wood or 3/4" thick wood....if the blade guard is installed of course....
82938

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,
Dumb question but wouldn't the hook angle be a big factor?
I have a couple of blades (10") that are labeled for table saw/miter saw.
I know from previous threads here that a negative angle is preferred on the miter saw, whereas a positive angle is desired on the TS. ( IIRC - and please correct me if wrong).

I'm too lazy right now - plus I'm in my bare feet and the garage is freezing cold - to run out there and grab one to see exactly how much rake there is.

Wouldn't a blade w/out a positive rake need to be used higher ?

Oh- and FWIW - I read a recent article that said the gullet should be clear of the work to prevent sawdust from jamming it.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Very little. Letting it stick up a lot causes it to fling crap at me.

[Tom Veatch]

... I read a recent article that said the gullet should be clear of the work to prevent sawdust from jamming it.

Hmmmm, sounds like an urban legend to me.

Considering a table saw, no matter how much of the gullet is above the work at the top of the blade's arc, the gullet is completely buried during the time the tooth is creating the sawdust. If the gullet size and feed rate is such that the gullet will become dust packed, I don't understand how exposing the gullet before the dust is ever created will correct the problem.

And what about those cuts that don't completely penetrate the work?

I'm afraid I'm going to have to be respectfully skeptical of that article's position.

[Michael O'Sullivan]

One point on safety is that the higher the blade is, the easier it is to see. Also, there is a lot less blade hidden within the workpiece. In other words, if the blade is lower, it is easier to get your fingers close to the blade without realizing it.

[Mark Singer]

This is a good question. If the blade is just above the wood most of the kick is toward the operator. Not much of an issue on big boards or if you use Board Buddies. Otherwise that can be minimized by the full gullet above which is a good overall rule of thumb