Does a contractor saw burn wood easier than a cabinet saw?

[Jeff Monson]

I use thin kerf blades in my 10" delta contractor saw, cutting 3/4 maple or some oak wood it really burns the edge easily, and also runs out of power.

So if I upgrade to a cabinet saw will it burn the same, better, or worse??

[John Viercinski]

I believe that burning is a function of the feed rate and is independent of the particular type of saw... the slower the feed, the greater the burn. However, a higher powered table saw will allow you to feed the stock through at a faster rate, thus reducing the amount of visible burn marks.

[Dewey Torres]

Jeff,
When wood burns it is usually caused by a dull or low performance blade. It can also be fence alignment or feed rate.

Having said that, you are pushing the power limits of your contractors saw with this type of cut. You would probably be better of using successive passes.

Please be careful. Most of the time when wood is burning, something is wrong.

Dewey

[Lee Schierer]

My Craftsman 1-1/2 Hp saw easily rips 3/4" maple and oak, infact I have ripped 2" thicker stuff with no problem or burning. Poor alignment is the primary cause for burning. The second most common cause is the wrong blade. A thin kerf blade will help your saw cut better, but for ripping it should be a 24 tooth ripping blade not a combo blade. If the wood is closing up as it is cut, it has not been properly dried.

Some people try to rip without the fence. This is bad practice and very dangerous. It is easy to pinch the blade and stall the saw or get a severe kickback.

A larger HP saw will cut with less effort on thick rip cuts.

[Prashun Patel]

Burning is only a function of the sheer power of the saw on thick and very hard stock.

Burning is more a function of:

Proper blade (ripping vs finish)
Blade sharpness and pitch buildup
Alignment of fence to blade
Feed rate

[Michael Boyle]

I was having a problem with burning with my contractors saw. I went to a premium blade, in my case a Forrest, and still had the issue. I purchased a PALS system for it and aligned everything according to the manual. As soon as I did that, the burning went away. I would definitely check out how well your saw is aligned, it may be the issue. I can say that I am now not having any problem at all ripping thick maple and oak on my saw and it is only 1 ½ horse power.

[Bill Wyko]

Be careful. The next step after burning is ejection. Your body won't make a good stop for flying lumber. 1st ,how many teeth on the blade and what are you cutting. 2nd Is the blade sharp. 3rd. Check to see if your blade is parallel to the fence. It it us off even in the very slightest, it can cause this issue. 4th, I'd figure out the problem before continuing with much cutting. Good luck.

[James Carmichael]

Ditto all of the above. For reference, I use the WWII thin kerf on my 1 1/2 HP Craftsman with no issues, including 10/4 Purpleheart.

[Bruce Benjamin]

I agree with what Lee said. You are in no way pushing the limits of a contractor saw with this cut. 3/4" is nothing for my GI contractor saw with any kind of wood I've ever thrown at it. But mine is also properly tuned up and I usually use a full kerf Infinity blade.

Bruce

[Howard Acheson]

What blade are you using? It should be at least a 24 tooth rip blade. I have a 1.5hp contractor saw and regularly rip up to 2" thick maple, cherry, and other hardwoods with no problems or burning. I don't use a thin kerf but some find them useful.

Most often the problem you describe is due to using the wrong blade or a dull blade. Second, the blade and fence needs to be properly aligned to cut without burning.

[Verne Mattson]

A well-aligned Contractor's Saw with a high quality rip blade can cut very nicely and very clean. For stock over 8/4, however, I rough rip on the bandsaw and simply trim on my contractor's saw.

The only time I had the blade bog down in 3/4 stock was when I first owned the machine. I still had the motor wired 110, and I made the mistake of trying to rip some twisty pine from HD. The blade actually stalled, but I was saved from kickback by the kickback prawls. So in your case, something has to be pinching, I would think. Don't forget to align your splitter with the blade also.

[jason lambert]

I had a dewalt contractor saw spent tons of time trying to get it right. It would burn wood and forget about a non thin kerf blade it wouldn't run it. Anyhow I found if my power source was better it ran better, on some circuts I would hit 15Amps and blow them. The blade would alwas slow when it started to burn. My blade was pretty good the alignment was on maybe One theory was a thin kerf blade could flex causing a cut that is not quite stright causing binding. Anyhow try a new blade or do you ever clean them that makes a difference.

Anyhow never figured it out did alot of sanding of burn marks. I finally got a real cabnet saw about 8 months ago have not come close to burning anything with a full kerf blade.

[dan sherman]

Jeff,

what model is your saw?

[Jeff Monson]

My saw is a model 36-980 and its about 5 years old, I've had my best luck with the freud combination thin kerf 50t blade, I have a Beismeyer fence that is square to the blade.

I will admit with a brand new blade it cuts much better, I have had no luck at all with full kerf blades, Ive tried 2 different freud blades and both bog down my saw with hardwoods, so thats why I stick to thin kerfs. Maybe thin kerf blades dont last that long.

[Peter Quinn]

50T=too many teeth for ripping maple. For ripping less is more, 24T-30T is about ideal. Even a glue line rip blade falls in that range.

Get a different blade for starters and check that fence alignment. Thin kerf or not a good ripping blade will do wonders for you.

I use a thin kerf rip blade occasionally on an 8" makita bench top TS, not much power but it rips 3/4" flooring without burning.

[glenn bradley]

First off, Bill is right. If things are burning, that means rubbing. There is no room for rubbing during a cut; next stop, kickback. With 1-1/2HP you shouldn't be having trouble. I have only had burning when things are not aligned correctly. Contractors are hard, especially if they are used as intended and moved from site to site. If your's is stationary, a good alignment should solve your trouble.

Also, look at your blades. The difference between the tooth width and the blank thickness should be more than adequate to avoid burning if things are setup correctly. A Google search here should supply more alignment info than you can stand. Once armed with the info, take your time, you'll be glad you did. On the up side, a misaligned cabinet saw will burn wood just as well as your contractor saw ;-)

[scott spencer]

Jeff - Your saw should be plenty capable of cutting that material at a reasonable feedrate even using the 50T blade you mentioned, though a 24T or 30T TK will have an easier time of it. I've cut 5/4" hard maple with a good 60T TK blade before on a comparably sized saw without issue. Be sure the blade is clean, sharp, and the saw very well aligned. Make sure the fence is straight and not bowed in a bit. It's also much easier to cut if the wood is flat and straight...if the wood is warped, bowed, or twisted, it'll pose much greater resistance.

[Jeff Bratt]

Cutting 3/4" hardwood, even with a full kerf blade, should not be a problem for a 1½ HP saw - if everything is aligned and it's a good, sharp blade. Are you ripping or crosscutting? For crosscutting - blade to miter slot misalignment can cause burning. For ripping - it's the blade to fence alignment that is critical. And for ripping, a proper blade will also help. Use a rip blade (first choice) or a general purpose ATB+R blade (second choice) with 40 or fewer teeth. Some "combination" blades are ATB only - they don't rip very well...

I also underscore what other have said - figure out what the problem is before something worse happens. Burning can be caused by the workpiece contacting the back of the saw blade plate. This should not be happening when you cut.

[dan sherman]

Jeff,

Like Like peter said, try a blade with less teeth.

Personally i use Freud LM72R I picked up at sears to for ripping, and i have never had an issue ripping maple unless my technique got sloppy.

some other questions I can think of are:
1. how long does it take you to rip a 4' board?
2. does the saw stall early in a cut in the middle or at the end?

[Lee Schierer]

My saw is a model 36-980 and its about 5 years old, I've had my best luck with the freud combination thin kerf 50t blade, I have a Beismeyer fence that is square to the blade.

Even if your fence is parallel to the blade, it must first be parallel to the miter slot and then aligned with the fence. I agree with teh others that a 50 tooth blade is too many teeth.

I've had a 24 tooth thin kerf freud for over 10 years and it still rips just fine without burning. I think the blade has been sharpened once. You might want to check your belt tension and make sure the belts are tight if the saw is bogging down on 3/4" stock. Also if you are using an extension cord for power make sure it has large enough wire. Most over the counter extension cords are't suited for running a 1-1/2 Hp motor an getting full power. That motor will pull 12-15 amps when fully loaded so your wiring should be #12.

[Stuart Gardner]

I've always used a good carbide tipped combo blade on my crafstman contractors saw and had pretty good luck both cross cutting and ripping thin (4/4) relatively soft wood (mahogany, pine, alder). I've never used oak or maple. So recently I got some 8/4 alder and tried ripping it. It took my saw to it's knees in a real hurry blowing my 15 amp circuit breaker twice. I thought I'd try a ripping blade, so my neighbor loaned me his craftsman non-carbide 24-tooth ripping blade. It cuts through that alder like butter (well almost). But the point is, that ripping blade, even thought it's non-carbide, made an enormous difference. I have a Freud 24-tooth ripping blade on order. :D