Dado blade question

[Tony Gorgone]

so i'm trying to decide on a dado blade set for my newly ordered grizzly g1023slx table saw.

i'm looking at the freud sd208, sd608 and forrest dado king.

i'm curious as to why you use an 8" dado set on a 10" TS??? can someone explain this to me please?

also, with the saw i am getting, which dado set do you recommend and why?

thanks
tony

[Jules Dominguez]

I can't think of a technical reason off the top of my head, though there may be one. Tip speed would be greater with a !0", and the greater mass and speed would magnify any imbalance problem. But cost would be a significant factor, and I've never needed a deeper dado than I could cut with an 8" set.

[Karl Brogger]

The smaller diameter requires less power. Leverage basically with the smaller radius.

The best dado head that I've used was the Forrester (sp?). It was spendy at $300, but it works well in both melamine, and plywood. I've got a couple of FS Tool dado sets that are supposed to work well in plywood even though they're made for melamine, but I get too much tearout for my taste. You can go backwards to score the surface, but thats a serious pain to do when you're dadoing a long skinny piece. Systematic dado heads were awesome for melamine, never used one on plywood though.

[John Keeton]

Go with the sd606 or sd608. The dial a width is great. Personally, I don't see a need for the 8". Just doubt that I would have a need to plow a dado deeper than the 6" will do.

[Jim Nardi]

Dado work is never that pretty with a table saw. Perfectly flat bottoms with any dado blade are impossible. If you plan on building kitchens for a living buy a FS tool blade and have it sharpened often to reduce tearout. Since you try to never have a dado show why invest huge money in the blade?

[Jude Tuliszewski]

A vote for Freud. I have the 8" and have no issues with tear out.

[glenn bradley]

i'm curious as to why you use an 8" dado set on a 10" TS??? can someone explain this to me please?

I assume you mean instead of a 6"(?). I use a sled with my dado about half the time. In my case this means I am giving up an extra 3/4" in depth of cut. Not a big deal for jewelry boxes; problematic for larger work. At least that's 'why' for me ;-)

P.s. Love my SD508. Would have bought a 608 if my saw would run it (arbor too short).

[Jeff Bratt]

i'm curious as to why you use an 8" dado set on a 10" TS??? can someone explain this to me please?

If a dado were 10" in diameter, then a full width dado stack would present a huge load for the motor when starting up, and would be in danger of loosening the arbor nut when stopping. Since dados are not used for through cuts, the advantage of a larger diameter blade - for cutting through thicker boards - is not required. Plus a larger diameter dado would cost more. So 6" or 8" dado sets do the job just fine. A 6" dado set will cut up to about 1½" deep, and the tip speed will be 40% slower than a 10" blade. An 8" dado set will reach up to 2½" (deeper than I've ever cut) with a higher tip speed to allow dados to be cut a little faster.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Just don't cheap out. I did once, Delta, not good.

[Doug Shepard]

What Jeff said - too much spinning mass if you tried to put a 10" dado on a 10" saw, at least with the full set of chippers on. 95% of the time a 6" dado set would have worked for me but I've got an 8" Forrest Dado-King set and have put the full 8" cut depth to work a few times. The Dado-King works great and for years used to always be the top pick in the dado-set magazine reviews. A least a few reviews in the past few years have put a Freud set in the lead though (not sure which model nbr). I haven't checked out the Dia-A-Width setup on the Freud but not having to deal with shims sounds like a nice thing to have. Either would be good buys and for the amount of time you'd likely have a set on the saw, I think I'd just go with whichever one you can find the best deal on.

[scott spencer]

The 608 has the same tooth configuration as the 508 but features an adjustable hub that makes changing thickness easier than with conventional stacked sets. Both of those dados have 24T cutters and 4T chippers. The SD208 has 12T cutters and 2T chippers....it's a good set that cuts well, but more teeth on a good set leaves a cleaner cut. More teeth will also hold up better, but they'll cost more.

Since dado sets tend to be pricey, not many of us have tried more than a handful...myself included. I've owned four sets. All were good, but each was progressively better....SD208 (http://www.epinions.com/review/Stack_Dado_Saw_Blade_Set/content_409966644868), DW7670 (http://www.epinions.com/review/Dewalt_DW7670_8_Inch_Stacked_Dado/content_314538299012), Systimatic 42T/6T (http://www.epinions.com/review/Superfine_Dado_Set_37160_8_Diameter_42_Teeth_5_8_A rbor_13_16_Width/content_410171313796), Infinity Dadonator. The Dadonator is the flattest and cleanest of all the sets I've owned....very impressive. On sale, the DW set was quite a value in the $100 range.

[Maurice Ungaro]

Tony,
Hate to tell you, but you're a week late and $100 short:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=94970

[scott spencer]

Tony - If you end up going for the SD208, Router Bit World (http://routerbitworld.com/Freud-SD208-8-Diameter-x-12T-Pro-Dado-Carbide-Tip-p/freud%20sd208.htm) is currently having a 25% Fall sale.

"The Coupon Code is: fall2008. 25% off EVERYTHING IN THE STORE. Every Dado Blade, Saw Blade, Jig Saw Blade, Router Bit, Bearing, Shaper Cutter.... EVERYTHING. Hurry! This great offer expires at midnight on 14Nov2008."

That'd put the 208 to your door for about $72.

[John Nesmith]

I have the SD206. Paid around $65. I don't use it often, but it does everything I want, and does it well.

[Prashun Patel]

A 6" stack will be slightly cheaper and will work for most apps, but for deep dado's, you'll be in deep doodoo.

[Joe Vincent]

I've read great things about the Freud dial-a-width dado, but be aware that in order to get the full width capacity of this dado set you need to have an arbor of a certain length. I believe the Freud site has info on this.

[Mick Zelaska]

I have the Freud SD508 8" Super Dado which is a huge improvement over the "vintage" wobble dial-a-dado that I used for years. The SD508 cuts are clean, flat, and accurate. I still continue to use the old wobble dado for rough plowing on my equally vintage Craftsman radial arm.

I found it difficult and time consuming to switch between the regular TS blade and the SD508 so I dedicated a Ridgid TS2412 to dado use and wheel it out when I need it.

[Dave Falkenstein]

I use a Freud SD508 and am happy with the cuts and the infrequent need for resharpening. You could save a little money and get the SD506 - a 6" dado set will cut deep enough for most of us. If you are a hobby woodworker, my advice is to buy a "good" dado set, not a lower end (lower tooth count) and not the best, most expensive available. Look into the cost of sharpening a dado set before you invest in a lower quality set that needs sharpening frequently.

[Tony Gorgone]

Tony - If you end up going for the SD208, Router Bit World (http://routerbitworld.com/Freud-SD208-8-Diameter-x-12T-Pro-Dado-Carbide-Tip-p/freud%20sd208.htm) is currently having a 25% Fall sale.

"The Coupon Code is: fall2008. 25% off EVERYTHING IN THE STORE. Every Dado Blade, Saw Blade, Jig Saw Blade, Router Bit, Bearing, Shaper Cutter.... EVERYTHING. Hurry! This great offer expires at midnight on 14Nov2008."

That'd put the 208 to your door for about $72.


thanks for that. they also have the sd608. your post says the 25% is good on everything.

does the sd608 fit on the grizzly g1023slx??

thanks
tony

[Anthony Whitesell]

As others have said. When you're running a dado blade your removing a much higher wood content in each pass requiring more HP. The larger diameter will provide more leverage/torque by the wood to slow down the blade. You will have more mass and tip speed, but the leverage will also be increased.

How deep a dado do you want to cut? I don't think I've ever heard of a dado greater than 1". I've had the occasional 2-3" rabbit but those are rare and I don't think I would want to run a dado blade up 3" to make it (I used a router table for the cut).

I would save the $$$. Check out the Deals and Discount section for a closeout bargain from Peachtree on a Freud Dial a width blade. I think it's 6", but it was also $100 off. If you don't like you could easily sell it off for something else.

[Tony Gorgone]

i want to cut dados 1.5" deep for my upcoming project.

the deal at peachtree is not vaild anymore, they are sold out. tried to get that on friday and called them.

tony

[Tony Gorgone]

has anyone used the freud sd608 on a grizzly 1023?

thanks
tony

[John Keeton]

Tony, I have the SD606 on my 1023 - works fine. I imagine it is the same as the 608 except for the diameter of the blades.