TS Blade Reccomendation

[Greg Snyder]

I have a Delta contractors TS and would like to upgrade the blade and was wondering if anyone could make some good reccomendations for performance and price. The current blade came on the saw when I purchased it used and works o.k. on soft woods but once you get hardwood especially over 2" thick, it just wont cut. I have thought about upgrading the motor to a higher horse power but figured I should start with the blade first. Thanks

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Greg, what type of blade are you wanting? Rip, crosscut and combo all do different things best, and if you are running on th edge of your saws capabilities, you may need to run a dedicated blade to maximize capacity. I buy Forrest blades. They are a little pricey, but no worse then the others. Thin kerf may help you too, but I quit using them because I was never satisfied with the quality of cut. Guess it all depends what you want to do.

[Jim Becker]

I suggest you start with a good quality general purpose blade, such as those by Forrest, Freud, etc. Better quality blades cost less in the long run because they have more carbide and can be resharpened quite a few times. If you routinely rip thicker material, then a dedicated ripping blade is a good idea, too. As to thin vs standard kerf, my preference is standard kerf (1/8") even for a typical contractors' style saw...there really isn't a major power problem if one doesn't try to shove material through the saw at a hundred miles per hour. Regardless, choose on kerf width and stick with it.

[Chip Lindley]

Over 25 years I have found that a good 50T combo blade does about all anyone will ask of it. I started out with "Sears Best" 50T of commercial quality and have enjoyed using the Freud LU84 iteration with great results. The 50T combo gives a flat bottom cut which has its utility!

A good 80T ATB blade gives splinter-free cuts in trim work, and the 80T TCG does just a little better on melamine or veneers. If you will rip a truckload of 4/4 hardwood, a 24T or 30T glueline rip blade will speed things up with good results.

BUT if I had to choose just one blade, the 50T "Industrial" would be IT.

[scott spencer]

Correct blade choice and good alignment is far less expensive than a motor upgrade, and nearly as effective. Your blade should have less than 40 teeth for 2" material...preferably 20-30, but that can leave a rougher to slightly rougher cut depending on which blade you choose.

Your saw will benefit from a good thin kerf blade that offers lower resistance on the motor. If you're looking for an all around decent blade that's value priced, the Freud LU86R010 (http://www.epinions.com/review/Freud_LU86R010_10_40_Tooth_Thin_Kerf_General_Purpo se_Blade_42542453/content_227985493636)is very good for ~ $40, but isn't overly adept at ripping 2"+ material. If you'd prefer to go with separates to expand your usable range, then go with the LU88R010 (http://www.epinions.com/review/Freud_60T_Crosscut_Table_Saw_Blade_LU88R010/content_226312687236)60T for most cuts, combined with the LU87R010 (http://www.epinions.com/review/Freud_10_in_x_24T_Saw_Blade_Thin_Kerf_Ripping/content_427607625348) 24T for thicker rip cuts.

Another excellent alternative in one blade is the thin kerf 30T Forrest WWII (http://www.epinions.com/review/Forrest_WW10307100_Woodworker_Ii_10_30_Tooth_5_8_A rbor_3_32_Kerf_Circular_Saw_Blade/content_411771899524)....it's about as close to a one blade does all scenario you can get, and it should suit the needs you described quite well. It'll handle 2" ripping nicely, leaves a very clean edge, and will also handle most crosscutting needs respectably well....~ $75.

Table_Saw_Blade_Comparisons (http://woodworkerszone.com/wiki/index.php?title=Table_Saw_Blade_Comparisons)

[Prashun Patel]

I bought a Freud Avanti 50t combo for about $35 from an online retail giant. It's darn good. I still tape or score sensitive cross cuts in plywood and use a ZCI, but it does a great job even without those precautions.

If yr going to be doing a lot of thick, hardwood ripping, I suggest you invest in a ripping blade though. There aren't a lot of 'tricks' except for using multiple passes (which is dangerous and jeopardizes the accuracy of the cut).

[Lee Schierer]

I was just in the Rockler store in Williamsport on Friday and they have a great Freud blade (I think it was the LU82M http://www.freudtools.com/images/LU82MMain.jpg) on sale for $49. It is a 60 tooth blade and will make crosscuts so smooth they don't need sanding. On a contracotrs saw you probably want a dedicated rip blade, most likely thin kerf, because your horsepower is on the low end.

[Chip Lindley]

My old Rockwell contractor saw would bog down and blow the 15A breaker on 4/4 oak regardless of blade, (no thin kerf) UNTIL I switched it over to run on 220V. All the difference in the world!! It cut 8/4 oak after that without a complaint!

[Alan Schwabacher]

If you go thin kerf, the LU83 50 tooth combo, and the LU87 24 tooth for ripping is a good compromise. The combo can rip too, but for thick stock or lots of ripping, a real rip blade makes a big difference. I find 50 teeth is good enough for plywood, but I don't cut much.

Edit:

I don't recall where I got them, but the prices were considerably below Amazon's as I recall.

[Rick Fisher]

I talked a buddy of mine, Just a few months ago, into putting a Forrest thin kerf rip blade on his DeWalt portable saw. He said it was like adding 1 hp.
Prior to that he was using the cheapest combination blade he could find.

[chris dub]

Amazon is having a 15% off promotion on Freud Blades. Also look at the Amana blades some of those have been deeply discounted over the last couple of weeks on Amazon, in the $20-$30 range for their industrial and AGE series blades.

And eBay with the 25% cash back is another good option at the moment. But I would get a good rip blade. You can compensate for crosscuts and ply with a ZCI and tape. But I don't know of a substitute for a good rip blade.

[Greg Snyder]

Thanks for all the reccomendations. I think I will go with a seperate rip and crosscut thin kerf blade. I checked on Amazon and can get the LU88R010 & LU87R010 for about $100 total which seems very reasonable. Thanks again.

[Chris Schumann]

If you have a Rockler nearby, they have a flier for the post-Thanksgiving weekend. 25% off one item each morning.

I thought long about getting thin kerf and decided against it, mainly because my closest Rockler doesn't stock it! While it will decrease the load your motor sees, it can also be less stable, giving a poorer quality of cut, or so I've read.

I have use the Freud Ultimate Plywood blade on plywood and it is incredible. I plan to use it for crosscuts. I just bought a Freud heavy duty rip blade for thick stock, but haven't tried it yet.

Post some reviews of those blades when you've tried them!

[Rod Sheridan]

Greg, the one thin kerf blade I used on a contractors saw didn't provide as smooth a cut as a standard kerf blade. (Probably vibration).

I would purchase a standard kerf 24 tooth rip and an 80 or 60 tooth standard crosscut blade.

Regards, Rod.

[scott spencer]

I've read the downfalls about thin kerf blades also, but have never experienced them with the 30+ TK's I've tried, even in 12/4" hard maple, elm, QSWO, and hickory....even without the use of a stabilizer disc. I suspect the issues with TKs were more prevalent years ago, and still exist with lower quality blades, but modern alloys and blade designs are much better these days. With the higher quality TK's the cut quality has been comparable to the 20 or so high quality full kerfs I've tried....an aspect that American Woodworking mag noted in their excellent blade article in the Nov 2006 issue. Other benefits include less saw dust, less waste, less motor strain, easier feedrate (especially in thicker materials), and even lower noise. While the possibiltiy of instability exists more for a TK than a full kerf, in actual use, it's fairly rare in a hobby setting (commercial use is different than hobby use), and there are many happy TK's users. A high quality TK blade used on a saw that has low runout is not likely to experience noticeable flutter. If there's a runout problem with the arbor, a TK blade will amplify that problem more so than a full kerf, but the TK blade is not likely to be the actual cause. Lower quality Tk's should be avoided, but the better TKs have many benefits for saws under 3hp and are recommended by Forrest, Ridge Carbide, Freud, Infinity, and many other top brands.

[Greg Narozniak]

My previous saw was a Powermatic 64A and I ran it on 110v and then converted it to 220V. I started out with a Thin Kerf Forrest WW2 and it worked well, I later added a LU84 standard kerf and it cut just as well if not better and my next blade purchase was a standard kerf WW2 and it cut just as good as the others. I did not see a need for the thin Kerf with that saw.

The general purpose blades like the LU84, WW2, Ridge Carbide, Tenru etc, do an amazing job for all general cutting. As others have said unless your ripping a ton of material where a dedicated rip blade would benefit you, the ones I listed would perform perfectly.

I would stay with standard kerf and not look back.

[Michael Boyle]

I have two contractor saws in my shop and use Forrest Blades and Dado's exclusively. Currently I have both the full and thin kerf Forrest WWII blades and do not find that great of difference between the two as far as pushing wood through them is concerned. In the future I am going to stick with the full kerf since I feel it does a cleaner cut. Since both of my saws are light on horsepower, having a premium blade has made a world of difference on how they cut hardwoods. Although they are more expensive than many other blades you can purchase, I feel they are well work the expense.

[mreza Salav]

I have a contractor saw. Got a full kerf Forrest WWII and wasn't very impressed. I think it is over rated. You get good cuts in both rip and cross-cut but not GREAT cuts in either. Sold it at the end and got a Freud Fusion blade. It's in the same class as FWWII. Haven't used it much yet but seems good so far.

[Brent Ring]

Anyone have any experience with the Ohlun (sp?) line that Holbren sells? I have heard some rumors that those are decent blades as well.

[scott spencer]

Anyone have any experience with the Ohlun (sp?) line that Holbren sells? I have heard some rumors that those are decent blades as well.

I have the 40T....it's a good blade outright...surprisingly well made, and an excellent value. Not quite in the same league as the premium $100 blades, but still gives glue line rips and good crosscuts. It makes a cleaner cut than my $60 CMT 213.10.040.

[Mike Robbins]

I have a 30T WWII thin-kerf in my Ridgid 3660 and the cut quality on rips and crosscuts is as good as it needs to be with the saw tuned and aligned. Far, far better than the stock blade. For thickness, 8/4 hardwoods are no problem as long as I'm not going nuts with the feedrate. Definately the best one-blade solution.

Good as it needs to be = glueup ready ripped edged, exposed surfaces clean enough to jump to final grit in sanding.