Warning: Avanti saw blade danger from Home Depot

[Kevin Gregoire]

i got this email from lumberjocks this morning warning of a saw blade so please check it out.

I joined this web so that I can voice my recent experience with a 10" 24 tooth Avanti (no other name) ripping blade purchased at Home Depot in the yellow plastic package. After using it only on fresh lumber 2x4's and such, I noticed there were 2 teeth missing. I showed this to my co worker, and mentioned that I thought the teeth were comming off. Shortly after that I was ripping a 2x4 and felt something hit my arm and it left a big welt. Inspection revealed that now there are 3 teeth missing. I removed the blade and did not use it again. This blade is extremely dangerous, and I think that other people should be aware of the dangers involved in this brand.

[Richard Wolf]

Thanks for passing that on.

[Rick Lizek]

Isn't it a bit presumptuous to assume all blades from that series or manufacturer are defective????

[johnny means]

Of course non of us saw this guy drop the blade while installing it Really, IMO this post should be deleted. It goes beyond a statement of his experience to an indictment of an entire brand.

[scott spencer]

Isn't it a bit presumptuous to assume all blades from that series or manufacturer are defective????

I'd agree that it is presumptuous Rick, but I'm still glad to see a post against a cheap imitation product that's marketed in a way that I find disturbing. The knock off Avanti and Avanti Pro blades showed up in HD shortly after Freud discontinued their well regarded Avanti series in June 2009. The imitation blades are no longer made in Italy, have nothing in common with the original Freud Avanti designs, and no longer have any association with Freud, yet they retain a logo and font that's very similar to the former Freud version, and could easily mislead unsuspecting consumers into thinking that they're buying a reputable Freud Avanti blade. Aside from profiting on Freud's efforts, the blades are really poorly made, and I don't consider them suitable for fine woodworking.

Here's the original Freud Avanti 60T blade made in Italy:



Here's the non-Freud Avanti 60T knock off made in China:

[Tony Joyce]

Thanks, Scott
Now that's information you can use. I for one didn't know this.

Thanks, Tony

[Peter Quinn]

My guess, Freud sold them the Avanti name, may not be a knock off. They may own it. Or maybe they are that unscrupulous. I've heard of carbide braise failures even on the best tooling, very scary but not a reason to pan an entire line. I remember an older post about the transition from Freud Avanti blades to Borg Avanti Blades. I'm thinking the only real value of this post is the side effect that it may make people aware that the Avanti line is no longer associated with Freud so they may make an informed decision about what they are buying.

[scott spencer]

There's never been any doubt in my mind that it's legal, but I don't believe it's ethical to make their new junk blades look like the higher quality Freuds.

[Rick Fisher]

I think that's pretty sleazy .. Borgs stoops a bit lower ..

[Van Huskey]

It is a caveat emptor world and we just live in it... The sad thing is the majority of people that probably use this blade don't wear eye protection...

[John Lanciani]

"After using it only on fresh lumber 2x4's and such, I noticed there were 2 teeth missing. I showed this to my co worker, and mentioned that I thought the teeth were comming off. Shortly after that I was ripping a 2x4 and felt something hit my arm and it left a big welt. Inspection revealed that now there are 3 teeth missing."

So this guy continued to use a damaged blade and he thinks that the brand is extremely dangerous. I think his decision making skills are the real issue here. I've had blades that everyone here would consider "premium" lose teeth for no apparent reason. Stuff happens. This is just one of the reasons that there is an overhead guard (I use a Brett Guard) on my saw for EVERY cut.

[Jacob Reverb]

Sounds like another good reason not stand behind the saw with ANY blade.

[John Coloccia]

As far as I know, Freud still uses the Avanti name to sell biscuit joiners and a handful of other tools. I find it impossible to believe that they would license the name for use by anyone else if they're still using it themselves. Even if they did sell/license the name, clearly it's still dishonest to use it on a completely different product of much lower quality.

Well, one more reason not to shop at HD....as if I needed any more reasons. I tell you, the number of retailers I allow myself to shop at has shrunk dramatically in the last year, yet it feels like my selection of products AND quality has gone up as I seek out better suppliers.

[scott vroom]

Chinese knock-off products are nothing new and anyone that spots a top of the line blade selling for $25 should be immediately suspicious of the quality; anyone with any sense should consider the phrases "You get what you pay for" and "caveat emptor" before hitting the checkout stand.

The knucklehead that continued using the blade after suspecting teeth were coming loose must have a few loose screws himself.

[jason thigpen]

I think the bigger issue is not how it lost those first two teeth, but why he continued to use the blade after noticing they were missing. I'm sure just those two teeth threw the blade off balance, probably helping the third tooth come free.