Melamine blade recommendation

[Jason Winterrowd]

Getting ready to start on a cabinet project using white melamine. Anyone recommend a good blade for my 1.75 hp hybrid saw?

anyone have any experience with the Sommerfeld melamine blade? I am pretty satisfied with the router bits I have purchased from them.

[Van Huskey]

I have always used Freud LU98 an LU97 melamine blades. The LU97 is for double sided and the LU98 for single sided. The LU98 has a positive hook angle and cuts faster so it does have an advatage when cutting single sided melamine. The LU97 has a negative hook and cuts slower but clean on both sides.

[Edwin Santos]

Considering your saw is 1.75 hp, you might get better performance out of a thin kerf blade in which case have a look at the Forrest Duraline HI-AT. It's a very clean cutting blade. I'd like to say totally chip free but sometimes it depends on the quality of the melamine itself. When I use mine on the higher quality thermofused melamine, it cuts chip free. On the cheaper cold rolled melamine, it's close but not totally chip free on the back side. If cutting two sided melamine regardless of blade, you should use a zero clearance insert in your saw.
Edwin

[Jason Winterrowd]

Thank you both for the input. I hope I did not jump the gun to quick but I just ordered the duraline from acme tools and also a wood worker II while I was there. They had a 10 percent off promo and the best price on Forrest blades I found. Thanks again.

[Van Huskey]

Thank you both for the input. I hope I did not jump the gun to quick but I just ordered the duraline from acme tools and also a wood worker II while I was there. They had a 10 percent off promo and the best price on Forrest blades I found. Thanks again.

The Duraline is a great blade, it will cut melamine very cleanly and I use them on ply all the time. The only difference between it and the Freuds I listed is being an ATB grind the Forrest will dull much quicker cutting melamine than the TCG of the Freuds. The Freud melamine blades are more of a single purpose blade where the Duraline HiAT is more of a general purpose sheet goods blade.

[Jason Winterrowd]

The Duraline is a great blade, it will cut melamine very cleanly and I use them on ply all the time. The only difference between it and the Freuds I listed is being an ATB grind the Forrest will dull much quicker cutting melamine than the TCG of the Freuds. The Freud melamine blades are more of a single purpose blade where the Duraline HiAT is more of a general purpose sheet goods blade.

i am just making cabinets for my own home and a DIY workshop. Do you think the ATB grind will require frequent sharpening . I know that's a hard question to answer but it will not get very heavy use.

Also so where do you send your Forrest blades to be sharpened.? Thanks.

[Van Huskey]

i am just making cabinets for my own home and a DIY workshop. Do you think the ATB grind will require frequent sharpening . I know that's a hard question to answer but it will not get very heavy use.

Also so where do you send your Forrest blades to be sharpened.? Thanks.

Well I assume most of your melamine cutting will be for this project and then it will be used for other sheet goods, if so it will certainly do one set of kitchen cabs and still be sharp enough to use for a while. You WANT a ATB grind for plywood. If you don't plan to cut a lot of melamine in the future then the Forrest is a better choice since it cuts other things much better. I send mine to Cooks in Texas, Forrest starting having long lead times. However, there are TONS of great saw shops out there that can sharpen Forrest or any other blade. The two blades (I am aware of) you have to be careful with due to the unusual grind is Freud's Fusuion blades and OEM Festool blades.

[Jason Winterrowd]

Thank you for the info!!!

[Edwin Santos]

I think you will also find the Duraline HiAT will cut very clean miters. I use it with a crosscut sled for cutting miters, fine crosscuts, and case miters with the blade beveled. It leaves a glass smooth cut in these instances.
I try to keep it clean which I feel reduces heat and keeps it sharp longer. I guess this is good practice with all your blades.
Edwin

[Matt Day]

Regardless of blade (I like the Freud melamine blade too), make sure you make 2 cuts per pass. One about 1/8” High to cut the bottom layer of melamine and the second to cut the particle board and top layer of melamine. This will minimize tearout in the melamine. If you’re nonchalant with it like you’re batch cutting plywood or something, you’ll get chips all over the edges.

[Peter Kelly]

If you're doing the above-mentioned two-pass method (recommended) a TCG blade works fine. No need for an HI ATB which dulls faster.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Also so where do you send your Forrest blades to be sharpened.? Thanks.

If you don't have, get hold of a copy of Danny Proulx's book "Making Your own Kitchen Cabinets." It's the very best book I have ever seen on making cabinets. Use the two cut method to make all your cuts if possible. Remember you can't see chip out on the hidden parts of the cabinets. Beware of the cuts on melamine as they are SHARP! As for where to send your blades, I recommend Dynamic Saw in Buffalo NY. Less than half the price of Forrest, and a heck of a lot better work. Check out their web site for pricing and see what kind of machines they use to sharpen blades. Sending Dynamic another batch of blades this week.