Sawstop dado conundrum

[Jack Frederick]

I have a Freud 8” dado set that has been excellent with my Unisaw, which I no longer have. I love the Sawstop...but...always a but, I wanted to use the dado set with the zero clearance insert. Ran the “ by-pass” procedure and got a cartridge error. Call SS and it turns out I have to buy either an 8” cartridge or a 10” dado set. The by-pass won’t work for me. I understand that someone might try to run an 8” blade regularly on the 10” cartridge, but frustrating to have to spend more. As it sits I am inclined to go for the more costly dado set and not have to mess with the cartridges. What do you like in a 10” dado set? Much obliged for any suggestions.

[Jason Lester]

I use the dado cartridge with an 8" stack. Swapping the cartridge only adds a few seconds, much quicker than even setting up the dado stack. I would be worried personally about all that extra mass with a 10" dado stack.

[Brett Luna]

Please buy an 8" dado brake cartridge and not a 10" dado set. The standard brake is intended only for single 10" blades with a kerf up to 3/16". The dado cartridge has more brake surface to stop the larger mass of the stack.

[Ed Pollock]

What is the conundrum? You need either an appropriate cartridge for the blade you have, or the appropriate blade for the cartridge you have. This is not a hidden cost of the sawstop, but one that is well known and advertised.

[BOB OLINGER]

For what it's worth, I have a 8" Frued dato set and use the dato cartridge and get along fine. I'm not aware of the need for a 10" dato set up; am I missing something?

[Jim Becker]

As has been noted, the best move is to get the dado cartridge to use with the dado blade you have. A larger dado blade isn't a good idea for a saw of this size from a power standpoint and would be pretty expensive, too.

[Marshall Harrison]

I'm surprised that SawStop mentioned a 10" dado option. I thought they only supported the 8" dado and claimed that a 10" was just to much spinning metal to reliably stop instantly.

I went with a Laguna Fusion but did a lot of research and talking with SawStop before I decided to pass on it.

[Peter Christensen]

The dado cartridge is twice as wide as the standard blade brake and I would not be inclined to put a 10" dado set in and use it with the regular brake. It would only grab one blade and chipper or two. I had a 10" dado set and remember reading in the manual that they were not to be used so bought an 8" dado set, brake and the dado throat plate for the saw. The cartridge is cheaper than buying a 10" dado set anyway.

[Ray Newman]

My ICS SawStop is two years old. From the ICS manual supplied with it, p. 11 "Blades":

"NEVER attempt to use a dado set or blade other than the 8 inch dado set with the SawStop dado cartridge."

The above is repeated and high lighted in red on page 17 of the ICS manual.

[Martin Wasner]

You don't want a 10" dado set in a saw like that. It'll feel extremely weak, and it's just not built to handle that much mass swinging around.

[Wade Lippman]

I am sympathetic. It would be nice if "bypass" just turned the sensor stuff off. Presumably they think that would encourage carelessness and they might be blamed.

[Jack Frederick]

I will pick up the dado cartridge. I had not considered the mass issue on a 10” set. Thank you for your help on this.

[Mike Heidrick]

10" dado stack have 1" arbor hole.

[Martin Wasner]

10" dado stack have 1" arbor hole.

Except for when they are 5/8"

[Kevin Womer]

Dado cartridge works fine with my Frued dado on my PCS, but if you do buy the 8 inch dado stack from Freud get the set without the anti-kick back wings as they will not interfere with a brake activation. I learned this after talking with the folks at Woodwerks in Columbus, Ohio. Apparently they prevent the brake from digging into the dado if the brake is activated.