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Thread: Can a blade Change - change a saw??

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2020
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    Chicago, IL USA
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    5

    Can a blade Change - change a saw??

    I have a Bosch GTS1031 job site saw, that is perm. Mounted in my shop for about 5 years. It has scalloped when ripping since day one. I’ve had many blades on it, some scallop more, some less. I have gotten more serious w my work and recently decided to buy the Freud full kerf industrial Rip blade. I ran several pieces, no scalloping. How is this possible?

    This blade, btw, has the largest chunks of carbide for teeth, that I’ve ever seen, and I’m absolutely blown away by the difference between it and a borg blade. The Gts1031 spins at 5000 rpm, did it just need a heavier blade to stay in line and not deflect? Am I hallucinating? Any insights appreciated

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
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    So Cal
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    For sure a blade can change the way a saw cuts.
    Aj

  3. #3
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    Nov 2009
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    Peoria, IL
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    Of course a high quality blade can make a difference. They don't cost more just because of a brand name on them. There is a lot of engineering in a quality saw blade. If all the blades you have been using are borg blades, you've just learned the lesson about what buying quality can do for you.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Lewiston, Idaho
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    28,490
    Absolutely blades can affect the quality of cuts. Depending on the material being cut, thin kerf and thick kerf differences can be enough to cause significant differences. Though my table saw has only a 1 3/4 horse motor, I only use full 1/8" thick kerf blades on it.
    Ken

    So much to learn, so little time.....

  5. #5
    For over a decade I used a Freud Amana blade in my Delta contractor saw. It's a pretty good blade, I got good results. A few months back I decided to upgrade to a Forrest Wood Worker II. First thing I noticed was I had to recut the slot on my zero clearance plates. A digital micrometer revealed the FWW was a true 1/8", the Amana off by a very small smidge. Next I noticed the new slot was smooth. I watched as I recut the slot and it went from a tiny bit jagged to perfectly smooth. Then I noticed that all cuts were perfectly smooth, no rough end-grain. Today I was ripping some Walnut and noticed the saw was running much quieter, so much so I wondered if a screw had come loose or something. The FWW blade is simply much better balanced. With the Amana I could easily balance a nickle on edge. The FWW takes vibration to zero.

    I had always thought the Forrest Wood Worker advocates were a bit nuts. I mean, it's just a saw blade. Well... it's a saw blade, but not just just.
    Last edited by John Makar; 05-28-2020 at 5:19 PM.

  6. #6
    All that and good blades can be re-sharpened.

  7. #7
    I used to run narrow kerf blades on most job site tools thinking that’s all they could handle. Several years back I had a railing job where I needed to split a square post down the middle at an angle to turn a corner on a winder. The post was hickory, around 3.5” square and the angle probably 22.5 degrees.

    The thin kerf blade deflected over one degree. Got a brand new full kerf rip blade to make the cut. There was less load on the saw motor due to less deflection. I have not put a thin kerf blade on a job site table saw or miter saw since. Blade selection absolutely matters.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
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    Modesto, CA, USA
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    Adding blade stabilizers can help too. I notice the blade is quieter when unloaded. The highest pitched noise is reduced. It does not sing as much. It is interesting to see that on my 14" tablesaw any washer or stabilizer larger then about 2.5" diameter will reduce cut depth the same as a 10" saw.
    Bill D

  9. #9
    Join Date
    May 2020
    Location
    Chicago, IL USA
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    This is kinda Where I’m confused- see if a “job site saw” just needs an $80 blade instead of a $40 blade (I wasn’t using Avanti, craftsman, etc, my last blades were Freud Diablo and Dewalt Fine Trim) why am I looking to upgrade to a $1000 cabinet saw that cannot be moved, or more importantly transported should a friend need help w a project? Better dust collection, yes, easier working of hard material, sure, but as of right now I’m ripping 1/4” Birds eye maple strips from a 1”- 4/4 board and they are beautiful. So where are the huge advantages that everyone says stay away from the “dreaded job site saw” and start with at least a contractor saw? All I’m seeing is diminishing returns in the form of a lot more $$ for a little quieter little less messy machine. Im comfortable with the largest pieces of ply I can pickup with the table I built around it, I enjoy ripping strips for inlay/accents, and the saw just works. Yeah it sounds like an anvil being struck on startup but I kinda like it at this point, yeah my router is more precise, but my 1st trip down “Uber quality lane” was an incra had 1000 HD MITER setup, and it cuts perfect angles w no gaps on glue ups, so what AM I getting? Dust collection is important to me (especially as I have bad sinuses) but I can build a box around it, and already made an upper guard...

    I’m open to any input, as I plan to buy a better saw eventually... I just wonder if bandsaw or Mini-lathe or spindle sander etc will sneak in before “saw upgrade” if I can get repeatable quality results from my current setup.

  10. #10
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    I think if portability is important, and you are getting the cut quality you require for your projects- then stick with what you have now. You can add some dust collection and/or invest in a good respirator and I think you've got it made.
    David

  11. #11
    If your not seeing the shortcomings, you probably won't really appreciate the difference. Minor amounts of flex that leave less than perfect seams, end grain that requires substantial sanding to remove saw marks, joinery that seems to always have tiny variations, it's all in the eye of the beholder. I'm currently using a fairly new SCMI slider and I got nothing but complaints, other guys think it's awesome. As you say, you're getting more serious, you'll start seeing it.

  12. #12
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    Michiana
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    I found this to be the case with my Ridgid TS3650. Thin kerf Borg blades offered up a "utility" cut quality. I was at a local sharpening shop that caters to the commercial cabinet shops in the area and bought a couple industrial grade blades. They were used so they were very inexpensive. Huge carbide teeth, ground blade plate, super sharp, balanced, exact 1/8" kerf. My saw is wired for 220V so no drag on the motor at all. It was a good move.
    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  13. #13
    I don’t mean this to be offensive, but ignorance is bliss.

    Also, it depends on your expectations from a table saw. I have 3 very different table saws and they all have a purpose and are different enough for me to keep around. One is a newer Dewalt jobsite table saw on a rolling stand that lives in the jobsite and has a sawhorses/plywood outfeed table behind it and had a sub ~ $40 rip blade on it pretty much all the time
    and I am generally pleased and happy with what I ask of that saw and expect in terms of accuracy. I can roll it around the job site or pick it up and throw it in the van and set it up literally anywhere with power...that’s worth a great deal to a professional carpenter / on site woodworker. It weighs less than 100 #

    I also have an older Powermatic 66 that lives in my shop with large outfeed and side tables, cross cut sleds, dust collection, several different types of blades, 52” Bies rip fence. This saw can handle full sheets of plywood and support them without sweating. I’ve also used this saw extensively for joinery - tenons, grooves, rabbets, dadoes, etc and can handle a decent amount of thick hardwood ripping with the right quality rip blade, though depth of cut is limited to 3” like any 10” cabinet saw. It weighs ~ 500#, is on a mobile base but doesn’t typically ever move unless I have to re-arrange to accept a new machine coming in the door of the shop.

    I also have a much older (late 40s era) Tannewitz Model U 16” saw (that can take up to a 20” blade if desired) that is a beautiful chunk of cast iron and steel and is more precise and well machined than Powermatic could ever dream to be. Micro adjust fence, 2 factory miter gauges, several different style and size blades, large cast iron top and plenty of power. The depth of cut (up to 6” with the 20” blade) is very handy for heavy duty ripping, or working with any sort of smaller dimension timber size stuff, which I tend to do on a fairly consistent basis. This is not really a plywood saw as the rip fence maxes out around 24” or so, but for ripping or precise joinery it is amazing. It weighs around 1300# and does not move.

    I say all this to bring up the point that it really depends on what you’re doing, how picky you are, to what level of precision you’re working to, and how much / little tolerance you have for working on a machine that maybe wasn’t designed or optimized to do the types of operations you’re asking it to do. I still feel like the only thing holding me back from
    a sliding table saw is primarily lack of space in my current shop (and current budget) but even that can be solved eventually.

    Id say to continue in bliss as long as you can, until you happen to use a nice cabinet saw enough to notice the differences.
    Last edited by Phillip Mitchell; 05-29-2020 at 6:53 AM.
    Still waters run deep.

  14. #14
    Join Date
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    But what about Johnny? He's got a slider and still unhappy. Perhaps he needs to upgrade to a still better saw?
    David

  15. #15
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    Atlanta
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    Might just be me, but I don't think a contractor saw is going to provide better dust collection than a jobsite saw.

    Most of them have a totally enclosed blade underneath exiting at a dust port. Few contractor saw's have that. And all are open at the rear.

    There are are some good reasons a contractor saw is an upgrade, but dust collection isn't one of them.

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