Makita Track Saw Ripping Blade Advice

[Josh Baldwin]

Hey guys so I was just ripping some 2" oak and realized I was using the blade that came with the saw which is 48 tooth and certainly not a ripping blade. Needless to say it was struggle.

So I need a ripping blade. I was considering just getting a Mafell saw, but just can't justify the cost. But anyway I was looking at the Freud LU87R006M20. I'm concerned though that the kerf thickness being .098 vs the stock blade .074 will tear into the splinter guard rubber strip. The only blade I could find that was close to being as thin as the stock one is the Makita A-99960 28 tooth blade. It's .078 I believe and I'm sure better at ripping than the stock blade, but probably not as good as all of the 14 tooth blades out there.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Rich Engelhardt]

I used an Oshlun in my Festool & it did ok.
It's smaller than the Makita so it will fit ok on the Makita

Makita makes a 28T rip blade for their track saws - which is right around the price of the Oshlun.
I'm probably going to order one of these (Makita) myself - in case I need it.

You'll probably have to replace the splinter guard since the blades are going to cut just a hair different, but, it's enough to mess with the tear out.

[Mark Gibney]

I have the larger Festool track saw and I use, I think, a CMT (orange?) rip blade that works pretty well.

I guessing that Makita and Festool use the same size blades / bore etc but I don't know.

As Rich says above, switching between blades cuts into the splinter guard and then you can no longer place the edge of the on the line you want to cut, so I've been thinking that I need another set of tracks just for ripping.

[Jim Becker]

The thicker disc shouldn't affect the splinter guard too much since the extra width is away from the track. That's, of course, dependent on tooth configuration. If you see "stuff" coming off the splinter guard on your first cut, you'll know that it will not be totally accurate when you put the original blade back on, but not likely by much. Good call on getting a blade that's better for the intended task with thicker materials.

[Jared Sankovich]

Tenryu PSW-16028CBD2.

It's a 28t I use them for all my straight line ripping.

[Josh Baldwin]

Thanks for all the advice. So I went with the Makita since it's only a hair thicker and probably won't be noticeable. I just can't justify having a separate set of tracks just for the ripping blade.

[Phillip Mitchell]

Tenryu PSW-16028CBD2.

It's a 28t I use them for all my straight line ripping.

Thats what I use for ripping as well and it does a perfect job.

[Curt Putnam]

Tenryu PSW-16028CBD2.

It's a 28t I use them for all my straight line ripping.

Agreed. Excellent blade,