Kapex (blade) burning maple

[QuailRider43]

How do I stop my Kapex from burning the cut face of hardwoods like maple?  I don't have a lot of experience cutting hardwoods.  The blade and saw are fairly new, and mostly used for softwoods thus far.  The blade is still sharp and clean.  I've checked the fence, blade, and deck, and all seems square.  Wood is not shifting during cut.  I'm cutting milled 3/4" x 3.5" maple boards.  My first cut at speed 6 was pretty burned.  Tried increasing the feed rate but it still burned some.  I lowered the speed to 4 and tried a moderately fast feed rate, and while that helped, there was still a bit of patchy brown discoloration at the cut edge.  Is this normal for hardwoods?

Edit:  here's a photo of what I'm talking about (blade speed 5).
View attachment 1

 

[tjbnwi]

Run the saw at full speed.

Clean the blade, it may look clean but it's not.

Tom

 

[bobfog]

Run the saw at full speed.

Clean the blade, it may look clean but it's not.

Tom

In addition to this good advice, you can also try trimming just shy of the final length by 2-3mm and doing a final cut for the last 2-3mm, where the cut is less than the kerf (thickness) of the blade. This way the blade is only making contact on one side and isn't sandwiched between the stock. This means the blade doesn't heat up as much because of less friction and is less likely to burn the wood.

 

[QuailRider43]

Run the saw at full speed.

Clean the blade, it may look clean but it's not.

Tom

OK, will clean it now...

 

[dukebird]

in my experience I have had excellent luck with the tenyru blade made specifically for the Kapex.  I have gone through 3 "festool" Branded Blades for the Kapex.  The tenyru blade makes the saw perform so much better.    I used to get a lot of burning and the saw would struggle through 8/4 cherry.  Once i got the new blade it cuts much better and hardly struggles at all.  i am not down on the Festool blades.--- I am a fan of the tenyru

 

[mastercabman]

Whitch blade do you have on now?

 

[QuailRider43]

Whitch blade do you have on now?

The one that came with the saw.

 

[QuailRider43]

I cleaned the blade by soaking it in citrus degreaser and scrubbing it with a toothbrush.  Tried again, but still getting burning, using blade speeds 4-6, with moderate feed rate.  See attached.  I gather this isn't normal for hardwood?

 

[bobbobbob]

Your blade may not be as sharp as you think it is.  Try sourcing a reputable sharpening service, it will be worth your while in the long run...

 

[QuailRider43]

Your blade may not be as sharp as you think it is.  Try sourcing a reputable sharpening service, it will be worth your while in the long run...

Hmmm.  OK, I'll try ordering one of the Tenryu blades until I can get the stock blade to the sharpener.  I haven't used it much, and only for softwoods, so I'll be a little ticked off if it's dull already.  I assume 60 tooth ATB like the default blade is the still the best choice?  Thanks everyone for your advice.  Learning something new every day.

 

[QuailRider43]

Follow-up.  My 80t Tenryu blade arrived, and now the maple cuts like butter, even on speed 6.  So the original Festool blade must have been dull, and I never really noticed because all my previous cuts were on soft material.  Surprised the Festool blade dulled so quickly.  Many thanks for helping me solve this.  I was worried something was screwed up with the saw.

 

[copcarcollector]

Follow-up.  My 80t Tenryu blade arrived, and now the maple cuts like butter, even on speed 6.

Can you provide a part # and/or link to this blade please?

 

[QuailRider43]

Can you provide a part # and/or link to this blade please?

http://www.tenryu.com/m_festool_kapex.htm

 

[mastercabman]

Follow-up.  My 80t Tenryu blade arrived, and now the maple cuts like butter, even on speed 6.  So the original Festool blade must have been dull, and I never really noticed because all my previous cuts were on soft material.  Surprised the Festool blade dulled so quickly.  Many thanks for helping me solve this.  I was worried something was screwed up with the saw.

The tenryu blades are pretty nice
But why the 80 t blade?

 

[QuailRider43]

The tenryu blades are pretty nice.  But why the 80 t blade?

Because I'm a newb?  [blink]  The 80 tooth blade has a different tooth geometry that I wanted to try out, and this way I've got the Festool 60T for general cross-cut (once it gets resharpened), and the 80T Tenryu for extra fine work.

 

[mastercabman]

The tenryu blades are pretty nice.  But why the 80 t blade?

Because I'm a newb?  [blink]  The 80 tooth blade has a different tooth geometry that I wanted to try out, and this way I've got the Festool 60T for general cross-cut (once it gets resharpened), and the 80T Tenryu for extra fine work.

80t blade are good for soft wood/MDF/particle
I use 60t for hard wood

 

[Kev]

Just to be clear - the KAPEX isn't the thing burning the maple here .. it's the blade.

There have been so many anti KAPEX threads lately I just want to draw the distinction as "KAPEX" and "BURNING" in the subject can create an negative impression.

[member=1674]Peter Halle[/member]

 

[QuailRider43]

Just to be clear - the KAPEX isn't the thing burning the maple here .. it's the blade.

There have been so many anti KAPEX threads lately I just want to draw the distinction as "KAPEX" and "BURNING" in the subject can create an negative impression.

[member=1674]Peter Halle[/member]

Good point.  Title edited for clarity.

 

[Kev]

Good point.  Title edited for clarity.

[member=45495]QuailRider43[/member]

Cheers buddy [big grin] [thumbs up]