Table Saw Blade Recommendations

[Runhard]

Dear Foggers,

Please help me determine a complete range of table saw blades for my Industrial 5hp SawStop. I have been looking at Forrest and Tenryu. I would be working with mostly hard and soft woods and plywood every once in a while. I also want a great dado set. I’m sure that I can figure it out but I would like to see what you guys are using and like the most.

Thanks,

Daniel

 

[ChuckM]

I have used only two combo blades in my SawStop PCS (acquired 5 years ago):

• SawStop 10" Titanium-Coated Saw Blades 40-tooth, 1/8" Kerf
  
• Woodworker II Blade, 10" x 40-Tooth, 1/8" Kerf

Hands-down, the WWII produces better cut quality than the SS Titanium blade as I rotate their use. Both have never been resharpened, something I plan to do next year or so. The teeth on the WWII are still wicked sharp, and I handle the blade with care when cleaning and spraying to avoid getting nicked.

At the recommendation of another woodworker, I picked up the other day a Woodworker II Blade, 10" x 30-Tooth, 1/8" Kerf that has yet to be installed. Included in his recommendation is this reminder:

"The Sawstop manual warns about the drawbacks of using chip limiting rip blades. It will be hard to find one that doesn’t have safety shoulders so you have to be aware it may take longer to stop the blade if you activate the brake."

Price-wise, the Tenryu is very good like the SS Titanium:https://tenryusawblades.com/product.php?productid=17974&cat=344&page=1

I intend to use the 30-tooth WWII for rip cuts on hardwood (my go-to lumber). Interestingly, although the online product page says it is a combo blade, it is labeled as a rip blade on the packaging.

On average, I do about 6 - 8 projects (half of them smaller builds like trays or boxes) a year. The SawStop fills up about two to three bags of saw dust per year for the 1.5HP dust collector (for under-the-table dust collection), and about two bags for the small shop vac (above-the-table dust collection). I believe with proper care and resharpening, I won't need any more blades in the remaining years of my woodworking journey (that's, unless I fire off the cartridge!).

 

[Alanbach]

I recommend calling Tony at Forrest and having this conversation with him. He is an absolute wealth of knowledge. Their number is 1-800-733-7111 and his extension is 313. For my needs we ended up with a 40 tooth WW2 for combo, a 30 tooth WW2 Rip for ripping hardwood under 2” (get the 20 tooth version if you do a lot of thicker 3” + hardwoods). A plywood woodworker or a dura line hi at for plywood, melamine and super fine crosscuts in hardwood lumber. Talk to Tony, he will help you!

Also make sure that the dado set you choose is Sawstop compliant. Not all are.

 

[Bob D.]

I use mostly Ridge Carbide blades on my Unisaw, RAS, and miter saw, and I send them all my blades for sharpening, but they are close to me so shipping is cheap.

 

[Birdhunter]

I use only Forrest blades and Dado sets on my SawStop Industrial table saw. I’ve been very happy with the blades. I usually have the saw blades resharpened by Forrest several times and they come back like new.

Remember to adjust the blade to brake gap when changing blades. The dado set I used with my old Unisaw would not work with the SawStop. I had to switch to the Forrest dado set.

 

[Billedis]

I use only Ridge Carbide blades and have had excellent results.  I would suggest you give them a call.

 

[Runhard]

Thanks, everyone!

I'm going to order a few Forrest blades and see how well I like them.

 

[Michael Kellough]

I prefer Forrest blades too. It’s not just the quality of the teeth, it’s the disk too.

I wanted and extra WWII when I was poor so took a chance on a used blade on eBay. It had been sharpened several times and the kerf was narrower than original specs but it cuts great and spins true.

 

[Cheese]

I don’t have a SawStop but I also recommend Forrest. I started with the regular kerf blade and then switched to the thin kerf line when they were released.

I own and use their 8” dado set and it’s really slick.

Forrest is also a pleasure to deal with for resharpening. Their blades come in a cardboard box that can be used to ship the dull blade back to them for sharpening.

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[RKA]

Can anyone shed some light on the recent release of the Forrest WWII for the Sawstop?  What is different about it and what should people be aware of if they already use the regular WWII blades?  Maybe it has to do with the comment from the manual Chuck quoted above, but I don't really understand??

 

[ChuckM]

I have studied the product information Forrest provided on the SS WWII blade and the regular WWII blade, but could not find any difference between the two (may be other than the price (?). [eek]) I suppose Forrest was trying to assist a SS owner to pick the right blade from its product line by offering a regular WWII with a SS designation.

 

[Runhard]

I just placed an order for Forrest blades with Highland Woodworking. Some of the items are out of stock.

Dado-King: 8"
Woodworker II: 10" x 20 Tooth 1/8" Kerf
Woodworker II: 10" x 30 Tooth 1/8" Kerf
Woodworker II: 10" x 40 Tooth 1/8" Kerf
Woodworker I: 10" x 60 Tooth 3/32" Thin Kerf
Duraline High-A/T Blade: 10" x 80 Tooth 1/8" Kerf
Ply Veneer Worker Blade: 10" x 70 Tooth-PVW 1/8" Kerk

 

[Birdhunter]

Just be sure that the clearance between the saw teeth and the stop cartridge is correct. That is super critical.

 

[Runhard]

Just be sure that the clearance between the saw teeth and the stop cartridge is correct. That is super critical.

I haven't used the saw yet so I am not sure what exactly you mean. Is this self-explanatory or in the instructions?

 

[ChuckM]

I am assuming you are assembling your saw, and will be installing and checking the fence, blade, etc. The manual lay outs all the details. Your saw should come with a (yellow) plastic gauge that you use to check/set the gap between the cartridge and the saw blade.

Also make sure you have acquired the dado cartridge for use with any dado cutter (and the gap checking step is followed).

Needless to say, the saw is unplugged before you do any of the above.

Familiarize yourself with the start-up signals on the switch so you know the SS safety feature is actually on before you use it.

 

[Bob Wolfe]

You really only need two, at the most three bladed for your saw. A rip, a combination and a fine 80 tooth. The rest are bling....
BW

 

[Cheese]

FWIW...if you have any interest in making box joints, Forrest offers a blade for that chore that will produce absolutely square and flat cuts.
https://www.forrestblades.com/saw-b...cut-box-joints-rabbets-grooves-and-dovetails/

 

[Michael Kellough]

The idea behind the Forrest Woodworker II is that it is an excellent combination blade which means you don’t need multiple blades for general use.

Right now I’m using a 32 tooth WWII. Don’t know the vintage but it’s either a thin kerf blade or it’s been sharpened man times but it gives great service for both ripping and cross cuts. I do use a back up block for reinforcing the wood as the blade exits on cross cuts.

 

[Kevin D.]

Ridge Carbide, FS Tools, Forrest are my favs.  They're all excellent quality.

 

[RussellS]

You really only need two, at the most three bladed for your saw. A rip, a combination and a fine 80 tooth. The rest are bling....
BW

Agree.  I don't understand this infatuation with owning saw blades.  Get a crosscut blade with a high tooth count.  It makes perfect crosscuts.  Perfect is the best you can do.  Get a rip blade with low tooth count.  It rips perfectly.  Perfect is as good as you can do.  And a dado set.  Why monkey around with a less than perfect combination blade that does lots of things OK, but nothing perfect?  I want perfect, not good enough.  Get a perfect rip blade.  Get a perfect crosscut blade.  And have perfection.  Don't bother with a mediocre combination blade.  Are you too lazy to spend one minute or less changing a blade?