Using Bosch Blades in a Trion?

[techne]

Hey FOG,

Thanks for all the great advice here over the years.

I’ve got a question about my Trion.  I bought it used, along with a number of other items, from a hobby user who was getting out of woodworking.  The saw is in good cosmetic condition.

When I use Festool blades, the tool performs well for me.  Paint rubs off a bit; but no issues.

I have dozens of new Bosch blades.  If I try to put one in and make a cut through 1"+ material, I'll end up getting a blue burned blade—or at least a hot blade, if I stop soon enough. 

I know the official Festool method for setting the carbide guides (pendulum setting on 3, etc.), and Tom Bellemare’s improved method (Reply #2 here, for example).  I’ve adjusted the position of the blade holder using the torx screw, and I’ve experimented with setting the carbide guides at many levels of openness.

I’m open to issues of user error, although I’ve used Bosch 1584 (rough work) and 1591 (fine work) jigsaws successfully for years on various projects.  I know to guide the saw, rather than pushing, etc.

I like the ergonomics of the Trion.  I want to like this saw, but the issue of not being able to use Bosch blades is a bit annoying.

I’ve wondered if the carbide guide block are damaged, and whether replacing the blade holder, Part No. 499559, might help.  Has anyone else experienced failure of the guide blocks?  Do users generally have success using Bosch blades in the Trion?

I’m open to suggestions. 

 

[EquatorTwo]

I've never used anything but Bosch blades in my Trion, over many years. Hope you can get to the bottom of the problem.

 

[aloysius]

Simple, really.  You must adjust your blade guides each & every time you change blade type.  You should also be adjusting the guides each & every time you change the tool's pendulum setting.  This become even more necessary as the guides wear away from parallel to the blade path.  There's an onboard key for this particular purpose.  Use it.

If the blade blues it's odds-on those guides are set too tight.

Bosch blades are great.  There's such a wide selection available that there's just about a blade for every conceivable contingency.  Their Swiss factories make tens, possibly hundreds of millions of blades, bits & associated cutting & boring tooling in state-of-the-art facilities.  In one of the most expensive places to manufacture high-grade steel, wolfram carbide & diamond tooling in the world.  Yet they're probably the biggest manufactories of their type anywhere.

Virtually the entire high-end OEM suppliers of jigsaw blades rely on Bobby Bosch/Scintilla SA to actually make their blades.

 

[bertv]

AFAIK the Festool blades are made by Bosch, so this is a baffling issue…

 

[techne]

Thanks very much for the replies. It's good to know that the Bosch blades should work without issue.

I am adjusting the guide blocks for blade thickness with each blade change.  That's an interesting point about adjusting between pendulum settings, [member=9481]aloysius[/member] --I've always been setting the guide blocks at pendulum setting 3. 

I've also tried leaving the guide blocks relatively wide open, but I still run into this issue. 
I've experimented with adjusting the blade guides laterally, using the torx set screw, to ensure clearance on both sides of the blade.

I just put in a clean Bosch blade.  I set the guides a bit further apart than I think they should be, and adjusted the blade guides laterally to centre the blade relative to the guide blocks.  I then made a 16" long straight cut through 1" thick maple.

The blade was hot at the end of the cut, but not burned.  There is a distinctive scratch mark along the centre of the face of the blade on one side, and no damage on the other side.  This is making me wonder whether the guide block is damaged, with some small projection causing friction.

Perhaps the layer of paint on the Festool blades accommodates the small defect/projection on the guide block while still providing blade support; while on the Bosch blade that projection immediately creates a lot of friction and heat?

Or is this wear pattern normal?

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[koenbro]

I regularly use Bosch blades in my Carvex largely because I still have a stock of the blades from when I had a Bosch (made in Switzerland) jigsaw, that I sold when I got my Carvex. It seems as if the Bosch blades fit in a tiny little bit easier. That said, I adjust the guides every time  I put in a blade, regardless of type or make.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[semenza]

Looks like it might be an issue of nailing the  adjustment based on your last test.  Do you have a Festool blade that you can try again for testing purposes?  You had said it runs without a problem with the Festool blades.

Seth

 

[mrboult]

There should be a little space either side of the blade between the guides. I probably set to about 0.3mm either side.

I don't really get why people are saying the pendulum setting affects it, surely that's the other plane of movement? I've never noticed the roller adjusting forward or back enough to affect the blade in the slope of the guide jaws, am i wrong here? My jigsaw is probably mostly set on 0 when setting the blade guides.

Either way, I've been using my trion  for over 5 years and think it is head and shoulders the best I've ever used. My blades get marked by the guides because that's exactly what they are there for, they keep the blade straight when it tries to twist in a curve...

Marked blades should surely be expected, burnt blue or sparking probably means the guide jaws are too tight..

The wear on the back half of my blades would probably ruin the blade eventually, but i find the blade dulls well before the wear on the rear is even close to being an issue.