Did I ruin my new blade?

[Wesley Nance]

I got a Freud 40 tooth blade for Christmas, had it on the saw for one day and my belts broke (saw is several years old) Now I've replaced the belts, and I cut through one of the Ryobi ZCTP's to try it out, even though I know it's not the ideal ZCTP.

Anyway, put the blade all the way up today for a non through cut, and then cranked it back down for normal 3/4" ripping. I had some trouble cranking it down, and realized that the anti kickback pawls had caught in the plastic of the ZCTP, kind of a pain. So, I freed them, got the blade down, and on my next cut I noticed some sparks, they immediately stopped, I finished the cut and turned the saw off, and had to leave for a while.

Upon coming back, trying to figure out why in the world I would see sparks, I realized that the riving knife had been pulled down towards the blade when the pawls caught in the throat place, and it had contacted the blade slightly, hence the sparks.

Upon closer inspection of the blade, I can only find one tooth that has chipped on the miter table side of the blade. I can't decide if the blade seems like it has more runout now, but at speed it looks stable.

So, for those of you that know better, have I riuned this new blade, or can I use it like this? The cuts it is making seem fine, but I don't want to use it if it's not safe.

Grrr, a little frustrating, but at least it wasn't a WWII, right?

Thanks,

Wes

[LCHIEN]

chances are you can run with that chipped tooth, esp. if you think the cuts are OK.

You can also have the chipped tooth replaced. Most blade sharpening services I have seen offer carbide tooth replacements for just a few dollars.

[Uncle Cracker]

One chipped tooth will not make or break you, unless it's been knocked out of alignment with the others, in which case it would make your cuts appear ragged. If the cuts look OK, then you're fine.

[Schleeper]

Grrr, a little frustrating, but at least it wasn't a WWII, right?

Wes, I wish you hadn't said that.

I just finished making a ZCTP for my BT3000 on Sunday. I thought I was being pretty clever, making it out of some scrap laminate flooring that I had laying around. I think it came out OK (it sags a little, but not too bad.) Some sparks flew when I was cutting the kerf, which didn't bother me because I remember that happening when I cut the flooring to install it. However, when I made a test cut on a piece of 1X pine, you would have thought it was 4x4 pressure treated!

I took off the blade, and upon inpection discovered that the front and top surfaces of every carbide tip was coated with a waxy brown residue. With a consistency not unlike a crayon, I had to scrape the stuff off with a razor blade! I finished cleaning the blade with Goof Off and super fine steel wool, and after applying some car wax the blade looked better than when I bought it 3 months ago. Until you looked at it closely, that is. Then you could clearly see that one half of each carbide tip's cutting edge - alternating between left halves and right halves - had been blunted. It's an ATB blade; the laminate's hard plastic coating had done a number on the higher, leading edge of each tip.

Lesson learned: if I ever have to cut laminate flooring again, don't use my WWII! I probably could have purchased a couple ZCTP's for what it's costing me to sharpen my practically new blade.

[Scottydont]

Wes, I wish you hadn't said that.

I just finished making a ZCTP for my BT3000 on Sunday. I thought I was being pretty clever, making it out of some scrap laminate flooring that I had laying around. I think it came out OK (it sags a little, but not too bad.) Some sparks flew when I was cutting the kerf, which didn't bother me because I remember that happening when I cut the flooring to install it. However, when I made a test cut on a piece of 1X pine, you would have thought it was 4x4 pressure treated!

I took off the blade, and upon inpection discovered that the front and top surfaces of every carbide tip was coated with a waxy brown residue. With a consistency not unlike a crayon, I had to scrape the stuff off with a razor blade! I finished cleaning the blade with Goof Off and super fine steel wool, and after applying some car wax the blade looked better than when I bought it 3 months ago. Until you looked at it closely, that is. Then you could clearly see that one half of each carbide tip's cutting edge - alternating between left halves and right halves - had been blunted. It's an ATB blade; the laminate's hard plastic coating had done a number on the higher, leading edge of each tip.

Lesson learned: if I ever have to cut laminate flooring again, don't use my WWII! I probably could have purchased a couple ZCTP's for what it's costing me to sharpen my practically new blade.

You found out the hard way like I did. Laminate flooring is coated with a silica like substance which is why the surface is so durable and resists scratching. The downside is that it very hard on TS blades. I use Freud blades on my Delta hybrid but I swap it out for a Dewalt cheapo blade when I am cutting laminate.

[Knottscott]

Wes, I wish you hadn't said that.

I just finished making a ZCTP for my BT3000 on Sunday. I thought I was being pretty clever, making it out of some scrap laminate flooring that I had laying around. I think it came out OK (it sags a little, but not too bad.) Some sparks flew when I was cutting the kerf, which didn't bother me because I remember that happening when I cut the flooring to install it. However, when I made a test cut on a piece of 1X pine, you would have thought it was 4x4 pressure treated!

I took off the blade, and upon inpection discovered that the front and top surfaces of every carbide tip was coated with a waxy brown residue. With a consistency not unlike a crayon, I had to scrape the stuff off with a razor blade! I finished cleaning the blade with Goof Off and super fine steel wool, and after applying some car wax the blade looked better than when I bought it 3 months ago. Until you looked at it closely, that is. Then you could clearly see that one half of each carbide tip's cutting edge - alternating between left halves and right halves - had been blunted. It's an ATB blade; the laminate's hard plastic coating had done a number on the higher, leading edge of each tip.

Lesson learned: if I ever have to cut laminate flooring again, don't use my WWII! I probably could have purchased a couple ZCTP's for what it's costing me to sharpen my practically new blade.

Ouch...but the good news is that if it's just the tips, a sharpening should bring them back to life without replacing the teeth.

Wes (or anyone), is the riving knife aluminum or steel?

[LCHIEN]

the riving knife from Ryobi is steel.

[Knottscott]

the riving knife from Ryobi is steel.

I suppose that's better for the RK, but worse for the carbide. Give the blade a good inspection, and if it looks fit, try it and see how it cuts...stand off to the side until you're confident the carbide will stay intact.

With Amazon's 25% off Freud, that should put a new LU86R010 to your door for $31.50, or an Avanti TK306 for $17.34 but you'll need to add a $2 item to get free s/h.

Wes - I just realized we're neighbors!

[LinuxRandal]

I suppose that's better for the RK, but worse for the carbide. Give the blade a good inspection, and if it looks fit, try it and see how it cuts...stand off to the side until you're confident the carbide will stay intact.

I agree, but UNPLUG the saw and make sure the tooth isn't loose. Chipped is one thing, but flying carbide is another, one mistake needn't be two.

[Wesley Nance]

Thanks for the safety tips- I'll check it out and make a few more test cuts and make sure everything is OK. . .

Wes