Best Blade for the Money...

[rynopolis]

I have started building my first projects (Outdoor furniture) finally with some help from this site. But I am not happy with the Dewalt blade I purchased for my BT3000(Original was gone on purchase used). I have read many of the articles I could find on blade suggestions, but when I search their prices, I am shocked... So what is the best blade for the price I may be able to find at HD or Lowes or Online? I saw at HD a Freud Diablo(??) for about $40 if I remember right. Was not sure if there was a difference I should look for. I would ultimately like it to be a good overall blade, but the kickback with this dewalt is making me worry about the longevity of my BT3000 as it tends to nearly stop the blade in track.

[Sawatzky]

Frued blades are good and you can find them in the box stores. You should be able to get a good blade for $40.00. I bought a Hitachi 40 thooth blade on Amazon for $15.00. It worked very well and cut very clean. I still have it, but have since upgraded to Forrest WWII. the Forrest definatley cuts better and smoother, and will last longer. But comparing the two side by side, the Hitachi is for sure the better value.

[poolhound]

There are lots of great threads on this site about blade choices, do a search and you will find many, they all make interesting reading.

At the higher end the Forrest WWII always gets rave reviews but you are looking at ~$100. Likewize for the high end Freud or Tenryu

Here is a link to a fairly extensive test conducted by Wood magazine where these high end blades along with midrange and cheapies were run through various woods and scenarios. You can read the results and decide for yourself.

http://www.woodmagazine.com/woodworking-tools/reviews/blades-bits-and-supplies/blade-retesting-results-are-in/

Currently I have:

Stock Ryobi blade - OK but probably needs sharpening
HD Freud rip blade - Thin Kerf and does just what its intended for
Oshlun crosscut - Mainly stays in my CMS but have used in my BT to good effect
Tenryu gold medal - I recently picked one of these up at a local sale and am very happy with it. It picked up lots of good notes in the blade test above.

Ultimatley you get what you pay for. The benefits of the better, higher priced blades are cleaner and easier cutting, consistency and ability to resharpen. SOme of the cheaper blades may be OK for a while but are ultimatley disposable.

Hope that helps

[Knottscott]

For good value it's usually tough to beat the entry level Freud's, depending on current sale prices....Amazon has the Avanti TK306 40T for < $27 shipped...Lowe's may have it too. HD will have the Diablo 1040 for < $30. The PC Razor is also available at HD for < $30 and is decent.

Holbren has the Tenryu RS25540 for ~ $30 shipped. That blade is nearly full kerf though at .118". He has great deals on the Oshlun 40T which is also full kerf.

DeWalt has several lines at different quality levels. Their new Precision Trim series is pretty decent and sometime goes on sale real cheap. I'd try to avoid the Skil, Marathon, B&D Piranha, Workforce and other really cheaply made blades....they'll be more expensive in the long run.

[LCHIEN]

I'm concerned about your original post. Even an inexpensive blade should not kickback and stop. Dewalts are not generally bargain blades, either. Makes me think there's something wrong with your setup or technique!!!

You want to tell us more?

[cgallery]

What DeWalt blade do you have? I use the yellow "Precision Trim" blades and I think they're outstanding.

I'm w/ Loring on this one, tell us more about what is going on.

[dkerfoot]

Holbren has the Tenryu RS25540 for ~ $30 shipped.

I have one and it is a good all-purpose blade. Don't forget to use the code: BT310 and get 10% off!

I agree that what you describe sounds very, very wrong. Don't use it again until you have it figured out.

[rynopolis]

Thank you for all of the suggestions! I Agree something might be wrong when both blades I have had did the same thing. An example of when this happens is cutting 5/8 plywood, it will go good for about say 15 inches of 24, then starts to get caught and wants to stop. I bring it back, let it get full throttle again and feed the rest. It often hangs at end, which I am sure is a combo of technique and the problem with the saw. Not sure what to do. I was thinking the blade may be too tight, but really don't know.

[Tom Slick]

sounds like your rip fence is out of adjustment and angled toward the blade.

[Ed62]

Yeah, it does sound like your rip fence is not aligned properly. This can be very dangerous! Make sure to check that the fence is not closer to the back of the blade than the front. This can/will cause kickback, which you don't want to see.

Ed

[cdub101]

I just replaced my extension cords. I was getting burning and tough cuts`in 3/4" cherry. I do think my blades is dull, but the upgrade to a 12 guage extentsion cord helped a lot. I don't know if that is an issue for you but I figre it may help someine else.

[Hoover]

It does seem that the wood is being "pinched" and causing problems. Like everyone is saying check your rip fence alignment. Kickbacks are dangerous.

[JoeyGee]

I would also make sure you aren't using a circuit that is overused. It will run much better on a dedicated circuit.

[rynopolis]

Absolutely right everyone. Aligned the rip fence tonight. Did a couple test cuts on the same wood that stalled last night and bingo! Measured both ends of the strips and aligned! Thanks again everyone.