Table Saw Blade and Miter Saw Blade

[xli1]

Excuse me for asking this stupid question: What is the difference between the blades used on table saw and miter saw? Can I exchange them? I am kind of confusing about this. Thanks in advance for clarifying this!

[Tom Miller]

To some degree, you can interchange blades. Beyond making sure they're the right diameter, you need to make sure the kerf width is OK. Then, it's a matter of performance.

A TS blade usually has a positive hook angle, whereas the MS blade will have a zero or negative hook angle. The main effect that you will notice is the amount of tearout you get during a cut. But even this can be mitigated by such methods as pre-scribing the cut line, or placing masking tape over the intended cut line.

Regards,
Tom

[LarryG]

Ain't no such thang as a stupid question on this here forum, podna.

Blades for miter saws (and radial arms, too) should have a negative hook angle, which means that as you look at the blade from the side, the tips of the teeth lean backwards, away from the direction of rotation. This provides a less aggressive but smoother cut.

Table saw blades have the opposite: a positive hook angle, in which the tips of the teeth lean towards the direction of rotation. This allows faster feed rates, and helps reduce heat build-up during rip cuts.

[vaking]

1). There is a difference between CMS and sliding CMS or Radial arm saw. Having a blade with positive hook angle on a CMS will cause less than perfect performance, on the sliding CMS and radial arm saw the same will be unsafe because the saw will attack you (try to advance on you).
2). Table saw can make rip cuts and crosscuts and anything in between. So there are different types of blades for table saws; blades specialized for ripping, for crosscutting or the universal type (the in-between). CMS can only crosscut. The blade for CMS is a crosscut blade always. That is the blade with as many teeth as possible.

[Knottscott]

You can use a blade with a slightly positive hook on a CMS but typically not real steep like most general purpose or rip blades. +5 to 10 max... many have very low to neg hook. A TS can crosscut with a low to neg hook blade but won't rip too efficiently and can tend to burn more. I've used +10 degree blades on my CMS but you do have to hold them down well.

[jziegler]

I am currently using a blade with a higer hook angle on my CMS (non slider) because it's the best that was available locally after I bought my saw. It's a Freut Tk806, which is a very good crosscut blade for the table saw, a good plywood blade, and decent on the miter saw (better than the 40 tooth blade that came with the saw, gives a smooth cut). Is it ideal? probably not. But I haven't had any problems with the higher hook angle so far.

Of course, on my current project, I've had to move it back and forth between table saw and CMS several times, it's the only good playwood blade I currently have, my stock (China) blade is pretty dull after a year of use and I haven't decided what to replace it with.

By the way, the Frued website lists the blade as a suggestion for cross cutting for both miter and table saws.

Jim

[LCHIEN]

Another way of looking at this question:

Blades are similar and a 10" blade will fit both a ten-inch table saw and a 10" miter saw. But the following characteristics distinguish one saw blade from another (in purpose):

• Angle of attack on the teeth (affects agressiveness of cut and tendency of the material to lift)
• Shape of the tooth on top (one saw blade may have several shapes) - flat, beveled (to make through cuts, flat bottom cuts, clean edged cuts in cross, rip, or laminate materials)
• Size of the gullet between teeth (to enable fast material removal like rips)
• Number of teeth (more teeth = more cuts per revolution = smoother cut)

So, given that, miter saws and table saws differ:
Miter saws always make through cuts
Miter saws always crosscut, never rip
Miter saws the blade comes down from above so a highly angled blade will want to lift the workpiece whereas a table saw blade want to push the material down against the table.

Thus, Miter saws perform best with blades having small attack angles, small gullets, many teeth.

Table saw blades are chosen specifically for cross cutting, so they can be just like mitering blades.
But Table saws can also be used for laminates, ripping, partial cuts, or a compromise combination of all of the above and thus use blades that are completely different.