Tips On Selecting Best SAW Blades

Blades are the most important tool in any table saw. Following considerations will be helpful while selecting the right table saw blade. The two major things to consider are the type & size of blade.

Types of Saw Blades:

Rip Blades: A rip blade is designed to cut with the grain of the stock. It has a limited number of very deep teeth, to help clear away the material that is cut. Cross-cut Blade: A crosscut blade cuts with kerf using chisels or carbides that alternate between cutting wide left and wide right every other tooth.

Combination Blades: Combination blades are those that combine the benefits of both rip and crosscut blades, and are quite common. Combination blades come in a variety of tooth counts, typically ranging from as low as 24-tooth to as high as 80-tooth.

Specialty Blades: There are specialty blades for cutting other materials, such as diamond-tipped blades for cutting masonry, or hardened blades for cutting steel and aluminum.

Dado blades: Two types of dado blades are wobble blades & stacked dado set. Wobble blades are cheaper as compared to stacked dado set.

Blade Sizes: Saw blades come in many different sizes, ranging anywhere from 5" to 12", but only certain sizes are available for use on each particular type of saw.

Circular saw blades are typically 7-1/4" in diameter, whereas table saws, radial arm saws and compound miter saws will most often use 10" or 12" blades.