305mm Mitre Blades

[Brettles]

Need some help choosing a better blade for my saw
It's a 305mm Ryobi Compound Sliding saw. It'll essentially only ever cut wood.
I'm wanting to practice my mitre cuts cause Ill be building a new plinth for my record player and really dont want it to turn out cruddy.
The most I really get about it is the more teeth the better and I assume the thinner the blade the better too.

I cant afford to go the dado set up, more so around the $100 mark maybe a bit more if itll make a big difference.

It seems that the 80 tooth Diablo would be my best bet, but with no room for errors I'd like to make sure before I got it.
http://www.bunnings.com.au/diablo-305mm-80t-mitre-saw-blade_p6370359

Thanks for the help.

[Ratbag]

Thin kerf blades aren't going to be better. In fact there's more chance for blade wobble when cutting. The plates of thicker blades are stiffer & therefore more stable. Where thin kerf blades excel is in low powered tools, esp. the cordless mitre & circular saws currently on the market.

You haven't mentioned your saw's arbor size. This will limit blade availability. If the arbor is metric, then it's probably 30mm, meaning that you will get blades from Oz, the UK or Europe. Of these, Bosch/Freud or DeWalt make quality alternatives. There's differences in quality even within any manufacturer's range, so it's really a case of exercising caution.

If it's imperial blades you're after the you'll need to be shopping from the states. I have the latter size (one inch arbor) & have had good results with blades from Oldham & Amana. These are available at extremely good prices by airmail from the states. You won't be able to get any metric sizes from the states however: they still cling tenaciously to their 17th century weights & measures.

[Brettles]

according to the specs sheet the saw has a 30mm arbor so ill guess ill be hunting locally or europe way.

its a weird thing, I was born in the 80's but I find myself constantly measuring imperially.

I also didnt really think about the thinner blades having speed wobble issues, would a thicker blade with thinner teeth be preferable?

[Sawdust Maker]

have you looked at Carbatec?

you could also talk to Henry Bros

[Brettles]

have you looked at Carbatec?

you could also talk to Henry Bros


I hadnt actually, kind of wrote them off being a trek from Newcastle.
But if I'm considering ordering from Europe I can give them a call

[Optimark]

In another life I worked in an establishment where we had to make extremely precise and clean cuts in a high quality plywood imported from the USA for a specific job.

To make the cuts really sweet, we used either a neutral hook saw blade, or better still, a negative hook saw blade.

Cutting time is slowed down, but when you are after a clean as a whistle cut, speed becomes a very insignificant aspect.

Perhaps you should look up (google maybe) positive hook, neutral hook and negative hook blades and get a feeling from the professional saw blade suppliers/manufacturers, not just the resellers. That said, there are many good resellers out there.

Mick.

[Brettles]

In another life I worked in an establishment where we had to make extremely precise and clean cuts in a high quality plywood imported from the USA for a specific job.

To make the cuts really sweet, we used either a neutral hook saw blade, or better still, a negative hook saw blade.

Cutting time is slowed down, but when you are after a clean as a whistle cut, speed becomes a very insignificant aspect.

Perhaps you should look up (google maybe) positive hook, neutral hook and negative hook blades and get a feeling from the professional saw blade suppliers/manufacturers, not just the resellers. That said, there are many good resellers out there.

Mick.


would this be an example of a negative hook blade?
http://www.bunnings.com.au/irwin-305mm-blade-drop-saw-100t-25-4-bush-21-93016_p6352237

[elanjacobs]

would this be an example of a negative hook blade?
http://www.bunnings.com.au/irwin-305mm-blade-drop-saw-100t-25-4-bush-21-93016_p6352237

Yep and if you want the cleanest possible cut a blade for aluminium is hard to beat.

[Ratbag]

That's something I should've mentioned too. The hook angle makes a real difference when crosscutting.

A zero hook (neutral) provides for a smoother cut when crosscutting in SCMS when cutting from the front: i.e. When you pull the cutter head forwards BEFORE plunging into the cut & feeding the blade back through the workpiece. For "climb" cuts where the blade is merely plunged or with Radial Arm Saws where the blade is pulled into the timber then a negative rake of -5 degrees is an essential aid to smoothness and safety, significantly reducing "snatch".

Generally the greater the thickness is timber cut the less should be the overall tooth count. For SCMS I think an absolute minimum would be 40 teeth for a 300mm blade in scantling, with 60-80 teeth for more general cabinet work, & 100 t the max for ultra-fine work & non ferrous metals. All @ the -5 degree rake. The lower tooth counts generally crosscut at a faster rate but rougher finish, just as with ripping blades.

[Brettles]

I have the blade that came with the saw for general use.

This one I want specifically to give a crisp accurate cut that will look high end (as long as I learn to use it properly).

In the end I would be best to get a 305mm, 30mm arbor, minimum 80 tooth, and a -2 hook angle (is this the rake?) or lower?

[Brettles]

well I dont think Ill buy anything from Carbatec in the future.

Sent them an email asking about my choices and if they could recommend a blade for my saw.

And essentially their response was that if I have a cheap saw I should get a cheap blade to match and my best best would be Bunnings :?

[elanjacobs]

well I dont think Ill buy anything from Carbatec in the future.

Sent them an email asking about my choices and if they could recommend a blade for my saw.

And essentially their response was that if I have a cheap saw I should get a cheap blade to match and my best best would be Bunnings :?

OUCH!!

Carbatec is the last place I'd be going for any kind of useful advice anyway.

80 tooth, and a -2 hook angle (yes, same as rake) should do the trick

[Brettles]

OUCH!!

Carbatec is the last place I'd be going for any kind of useful advice anyway.

80 tooth, and a -2 hook angle (yes, same as rake) should do the trick


hahaha yeh i was kind of taken aback by the email.
great way to encourage someone to buy at your store

[Ari2]

I have an Irwin 12 inch (305 mm), 30 mm arbor, 100t, -2 deg rake (aluminium cutting) in my Dewalt SCMS and it works a treat. :) I bought because I needed to cut some aluminium but also works well on plastic and wood.

[Optimark]

You may wish to give these people a go.

They are based in QLD but do mail order around the country, plus they have some bricks and mortar shops in other states, NSW and Victoria, although I think there is only one store in Melbourne, which is is Dandenong, I have visited it and purchased product there.

Their website has a fair range of stuff on, but they certainly have far bigger range of saw blades than what is shown on their website, including neutral and negative rake blades, I know as I bought one from the Dandenong store. Mine however was only a 254mm blade, but I think they may have your 305mm size blade in stock as a lot of the tradies go for the bigger blade saw for cutting depth.

They were very helpful and both times I visited, they had staff who seemed to know what was what.

I purchased their in-house brand saw blade at a fraction of the cost of whatever else I had seen, not quite comparable to what one could possibly get direct from Asia, but close enough not to be a problem, plus they were open on Saturday morning.

https://www.tradetools.com/

Mick.

[Brettles]

You may wish to give these people a go.

They are based in QLD but do mail order around the country, plus they have some bricks and mortar shops in other states, NSW and Victoria, although I think there is only one store in Melbourne, which is is Dandenong, I have visited it and purchased product there.

Their website has a fair range of stuff on, but they certainly have far bigger range of saw blades than what is shown on their website, including neutral and negative rake blades, I know as I bought one from the Dandenong store. Mine however was only a 254mm blade, but I think they may have your 305mm size blade in stock as a lot of the tradies go for the bigger blade saw for cutting depth.

They were very helpful and both times I visited, they had staff who seemed to know what was what.

I purchased their in-house brand saw blade at a fraction of the cost of whatever else I had seen, not quite comparable to what one could possibly get direct from Asia, but close enough not to be a problem, plus they were open on Saturday morning.

https://www.tradetools.com/

Mick.


Thanks Mick,

Ill drop them a line