Thread: Thin Kerf TS blades

You will only really overheat the blade if you use it a purpose its not intended, ie using a fine crosscut blade for ripping thick hardwood and forcing the cut.
There are some woods that will heat the blade up considerably they tend to contain a lot of waxes and extractives, tallow wood is a good example.
Also always use a splitter/riving knife, because wood can contain tension which releases after being cut the splitter/riving knife keeps the wood from rubbing on the body of the blade/teeth(friction heats it), it also greatly reduces the chance of kickback.

Thin blades can vibrate, so long as the machine is vibration free (and set up properly)plus a blade of good design there shouldnt be any problems. 1.7mm is super thin I wouldnt go cutting thick wood with it... but I could be wrong!

Wot Harry sed.
I have been using Freud thin-kerf (1.8 (I think)mm blades: cross-cut, multi-purpose & rip) for at least 20 years. Very satisfied with results.

Accurate fences and riving knives (neither of which which my saw has ) would make things nicer still, but careful setup & letting the blade cut at its proper pace (good practice whether it's a potato or electron powered tool!) avoids 99% of the problems described....

My 2c....

thanks guys,
I'll give the thin blade a go, and see how things turn out.

Never use a thin kerb blade on a table saw if the "raving knife" or the "splitter" is thicker than the thin kerb blade.

Originally Posted by reuelt

Never use a thin kerb blade on a table saw if the "raving knife" or the "splitter" is thicker than the thin kerb blade.

I hate lookin like a complete newbe noddy but i gotta ask, y not? I'm guessing that the cut timber might catch on the riving knife.

that's the reason the timber will jam because it won't go around the knife. thats all
Regards Michael

I have been using a CMT thin kerf cross cut (finishing) blade and it's nice to have such a thin cut. Have tried it on thick ply and no sign of heat build up and i'm pretty happy with it. Make sure you get a reducing washer if you are buying CMT, most of the 10" blades have a 30mm arbour

The only thing you might also need to do is check the thickness of your splitter/riving knife. I had to remove my splitter (and therefore guard) to use this blade which blows big time! Not the blades fault thou.

Ciao,

M.

I once had a thin kerf blade,
I was ripping a funky piece of blackwood (50mm) and it had massive internal tension. It pinched onto the blade and started to lift up, whilst tring to hold it down and stop the saw, it twisted on the blade a little and the end result was the blade was completly stuffed, it now look like a bowl!

I've had this happen with a thicker (normal) blade with out stuffing it up.

Do not use a thin kerf blade if it is thinner than your TS raving knife or splitter

Originally Posted by Rattrap

I hate lookin like a complete newbe noddy but i gotta ask, y not? I'm guessing that the cut timber might catch on the riving knife.

The "saw line" as the result of using "Thin Kerf blades" will be too narrow to pass thru the "raving knife' or the "splitter" causing a jam as then very high chance of a kick back accident.

Thin kerf blades are not designed for Table Saws because they would be too thin compared with STD thickness of a table saw "raving knife" or splitter.

Just walk to Bunnings. Look at the labels of all "thin kerf blades". They say for
1. Portable Circular saws
2. Sliding compound mitre saws (SCMS) or Compund Mitre saw
There is no mention of Table Saws !!!!!

SO "Thin Kerb Blades" are designed for tools that do not have a raving knife or a splitter.

makes sence.

i have one on my TS but i have the riving knife removed cos it was to thick. no reason it cant be sanded/ground down to the right thickness thow.

i have a 8" saw with a fairly small motor and i use it for resawing slabs the motor would stall befor lifting a 50kg slab up and throwing it back at me.


i hope

Reuel, that is not entirely correct.

The Ryobi BT3100, for example, uses a thin-kerf blade. It has a splitter.

Yup, Ruelt, there are lots of thinner blades made for tablesaws. Obviously, if your saw has a splitter or riving knife, you need to either match it to the blade, or remove it.
They are nice to have, but it is possible to live quite safely without one!

It's all those big brawny saws you blokes own. My gutless little 9" just stalls dead if the blade jams. It has plenty enough power (with my nice thin Freud blades) to rip through any hard wood up to maximum blade depth (65mm)with ease, so long as the blade is sharp. When it starts to grunt a bit at full depth, it's time to break out a sharp blade & send that one off to be sharpened. I'm quite happy with it that way, it does all I need & I feel in control. A fire-breathing 5HP monster would frighten me!

Cheers,

Thin kerf blades for table saws exist of course. But they are usually not as thin. Usually about .99mm or more thick.
(If your have a raving knife thickness is say .91 , then you can use .99 Thin kerf blade.

My point is if you someone buy a very thin kerf blade (meant for SCMS) & try to use on his table saw, that would not be safe.

Removing the "raving knife" is NOT advisable unless you have other protection such as an overhead guard system with anti-kickback claws, for example.