Thread: High RPMs on Table Saws

Hi Nathan,

I am not familiar with the unit, beyond walking past them when they were available a while ago.

When you say the unit is rated at 6500RPM, where does this info come from, an ID plate on the unit, the manual/userguide, or the printing on the blade?

Most saws in the 10inch size range run at around 4000 -4500RPM and have blades rated in the 6000-6500RPM range, so there is a safety factor of around 50% on the saw manufacturers part. The blades themselves would have a similar or greater safety factor as well, designed to operate at 9000-10000RPM but labelled for 6000 - 6500 as a safety factor to minimise problems and legal implications.

I would not comment on the likely running speed of the unit without direct knowledge of it, but most local table saws are belt drive, with 2850RPM induction motors and a step up of around 3:2 in the belt drive. A few use brushed motors (like routers and circular saws) and direct drive the blade. In that instance it is hard to guess what the manufacturers have done, but the speed would vary significantly with load.

If you can live with a slightly smaller blade. I noticed Masters have a 3 pack of 9 1/4 in (235mm) Bosch optiline blade set in different tooth counts for $59 at the moment. The blades are rated at 6500 rpm.

Thank-you malb, the saw is indeed rated at 6500 rpm, and the blades that came with it are rated at 6500 as well. I would assume that it is not belt driven as it does not say so, and does not have any soft-start or constant speed electronics in it. I mostly work with softwood up to 19mm and occasionally 35-40mm, so from your comment I would assume a good Irwin blade would hold up nicely. Obviously eventually I want to upgrade to higher grade pro saw.