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Time to put new blades in my Ryobi thicknesser, and I came across some Carbatec tungsten blades. $89 vs $36 for the HSS.
Anyone tried tungsten on a thicknesser? My router has them of course, but I'm really not sure how they would go in a blade 319mm wide, so I'm keen to hear from any experiences.
Thanks!
Haven't heard of anyone with experience with the tungsten but just remember that they will have to be sharpened at some point in time and unless you have the gear for that it could be problematic for you.
My take on this comes from Paper Guillotines. They have a HSS steel "carrier" to which the tungsten is permanently attached. When I asked my saw doctor about taking old blades (which become too narrow to use from sharpening, he used to sharpen these for me too) and creating woodworking edges his comment was that the tungsten from these would be too brittle and chip easily, but the edge on them is as close to pure tungsten as you could get. If the HSS and a portion of tungsten you could be OK...
OK, so their site says "carbon steel with an inlay of 18% tungsten", which means that they are just tipped with HSS that has 18% tungsten in it, which is what all good knife steel should be. They are NOT tungsten carbide like router bits.
You can get carbide tipped blades as well, but I wouldn't do it unless you're working with very abrasive stuff.
The 18% is a good option
Thanks! That was good info and triggered a recent memory. The blades I have been looking at are made from W18CR4V, and your mention of 18% made me think of the W18 part. Did a bit of googling and learned what you have been saying, that it is HSS alloyed with Tungsten. These are $36 delivered, so I'll give them a go.Quote:
Originally Posted by elanjacobs
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/HSS-...77f52e0eQkeF72
Thanks for the advice!
That's a good price. Be interesting to get your opinion of them when they arrive.
Well I went and ordered them tonight, so it will be about 2 or 3 weeks before they arrive. No doubt they will be great at first. I don't know whether the original blades are HSS or the have the same 18% tungsten mix as these are, so only time will tell.Quote:
Originally Posted by Treecycle
I actually ordered a set of blades recently that turned out to be the wrong size, being for an earlier model Ryobi, and so have them here thinking what to do with them :(
Paid $19 so perhaps I can sell them for $10 to someone.
Which model do they suit?
back to me Saw Doctor again...he's positive that there is some truth stretching in the % of tungsten they claim on chinese imported blades. Pretty hard to prove, but when sharpening he says he can "tell" the difference...Of course he could just be trying to get me to buy his AU made blades..I did buy some off him for my 20" thicky and so far they have really outlasted the set it came with, sharp wise...and I do lots of old jarrah.
In my old thicknesser I used Italian steel blades with 17% tungstan. Apparently don't put too much truth in the Chinese 17 percent tungstan.
My 12 inch blades cost around 40 f
Dollars from memory.
The blades are 320x12x1.5mm and may suit a number of thicknessers, but in particular the older Ryobi AP-12. Mine is the AP-13 which has an all metal body. Latest ones are all plastic externally.Quote:
Originally Posted by Treecycle
What I didn't realise when I ordered is that the size is printed on the blades, and so I should have taken mine out to have a look. Anyway, I have a pair still sealed in plastic going cheap :)
I really looked around for blades and couldn't find anything not made in China. The "British" ones were also from China :)Quote:
Originally Posted by tomartomau
Any idea where you sourced the Italian ones?
I also have the AP-13 so no good for me either.