Rip blade help

[Michael]

I have a Forrest WW2 that I've been using on my table saw for rips but never liked it's performance.

I'd like to get a blade exclusively designed for ripping.

For what I do, I really don't need perfection....I usually rip 1/2" oak or walnut for a product.

The priority.... I want an easier and FASTER feed and NO burn marks.

I was looking at the Amana RB1020 20 tooth blade for example, which is a completely different design from their 30 tooth "glue line" blade....and it seems that most (systi matic and others) offer this choice....

A 20-24 tooth rip blade or a 30 tooth "glue line".

How different are they and any suggestions?

Like I say, just faster with clean edges and something that will last.

[Duane Bozarth]

...

Faster, go w/ 20/24-tooth. "Glue-line" blades will tend to burn more easily. But, w/ only 1/2" thick material, as long as you don't have terribly under-powered saw, either should be fine.

Amana is good stuff, imo you can't go wrong w/ it....

[Swingman]

Ditto. I've had their 8" dado stack for a number of years now, cut a lot of dadoes with it, never been sharpened, and it's still going strong.

[arw01]

Something is not correct with either your blade, your fence setup, or your feed methods. There is no burning when set up correctly. Do you have board buddies? They make it possible to actually stop midway in a cut and get no blade marks or scorching. They are, however, a pain in the ass for feeding the stock through the blade.

My first forest was a bit out of round and caused an excessive amount of sawdust to come forward off the blade and saw marks.

The only time I have burning is when I dont' feed properly, or the wood pinches my micro-jig splitter from internal stress relief.

Alan

[CW]

What? The forrest is the end all of table saw blades. You should be able to cut whole planets into quarters and glue them back together with no edge prep. You have to be wrong. Now go pray to the Forrest blade god and hope he will forgive your blasphemy.

[Michael]

Ok...I will.

Just don't tell him I'm going to buy the Amana 20 tooth.

[Lowell Holmes]

I have the Amana Prestique rip blade, 20 FT that I use for ripping. I'm completely satisfied with it. It makes less noise, uses less hp and makes glue joint quality cuts. I use my WWII for most other cuts. The Amana cost about half what the WWII cost at wood show prices.

[Leon]

I only use a WWII regular kerf and cannot imagine changing blades for rips.

You may want to insure that your TS is set up properly and see if that solves your problem before buying another blade and finding out that the new blade does not help. You want to the rip fence to be as close to dead on parallel to the blade as possible. I suggest that you simply make minor fence adjustments and make test cuts until you get the results that you are looking for. The WWII in good shape is quite capable of delivering burn free and glass smooth rips.

[Michael]

Yeah......the Forrest is a great blade but I think part of the problem is I need something a bit more forgiving and my Sears table saw (that I'm constantly setting up) is a piece of shit.

Glad to hear the 20 tooth Amana has some fans.

My needs right now are more of a production thing.

Thanks.

[bridgerfafc]

I have a blade for fast rips in hard wood that performs well, within it's parameters. it has maybe 20 teeth, flat top. it never burns, but the edge it leaves needs to be surfaced- plenty of visible tooth marks. for roughing out in thick hardwoods, it's great. it cuts fast, almost no effort to push 3" thick oak through it. I forget, but I think it's either amana or wkw. I think wkw.

if you need a better cut, the blade will likely have other than a flat top tooth configuration. and be fussier.

have you contacted forrest about the performance you're getting with the blade you have? their service is supposed to be pretty good. they also make blades closer to the configuration you're looking for.

bottom line is that matching the right blade to your application will make it go faster and better, which means you save money. the cost of the blade is insignificant in the long run. don't be afraid to try a few blades to figure out what works best on your machine, in your shop, by your operators, in your materials. there is no magic one blade does everything best solution, forrest junkies notwithstanding.

[Jim]

No, what you need is a saw with a better fence. What I do with my Sears saw is clamp the fence to the table at both ends. I try to get it as close to parallel as possible (but all too often that isn't parallel at all). When I do succeed my WWII yields glass smooth cuts with no burns. I see a replacement fence just over the horizon. Jim

[Lowell Holmes]

[DIYGUY]

[Steve knight]

what tooth is it? I find the 30t forrest blade actually rips faster then any rip blade I have used down to 20t blades. it also rips smoother and with less problems. though the wood tends to bind it worse when it clamps the wood then a rip blade did but that's the only part that is worse about it. sounds like a setup issue or a dull blade. Knight-Toolworks

handmade wooden planes

[Steve knight]

want one cheap? I have a amana I think a CMT and maybe a Freud rip blade I no longer use. they suck compared to the forrest blade. Knight-Toolworks

handmade wooden planes

[root]

Generally speaking, virtually any rip blade will outperform any combo blade for ripping.

But, even if that were not so, it makes good sense to go buy a cheaper rip blade and SAVE your WWII for other stuff, where a glass-like finish counts.

[Steve knight]

I have not found this so. though it may be because I cut only tropical's.

Knight-Toolworks

handmade wooden planes

[root]

Interesting...I'm basing my observation on cutting northern species such as maple oak, cherry, fir plywood, etc.

I always wanted to do someth> On Mon, 12 Sep 2005 01:33:55 GMT, [e-mail] wrote: >

[Steve knight]

I find working with tropical's usually far easier then American woods. usually they are not as or at all case hardened so bind far less. they usually mill with less tearout too. I can rip 8/4 purpleheart with less effort then I can maple. I only rip on my jet contractors saw but with the forrest 30t blade I can rip faster with it then a 20 or 24t rip blade. I don't know if it was the same with an American wood I can't remember. but I can plane it and joint it with less tearout too. though it sure eats up bandsaw blades. I may get a week out of a regular metal blade a couple of months out of a bi metal blade. now sanding them is far more work though. but the polish up better for the most part and need less finish. Knight-Toolworks

handmade wooden planes

[bridger]

lignum vitae is kind of fun to work. it's hard as hell, but full of oil, so it's a lubricated cut. smoooth. and it smells nice, too.