Circular saw blades! …what’s the best / what do you use?

Thought I’d start a circular saw blade thread since we all use them everyday.

What kind of blades do you use?

This is my current saw… I have the following blades: Milwaukee stock blade, 24 tooth Diablo Blade, & 40 tooth Dewalt blade.

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I’ve mainly used Diablo blades. Mainly because I go to home depot to get blades and that’s what they have. I’m getting ready to grab a CMT blade just to try.

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I got a killer deal awhile back on Diablo blades, tooth count escapese at the moment. I just picked up a Dewalt framing blade, 24 teeth?

Going to use it on pt 2×10’s for deck frame.

just to touch base with this thread here is a guide that may help people picking the right blade …

Diablo aren’t bad but not like these.  Awesome blades.

isent that how the saying goes always bet on black not red lol.

DesignedFailure wrote:

Diablo aren’t bad but not like these.  Awesome blades.

Amazon Armana tool

I get them from amazon. Armana tool is the brand 

The best blade you can buy is Forrest, and this is not for debate, there’s an entire industry that backs them up. But I use Diablo because I don’t do a lot of precision high level cuts with fine carpentry so the value just isn’t there to use top of the line blades. I’ve used a whole bunch of different kinds of blades and I get the best results with Diablo, the best wear with Diablo, and the value is fantastic considering the quality of carbide they use and how stable they are with their thin kerf line, which makes me more productive by decreasing resistance and cutting much faster. They also stay clean far longer than other steel and coatings I’ve used.

There’s better out there, but value often times wins out over quality when the differences are so marginal. If you have deep pockets, buy a set of Forrest and never look back, if not, I’d recommend Diablo. The Mamba blades are one that I have not tried, and judging from the lack of reviews online, I’d say they have a long way to go to gain a following to prove longevity and reliability. Might be the best blades ever not saying they’re not, but I’ll wait for more information. 

comp56 wrote:

2 hours ago, comp56 said:

just to touch base with this thread here is a guide that may help people picking the right blade …

 

 

I knew this was around here somewhere….

I had a yo-yo called the black mamba, lots of fun when I was a kid, automatic clutch too, wore out a dozen strings I used it so much, then the plastic cracked and the clutch stopped working

Tool Shop……free at Menards [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji51]


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Hugh Jass wrote:

32 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

The best blade you can buy is Forrest, and this is not for debate, there’s an entire industry that backs them up. But I use Diablo because I don’t do a lot of precision high level cuts with fine carpentry so the value just isn’t there to use top of the line blades. I’ve used a whole bunch of different kinds of blades and I get the best results with Diablo, the best wear with Diablo, and the value is fantastic considering the quality of carbide they use and how stable they are with their thin kerf line, which makes me more productive by decreasing resistance and cutting much faster. They also stay clean far longer than other steel and coatings I’ve used.

 

There’s better out there, but value often times wins out over quality when the differences are so marginal. If you have deep pockets, buy a set of Forrest and never look back, if not, I’d recommend Diablo. The Mamba blades are one that I have not tried, and judging from the lack of reviews online, I’d say they have a long way to go to gain a following to prove longevity and reliability. Might be the best blades ever not saying they’re not, but I’ll wait for more information. 

Wont doubt you because of only one thing you said Forrest blades. They are a very good blade. But I like the Armana. different strokes for different folks.

try one they are bit cheaper than the Forrest but a bit more than Diablo. To me I like a good blade on my saws. Makes my life easier and what ever is easier makes me more money.

I’m like you occasionally looking at other brand blades in hope something better will show up, but it almost never does and I haven’t found a circular saw blade that will compete with diablo.  Particularly if you run into unexpected* stuff in a cut the Diablo blades are the best especially for the price, and by a large margin if you buy a bunch on sale.

*Who am I kidding we all say screw it and cut regardless of what’s there by the end of the day.

Hugh Jass wrote:

The best blade you can buy is Forrest, and this is not for debate, there’s an entire industry that backs them up. But I use Diablo because I don’t do a lot of precision high level cuts with fine carpentry so the value just isn’t there to use top of the line blades. I’ve used a whole bunch of different kinds of blades and I get the best results with Diablo, the best wear with Diablo, and the value is fantastic considering the quality of carbide they use and how stable they are with their thin kerf line, which makes me more productive by decreasing resistance and cutting much faster. They also stay clean far longer than other steel and coatings I’ve used.

 

There’s better out there, but value often times wins out over quality when the differences are so marginal. If you have deep pockets, buy a set of Forrest and never look back, if not, I’d recommend Diablo. The Mamba blades are one that I have not tried, and judging from the lack of reviews online, I’d say they have a long way to go to gain a following to prove longevity and reliability. Might be the best blades ever not saying they’re not, but I’ll wait for more information. 

I like frued for the money they are great and last


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77Ford wrote:

13 hours ago, 77Ford said:

Forrest in the table saw in the shop, whatever I come across for my circular saw lol and the stock blades in the miter saws yet ha, probably should look at other options….

JimboS1ice wrote:

11 hours ago, JimboS1ice said:

 

Freud blades are up there with Forrest, the diablos are more their contractor grade but they have Freud ones that give the Forrest a run for their money


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I’m a contractor so Diablo it is, lol. Honestly I have never seen a direct comparison between the two, but the reviews for both a great for a reason. Again…the marginal differences vs quality comparison. If I strike a hidden faster with a Diablo I shed a tear, and keep going. If I hit one with a Forest or high end Freud full kerf I’ll cry a river. 

Economies of scale is hard to argue among the elite. 

Hugh Jass wrote:

 

I’m a contractor so Diablo it is, lol. Honestly I have never seen a direct comparison between the two, but the reviews for both a great for a reason. Again…the marginal differences vs quality comparison. If I strike a hidden faster with a Diablo I shed a tear, and keep going. If I hit one with a Forest or high end Freud full kerf I’ll cry a river. 

 

Economies of scale is hard to argue among the elite. 

JimboS1ice wrote:

4 minutes ago, JimboS1ice said:

 

Went to a rocker grand opening and they had both blades there and the nice thing about the frued was the coating on it, carbide was both large for resharpening, maybe a little more on the Freud


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Is it a different kind of teflon? 

Hugh Jass wrote:

 

Is it a different kind of teflon? 

Okay, just wondering what made them better or worth the higher investment. 

Hugh Jass wrote:

Okay, just wondering what made them better or worth the higher investment. 

If you chip a tooth, a new one can be put back on if you have that kind of service available. I have yet to inquire about that where I get my blades sharpened…. 

So is the shiny silver Freud blades the higher end blades? Just Freud and silver. I don’t have a picture. But I’ll try to get one later…

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I use Freud industrial blades. Have a few Diablo s for the cordless circular saw. I have never heard a bad thing about makita saw blades. Actually they seem to be highly praised fr people who use them.

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I use Freud blades on mine and they are great , also use Freud in my mitre saw


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Well the Dewalt framing blade I picked up has pretty well crapped out. Got dull quick in wet PT 2×10’s. Switched to my 40t Diablo.

Just to throw this out there  Freud and Diablo are a Bosch company.

rrich1 wrote:

On 10/1/2016 at 0:09 AM, rrich1 said:

I use Freud industrial blades. Have a few Diablo s for the cordless circular saw. I have never heard a bad thing about makita saw blades. Actually they seem to be highly praised fr people who use them.

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The only Makita blades I’ve used were the gold ones (soccer something another) and black ones, after torching 3 of each on one decking project I came to the firm conclusion they were both equally SHIT. I believe they were supplied by the local Makita event. So there you go. I’m pretty sure that store still has a supply of them left over, and that was 3 years ago. 

So I got this Dewalt 40 tooth blade for half price while back. I was using the regular 24 tooth Diablo for a while. I ran a couple 2 x 4 cuts with my 24T diable and then and then switched to the 40T Dewalt and honestly I didn’t notice a difference… I was super surprised I didn’t notice a difference. Will I only notice when cutting plywood?


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it all depends on the pitch and angle of the blade knef

besides Dewalt blades and Diablo and of two different worlds

Any word yet on when the new Diablo Tracking Point/Tip blades are coming out? Went to HD the other day and couldn’t find them.

I have some of them I believe. They are in the wild now. 

Surfer (aka Nalu) wrote:

46 minutes ago, Surfer (aka Nalu) said:

Any word yet on when the new Diablo Tracking Point/Tip blades are coming out? Went to HD the other day and couldn’t find them.

They have been out for some time, actually seen them at home depot the one time I went there for a warranty on s Ryobi….. I can’t go there often since it’s an hour away. They were doing the 2 pack for like $10

Surfer (aka Nalu) wrote:

4 hours ago, Surfer (aka Nalu) said:

Any word yet on when the new Diablo Tracking Point/Tip blades are coming out? Went to HD the other day and couldn’t find them.

My home depot has them. Heres the link so you can check yours. http://m.homedepot.com/p/Diablo-7-1-4-in-x-24-Teeth-Tracking-Point-Framing-Saw-Blade-D0724R/100008676

Also some old demo blades have the tracking points even though its not marked on the blade. A pack of blades I bought ~4 years ago had them.

olletsocmit wrote:

So I got this Dewalt 40 tooth blade for half price while back. I was using the regular 24 tooth Diablo for a while. I ran a couple 2 x 4 cuts with my 24T diable and then and then switched to the 40T Dewalt and honestly I didn’t notice a difference… I was super surprised I didn’t notice a difference. Will I only notice when cutting plywood?


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olletsocmit wrote:

On 10/26/2016 at 8:34 PM, olletsocmit said:

 

So is it weird that I didn’t notice any difference between the 40 tooth Dewalt and My 24 tooth Diablo? I was going to buy a 40 tooth Diablo but don’t know if it’s worth it since I already have a Dewalt one, didn’t want to buy the Diablo and then not notice a difference either… and waste the money. I know Diablo is not like the only blade out there but I shop at Home Depot so that’s what I get.

Has anyone here used the 40T Diablo and also the 40T Dewalt? Maybe I was just over expecting a much different cut.. who know thou.


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It really is dependent on what you’re cutting and how you’re cutting it to see a real difference. I’ve compared the Diablo 24t(newest trackingpoint models) and 40t Diablo though on my Fuel 7-1/4″ and my observations are as follows:

The 24t cross cuts easier and quicker but it cuts smooth enough as it is that the 40t is not crazy smoother in soft wood like pine but the 40 does tear out less and it does have a bit smoother edge. For rips the 40t feels much more likely to bog down and burn the wood a bit. I ripped some hard maple and needed a really smooth cut with minimal tear out making a cut on a painted maple kitchen cabinet to custom fit a range top and the 40t needed to take its time and burned the edge a little which wasn’t a huge deal at all because it was hidden but what I couldn’t afford was any chips and it did a great job. I needed to rip down some 2x4x8’s  at some point and forgot I left the 40t blade on it and actually caused the the 5.0 battery on the fuel to kick into overheat protection and shut down 6ft down the board, never had that happen before. The 24t ripped MUCH easier in the same situation and didn’t overheat the battery. The 40t was probably having trouble clearing the sawdust with the smaller gullets and more teeth. I think the fuel being brushless it will power through and not get too bogged down in most situations at the expense of more draw on the battery. In most cases you probably won’t notice this but ripping long boards it is more likely to show itself.

I’ve been looking into the world of circular saw blades because of some upcoming products and my new Fuel 10″ miter and I do wonder how much marketing plays in all this blade tooth count because you have to consider a few things. Tooth count should be irrelevant because it really should be tooth per inch like a jig saw blade. The travel of the circumference of the blade and how many teeth cut through the material per inch of travel is really what matters.  When you think about it a 7 1/4″ saw blade has a circumference of about 22.75″ which means a 40t and 24t blades will have 1.76 and 1.05 teeth per inch respectively. A fine finish 12″ blade on a miter has a circumference of 37.7″ and with 60t gives you about 1.59 teeth per inch, slightly worse than the 40t 7 1/4″. Heck I have an ancient little Ryobi 5 3/8″ with a Diablo 36t blade and on such a tiny circumference it has 2.13 teeth per inch and it does give a super clean cut. Now you even have these combination blades that have different configurations and less teeth that supposedly give great cuts so teeth count apparently isn’t the end all be all.

Hey Guys, try using either the CMT ITK Industrial 7-1/4 x 24T x 5/8″ Framing & Decking Blade, ****4 Star-Best Quality 250.024.07 or CMT Contractor ITK-Plus 7 1/4″ x 24T x 5/8″ Fast Framing Blade, ***3 Star-Better Quality P07024 blades.  They cut better and last longer than anything you may buy in the big box stores.  Good Luck!