Forrest Blades?

Tom Blank

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Great Pacific Northwest
I'm implementing my post-retirement hobby plan, no production work, just whatever project I decide to work on for my personal pleasure or for the grand-kids.

What's the general consensus on Forrest TS blades? I was looking at a 10" 40 tooth Woodworker II. Do you see a benefit to using a vibration dampener?

Thanks,

TAB
 
I've used WWII blades for about twenty years,and have never used a stabilizer with one. Good blades, for sure, but there are several that are just as good, but lower priced. Look at premium blades by Tenyru or Infinity. Both are very good!
 
I've used stabilizers on other blades, especially thin kerf blades with great success, but have never noticed a diff when using or not using on my forest blade.

Brian
 
Ron, I am going to disagree. It depends on the saw! My old tablesaw, is a BT3100 (but have since gone to a guided circular saw system) and all that I have known with it, did not need or use a thin kerf blade on that saw.
 
Tom, stabalizer are more for the cheap(thin) blades as they have less mass and can vibrate. I perfer the infinity blades, just as good, but saves a few bucks in the check book.
 
i have a forrest and i wont buy another either ,,not that it doesnt work well ,,just that i can get the same use out of a lesser priced blade,, ilike the industrial version of frueds and also have used the infinitys.. it does depend on the saw that you have as to what works well with it..if yu dont have enough hp to run a full kerf blade well then yu need a thin kerf..
 
I used to run stabilizers on my thin kerf blades including my WWII when I had a contractor saw. I kept using them when I upgraded saws but found that after getting the saw more diligently aligned, the stabilizers were unnecessary. With a few exceptions I run all TK blades (only one Forrest out of 8 or 9 blades) with excellent results.
 
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The blade is only one part of the equation. The tablesaw and how it is set up are the other two parts.
Forrest blades are manufactured to exacting standards. They are the only blade I will use in my shop (unless I am cutting junk wood then I use a cheapie that im not concerned about ruining)

I have a cabinet saw, a delta contractor saw and a bosch portable saw. The same Forrest blade will leave a different finish on the edge of a board on each saw.
Your table saw's arbor run out/vibration and how accurately the table, trunion and fence are tuned are what determines most of the quality of your cut. If you are running a less expensive or contractor saw (and I am not being demeaning here so please dont take this wrong) you are not going to realize the benefits of an expensive high quality blade like a Forrest, or the higher end Tenyru's, as they just dont have that level of engineering built into them. The best you can hope for is a reasonably straight and square cut to be cleaned up at the jointer. (and never rely on a tablesaw for your final glue joint, a nice slow shallow pass on the jointer to clean up the cut is what you need)
Another thing, if you bring your lumber in rough and dimension it yourself then use a junk blade for the rough rips and cross cuts and save your "good" blades for the "money" cuts.
With regards to a stabilizer, they are primarily used for thin kerf blades to stiffen them and keep them from flexing. Personally the only benefit I have ever seen to a thin kerf blade was for direct drive, and under powered saws that need to rely on motor rpm instead of hp to cut through the stock. They are more of a curse than they are worth, especially when you need to cut thick stock and do any type of "specialty" cutting, the stabilizer tends to get in the way or has to be removed to make said cuts.
Another big benefit to Forrest is that they are local (Made in USA) and have a service department that not only resharpens your blades to factory spec will tune the blade and repair it for reasonable fees.
 
Sounds like the voice of well-reasoned experience. I have a long way to go before me and my Bosch saw will put out anything that exacting, but what you said about the saw and setup makes sense. :thumb:

Welcome to the "Family" Rich! :wave:
 
I'v been using freud for more years than I can remember.I make custom jewelry boxes where there cuts have to be clean and accurate,I have one on my HF 12" sliding CMS and old craftsman TS and there half the price of Forest and will do just a good of a job.I'm not knocking forrest by any means,I just believe that if you have a 70.00 blade that will do the same job as a 200.00 blade :dunno:
 
I'v been using freud for more years than I can remember.I make custom jewelry boxes where there cuts have to be clean and accurate,I have one on my HF 12" sliding CMS and old craftsman TS and there half the price of Forest and will do just a good of a job.I'm not knocking forrest by any means,I just believe that if you have a 70.00 blade that will do the same job as a 200.00 blade :dunno:

200.00?! who is charging 200.00 for a Forrest? thats about twice MSRP that Forrest puts them out for. A WW2 should only run aroun 90 to 100.00
a WW1 about the same, the Duraline about 100 to 120 and a Chopmaster about the same.
 
Tom - Like Jim and others, I think the Forrest blades are excellent, but I don't think they're the only game in town. The Infinity Super General, Freud Fusion, Tenryu Gold Medal, and Ridge Carbide TS2000 are in the same league, and there are several others that aren't far behind. Some are even superior in some aspects....it really depends on what you're doing and what your expectations are. By expanding your list of comparable blades, you stand a much better chance of snagging a great deal.

The use of stabilizers should be addressed on an "as needed basis" to deal with a problem with a particular saw and/or a particular blade....they're not something I give a blanket recommendation to. IMHO they're often more of a band-aid than a cure for a runout issue somewhere else on the saw. It's true that thin kerf blades in general are more likely to benefit from a stabilizer, but the majority of saws that have low run out and use a high quality TK blade really won't need a stabilizer for the vast majority of cuts. There are some really stiff grained woods that are more likely to force a blade to wander (like mesquite), but most will not. Note that manufacturers tend to suggest them in part because they're profitable....fast food places always seem to suggest their latest and greatest "profit burger" too but that doesn't mean you NEED one. ;)
 
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The miter master is for miter saws used in commercial applications, not the typical machine you find in the average shop. Something like this machine.

http://www.exfactory.com/Detail.aspx?recnum=SC-011072&refcatid=SC

Normally for a typical miter saw you would get a chopmaster. The 12" is 143.00 list and you can find it for a bit less from a distributor.
Been awhile since I had to buy one but I think I paid about 125 or 130 for mine. That was about 5 years ago though....
 
I have wondered about this issue some. I have a Forrest blade and have been underwhelmed by it. It seems to burn wood more than some other blades I run on my cabinet saw.(right out of the box) What I have wondered is if some certain saws "like" some blades more than others. Maybe something to do with the harmonics of the particular blade/saw/arbor combination? I have a Freud dado set and it cuts extremely well. The other thing to keep in mind is to clean the sap/resin build-up on the blade. I figure to get the Forrest blade sharpened to see if that cures it. I suspect that the relief angle ground on this blade is not quite right.
 
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