Learned a hard lesson about miter saw blades at a job site in Portland

I was trimming out a whole house in Portland last fall, about 1200 square feet of baseboard and casing. By the third room my cuts were fuzzy and burning at the edges. A framer I was working with walked over and asked when I last changed my blade. I told him it was maybe 6 months old. He just laughed and handed me his 60 tooth finish blade. Night and day difference after I put it on. Now I swap blades based on the material and the job instead of waiting until they look dull. Anybody else keep a few different blades ready to go?

2 comments

2 Comments

phoenix2925d ago

And that right there is the thing, isn't it? You're telling me you've got a whole rotation going but how do you actually know when to retire a blade for good? I mean, is it just when the burning starts or do you have some other tell, like the sound it makes or how much dust it's throwing? I've been burned by blades that looked fine but were secretly wrecking my miters, and it's hard to tell the difference between a dull blade and a cheap one sometimes.

terrybennett25d ago

Ha, that framer sounds like my grandpa handing me a hammer and telling me to quit whining. I once tried to cut some old oak trim with a blade that had teeth so dull they were practically smooth. The burning smell was so bad the homeowner thought there was an electrical fire. Now I've got a 60 tooth for melamine, a 40 tooth for framing lumber, and a 24 tooth for demo that's basically just a angry metal frisbee. Your mileage may vary on brands, but having spares in the truck has saved me more headaches than I can count.