August 14, 201213 yr  I have had good performance with a couple of 10" table saw blades. The Woodworker II was a terrific blade, but was costly $125 and getting it resharpened was a nightmare, even though  I had the manufacture do the work. I have had good results with Frued blades and I saw a blade called Avanti. It is cheaper and some of the reviews were very good on it. Reviews by a novice really don't mean much to me. However, I don't know a thing about it and was wondering if any of you have tried the Avanti blade.Â
August 14, 201213 yr I have several Freud blades and really like them. I haven't myself my I have several friend that have the Avanti blades and they have no complaints. They are manufactured by Freud I believe. I would think for the price they'd be worth a try.
August 14, 201213 yr I have a couple of Freud combination blades but not the Avanti model. If I remember correctly, they were on sale for about $40. when I bought the last one. Seems like a pretty decent blade. I get them sharpened here in the town where I live. There is a retired gentleman that does a good job at dirt cheap prices ($10 for the combination blade).Lew Kauffman-Wood Turners Forum HostTime traveler. Purveyor of the world's finest custom rolling pins!
August 15, 201213 yr I'm puzzled but the "nightmare" part of getting a Forrest blade resharpened, but as I understand it, the Avanti line was a less expensive line of blades to allow box stores to sell a little cheaper. They are, I believe, the same as the Diablo line with a different coating (that nicer silver ICE coating as opposed to the hideous looking red stuff). they are also all thin kerf (I think). None of this is necessarily bad, as they may do exactly what you want...No Ref
August 15, 201213 yr Author  I returned my blade to the factory to be sharpened, because I did not want it ruined by someone with out precise equipment. The blade came back with a bad vibration. I examined it to find blobs of silver solder where they replaced a tooth. The cuts I made were bad. I called, got excuses about having bad help and sent it back. I got it back and they charged me again to sharpen it. I tried the blade and it still made rough cuts. I called again and got the run around about how resharpened blades aren't as good as new ones. They agreed to refund my money that they over charged me and wanted me to send it back again. All of this took about 2 months and each time I called I got another excuse. Later I found out that the Forrester business was now run by the founders sons and the father had died. I just bit the bullet and quit trying. The frued blades I had resharpened by a local guy do great and are as good as a new one. I am done with Forrester blades.Fred W. Hargis, Jr said:I'm puzzled but the "nightmare" part of getting a Forrest blade resharpened, but as I understand it, the Avanti line was a less expensive line of blades to allow box stores to sell a little cheaper. They are, I believe, the same as the Diablo line with a different coating (that nicer silver ICE coating as opposed to the hideous looking red stuff). they are also all thin kerf (I think). None of this is necessarily bad, as they may do exactly what you want...No Ref
August 15, 201213 yr I switched to Tenryu several years ago. Pretty darned good blades. Ron Altier said: I returned my blade to the factory to be sharpened, because I did not want it ruined by someone with out precise equipment. The blade came back with a bad vibration. I examined it to find blobs of silver solder where they replaced a tooth. The cuts I made were bad. I called, got excuses about having bad help and sent it back. I got it back and they charged me again to sharpen it. I tried the blade and it still made rough cuts. I called again and got the run around about how resharpened blades aren't as good as new ones. They agreed to refund my money that they over charged me and wanted me to send it back again. All of this took about 2 months and each time I called I got another excuse. Later I found out that the Forrester business was now run by the founders sons and the father had died. I just bit the bullet and quit trying. The frued blades I had resharpened by a local guy do great and are as good as a new one. I am done with Forrester blades.Fred W. Hargis, Jr said:
August 15, 201213 yr The original owner of Forrest is gone. He passed away.The new blood is not nearly so meticulous.Take a look at Ridge Carbide. A good house good service and good work.My blades are Felder Silent Power, Ghudo, and Onsrud. I have had no problems with Ridge.
August 16, 201213 yr I'd like to find someone that would sharpen at a decent price. So far it has been cheaper to buy new.Ron DudelstonSite AdministratorAbove and Beyond WoodWorks
August 16, 201213 yr Avanti makes a great blade for fine cutting but don't you dare use it for rough stuff. The diablo isn't worth a dime. I used to use a B&D 10 inch piranha blade but since tools got stolen i'm back to square one.
August 16, 201213 yr Author That is the first time I have heard anything good about a Black and Decker product for a long time. I use combination blades 95% of the time. How is their combo blades?dragon1 said:Avanti makes a great blade for fine cutting but don't you dare use it for rough stuff. The diablo isn't worth a dime. I used to use a B&D 10 inch piranha blade but since tools got stolen i'm back to square one.
August 17, 201213 yr I, too, have had bad results with Forrest sharpening, and that was before the founder passed away. I now have 2 Forrest blades that I send to my regular outfit (along with my other Freud blades), and had nothing but stellar performance out of them. My regular sharpener is Bull Sharpening, In Oak Park, IL...but there are many other competent sharpeners who can make those blades sing with no hassle. 3 others I can think of off the top of my head: Scott Whiting somewhere in Arizona, Ridge Carbide, or Dynamic Saw.Ron Altier said: I returned my blade to the factory to be sharpened, because I did not want it ruined by someone with out precise equipment. The blade came back with a bad vibration
August 17, 201213 yr Fred, I drop my blades off at our local equipment rental shop, they come back razor sharp and last long. No mess no fuss. Get em back in a couple days, I don't know about sending them out, never had to.How ya doin Fred!Fred W. Hargis, Jr said:I, too, have had bad results with Forrest sharpening, and that was before the founder passed away. I now have 2 Forrest blades that I send to my regular outfit (along with my other Freud blades), and had nothing but stellar performance out of them. My regular sharpener is Bull Sharpening, In Oak Park, IL...but there are many other competent sharpeners who can make those blades sing with no hassle. 3 others I can think of off the top of my head: Scott Whiting somewhere in Arizona, Ridge Carbide, or Dynamic Saw.Ron Altier said:No RefJohn MorrisThe Patriot WoodworkerProud Supporter of Wounded Warrior Project and Homes For Our Troops
August 17, 201213 yr That works if you have a local sharpener, I do not so it's all mailed. I agree (strongly) with the no mess, no fuss part, but when we did have a local sharpening service it was a very poor service....removing way to much material, and not getting the tips even, stuff like that. They went under thankfully. BTW, I'm around here a lot more than you may think, just don't have a lot of replies to add to the discussions.No Ref
August 17, 201213 yr I can count us lucky then that we have a good service, I just have taken it for granted thinking they were all over the place! Thanks Fred. Great to see ya jump in!Fred W. Hargis, Jr said:That works if you have a local sharpener, I do not so it's all mailed. I agree (strongly) with the no mess, no fuss part, but when we did have a local sharpening service it was a very poor service....removing way to much material, and not getting the tips even, stuff like that. They went under thankfully. BTW, I'm around here a lot more than you may think, just don't have a lot of replies to add to the discussions.No RefJohn MorrisThe Patriot WoodworkerProud Supporter of Wounded Warrior Project and Homes For Our Troops
August 17, 201213 yr I have a Forrest WWII thin kerf combo blade (since 2002) that I use for cross cutting and a high end Freud dedicated thin kerf ripping blade (since 2009) that I picked up through Rockler. I sent the WWII in once to Forrest for the first sharpening  and it came back like new. But it was a bit pricey and took a couple of weeks door-to-door. I found a local sharpening place in town that has been family owned for 30+ years and they service the majority of the cabinet and industrial shops in the area as well as "weekend wood warriors" like me. Cost is good with great service and they do a great job. Turnaround time is usually 3-5 business days depending on their workload.Your local Woodcraft and Rockler stores have a sharpening service that they send blades out to for their customers. It is a bit more pricey than dealing direct and takes a few more days for turnaround time, but they do good work and give good service as Woodcraft and Rockler hold them accountable.Allen WorshamCorona, CAallenworsham@earthlink.nethttp://www.awcreationsandwoodcrafts.com'Graze in every man's field, but always give your own milk' J. Vernon McGee
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