I recently completed my 600th dado on a new set of blades. The Dados I'm cutting are 1 inch deep x 3/4 wide in 3/4 plywood with a 1/8 in Masonite backer (four dados at a time). Is this a fair test to see how well this dado set is holding up?

Edited December 31, 20196 yr by Wichman3
clarity

6 hours ago, Wichman3 said:

I recently completed my 600th dado on a new set of blades. The Dados I'm cutting are 1 inch deep x 3/4 wide in 3/4 plywood with a 1/8 in Masonite backer (four dados at a time). Is this a fair test to see how well this dado set is holding up?

I did a fair test between Freud and Amana raised panel bits back in the early 2000...Ran 175 panel Freud and  around 350 with the Amana..

 

Why I stopped buying Freud in production. Hobby woodworker probably outlast the woodworker...

 

Amana bit was purchased from a supplier on line and the Freud was purchased at the wood show here in KC...

Edited December 31, 20196 yr by BillyJack

I have the $400  Felder Hammer Dado slot cutter.  ( $400  in  2005 when I bought it)

And I have had a wobble blade

And I bought a carbide set of  blades  with 4 cutters each in various thickness    and had 'em bored  for my Hammer saw. 

And I had a Craftsman Chrome-edge set from  the 1970s

The Craftsman set is the single finest I have ever used.  In fact it is so good that one of my first projects for my new Milling machine will be to bore them out to take the 30 MM arbor on my Hammer and  use them on that.

The bottom of the cut is  silky smooth and dead flat, they don't chip out.  they are a dream to use. 

 

Edited January 1, 20206 yr by Cliff

I've never used a Craftsman dado set, but back in the day when they marketed those tools under the Krome Edge label, they were very well made, quality tooling. I still have a set of taps/dies from the 80's I bought and they are still in use. Ahh, the good ol' days.

On 12/31/2019 at 11:02 PM, Cliff said:

And I have had a wobble blade

Aren't these the blades that would leave a dado square on one side and beveled on the other or maybe I was just using it wrong.

14 hours ago, DuckSoup said:

Aren't these the blades that would leave a dado square on one side and beveled on the other or maybe I was just using it wrong.

It leaves a slight dovetail on each side and a curved bottom. Think of the swing of a pendulum, kinda.

Thanks Gerald, I do remember that there was something unusual about the way it cut. Used mine on one bookcase project years ago and never again.

So I posted my Question about a fair test 5 days ago, this should have been enough time for anyone to chime in on whether or not it was a fair test ( thank you to BillyJack).

The set I'm using is the Harbor freight 8" carbide. I did a visual inspection of the blades today and I can see a very slight amount of wear, they still cut clean and flat.

 

17 minutes ago, Wichman3 said:

So I posted my Question about a fair test 5 days ago, this should have been enough time for anyone to chime in on whether or not it was a fair test ( thank you to BillyJack).

The set I'm using is the Harbor freight 8" carbide. I did a visual inspection of the blades today and I can see a very slight amount of wear, they still cut clean and flat.

 

You can run your finger nail over the edge of the cutting tooth. If it's cutting a fine line in your fingernail it's good to go. If it's just gliding over it, it's in need of sharpening...

If you've done 600 dadoes with a HF set and they still cut clean, it certainly exceeds what I would have expected. I have a HF dado set I use for rough materials (particle board mostly) and it does well in that service, but mine hasn't done near the work you've done with yours.

Edited January 5, 20206 yr by Fred W. Hargis Jr

On 12/12/2019 at 5:49 AM, Fred W. Hargis Jr said:

That set has been replaced with the SD208S.

I had read this thread a few days ago, wondering about my 30 yo set from my RAS days.  I was in the orange box yesterday and saw a Diablo 8" dado set (Freud?) and it had a model number something like HD208S.  It said made in Italy.  Could this be the same set as the Freud mentioned here?  I know HD often does this model # trick with appliances so people can't price match.  It was priced in the $60-70 range.  Disclaimer - this is all by recollection from my imperfect memory.  Should have taken a picture!

Jim

Are you sure it's HD 208s? Freud may have marketed the SD208s under the Diablo brand but that's usually reserved for contractor (less expensive) blades.

1 hour ago, Fred W. Hargis Jr said:

Are you sure it's HD 208s? Freud may have marketed the SD208s under the Diablo brand but that's usually reserved for contractor (less expensive) blades.

Should have looked it up before posting... 

 

"Diablo DD208H

8 in. x 12-Teeth Stacked Dado Saw Blade Set

Compatible with any 8" radial arm saw or table saw

Cuts hardwood, softwood, plywood, and melamine

Includes 2 blades, 2 wing chippers, shims and carrying case

$ 99.97"

 

I didn't think it was priced that high in the store, but there was an Avanti set next to it, so more confusion is certainly a possibility.

 

Jim

 

14 hours ago, Wichman3 said:

So I posted my Question about a fair test 5 days ago, this should have been enough time for anyone to chime in on whether or not it was a fair test ( thank you to BillyJack).

The set I'm using is the Harbor freight 8" carbide. I did a visual inspection of the blades today and I can see a very slight amount of wear, they still cut clean and flat.

 

You got me all curious and such.... How old is the Harbor freight set ?

 

Many bought the 8"  Freud sets because the thought bigger was better. The 6"  sets would have been fine for almost everyone. I wanted a 10" Amana dado set originally so it would keep down on the sharpening. I ended  up using a router bit in a table saw extension for almost all my dados I cabineg so the set just sits, like new drawing dust...

34 minutes ago, BillyJack said:

You got me all curious and such.... How old is the Harbor freight set ?

 

Many bought the 8"  Freud sets because the thought bigger was better. The 6"  sets would have been fine for almost everyone. I wanted a 10" Amana dado set originally so it would keep down on the sharpening. I ended  up using a router bit in a table saw extension for almost all my dados I cabineg so the set just sits, like new drawing dust...

I bought them summer of 2019.