How To Choose A Circular Saw Blade Best For You

In this business, our clients always ask us this question. How to choose the best saw blade. But actually I will always tell them how to choose a right saw blade. A good circular saw should have enough raw power to slice through everything from wet lumber to dense hardwood without bogging down. "When the motor slows, the blade heats up and dulls quickly," explains Tom Silva, This Old House general contractor. This not only produces a poor cut, it's dangerous because the blade can climb out of the kerf and push the saw back toward the user.

However, evaluating power from the motor ratings can be misleading. Amps indicate only the amount of electricity a motor draws, not the power it sends to the blade.

In the end, the most reliable appraisal may be price. A dependable sidewinder — the more compact design, in which the motor sits alongside the blade — starts at around $100. There are many saws on the market under this price, but they're not as powerful, nor are they built for a lifetime's use. Professional-grade sidewinders, which run quieter and cut through dense wood better, cost between $125 and $150. TOH master carpenter Norm Abram prefers this tool, noting that buyers should choose one based on balance and maneuverability. "I'd never buy a saw I didn't have a chance to hold first," he says.

There also several very simple tips you should follow:
1. Learn how saw blades are named. Some are obvious: A masonry blade is used to cut brick. A flooring blade is made for cutting flooring and rough lumber. This type of blade can even handle an occasional nail.
2. Recognize that the more teeth that are on the blade, the cleaner the cut. Carbide-tipped blades are more expensive, but they require less frequent sharpening and make the smoothest cuts.
3. Select a ripping blade for long cuts with the grain. Don't use this blade with plywood. The crosscut blade can cut plywood easily, as well as regular wood (across the grain).
4. Use a combination blade for general-purpose woodwork. The large teeth leave a rough-cut and the blade can be used for cross cutting or with-the-grain rips.
5. Look for a hollow-ground planer for smooth miter and crosscuts. There is also a hollow-ground plywood blade that cuts plywood and paneling without splintering.
6. Choose a non-ferrous metal/plastic-cutting blade for aluminum, brass, copper, lead, and most solid plastics.
7. Pick up a thin-kerf blade to minimize wood waste when cutting.
8. Try a nail-cutter if you're doing heavy remodeling. You may run across hardware in the wood.

Finally, never buy a saw blade that is not designed for the material that you meant to cut. In that condition, you’d better buy very hard diamond blade rather than saw blade.