best blades for cutting tight corners ?

[Charlie_1]

whats the best blades for cutting tight corners in 1/8" thick pieces and 3/4" pieces? Ive tried using a bunch of different ones but just cant get it to turn right and it will either burn the wood at times or the blade will snap?



Charlie,

or do I just need to keep practicing ?

[BobD]

That's a tough one...I find that smaller blades snap a lot more often for me in a case like this. I'd round over the back of the blade with an abrasive stone or hunk of fine-grit sandpaper. That will help you spin easier.

Also, something to make sure you are doing is to let the saw fully catch up with you. Pause a second when you get to the corner and let the saw finish cutting before you try to spin. If you press hard when cutting, you will bow the blade, so you are not getting a perfectly parralel stroke (as perfect as your saw will allow--without getting into the mechanics). Let the saw catch up, so it cuts fully, then make you pivot.

It really is a thing you need to practice. When Ron Posten was here last year and taught a class for us, we spent several hours with a piece of pine...cutting stair steps up and down to practice turning tight corners. Free hand it and soon you will get the hang of it!

Bob

[Jediscroller]

Charlie,
I seldom cut 1/8" thick material (if it's that thin I stack cut it) but on the few occasions I have cut pieces that thin alone I had great results with Olson 2/0 Crown Tooth and FD-SR's 2/0. I don't use spirals much but I'm sure 2/0 Spirals would do well also.
For 3/4", depending on how tight your referring to, my first choice is a #7 blade from either Pegas or FD or if it's really tight I've had the best (albeit slow) results with a FD-SR #5. The Tambour clock in my album had very tight inside cuts and was cut in 3/4" White Oak with the above. The Tipperary clocks were stack cut at a total thickness of 3/4" with a combination of Pegas #7 Skip Tooth and FD-SR #7. The Pegas was a little more agressive while the FD was less prone to breakage (for me). I liked the control of both.

Kevin

[Charlie_1]

kewl thank you both


Charlie,

[prunty@intergate.com]

I cut quite a bit of 1/8th inch, I don't generally stack cut as I do it just as a hobby, and not into selling it, to busy taking care of my sick wife. So I use the 2/0 blades for almost all of it. It just take a lot of practice to get to doing it. The thing you have to remember is to put a little pressure on the back on the blade as you spin, so its not cutting. It don't take a lot, and try not to put any side pressure or that can break the blades.

[Gill]

Here are some piccies of a wolf I cut recently from maple that's about 1/8" thick (I can't get them uploaded as attachments - sorry folks ). I used a #3 FD-SR for the turn on the mouth and employed the 'backing off' technique as described above.






It's not that difficult a technique and you can really whip round some tight corners.

Gill

[Charlie_1]

hope your wife gets better there prunty .


very nice wolf leaf , thinking alot of it is just need more practicing and just how I do it that I need to work on ,which will get better with more practice lol


thank you all :-D

Charlie,

might try them blades though

[William Young (SE BC)]

Very nice work Gill;
Flat blades "rock" and give much better definition than spirals ever could just as you have demonstrated. Goes to show what practicing the proper techniques can achieve.

Of all the gross's of blades I use every year I seldom ever break one but when I do it is always a very tiny one or a spiral blade when I have to use one. Even then, I have only myself to blame because of pushing as hard on one of those out of habit as I was perviously pushing on the #5's that I use for the majority of my work.
W.Y.

[Jediscroller]

I'm with you William, it's the first time I've broken a blade in a long time. The biggest surprise to me that it was #7 blades. The majority of my projects I cut with a #3 and I can't remember the last time I broke one. Perhaps I just got a couple of bad blades.

Kevin

[Rolf]

Gill,
How big is that leaf.?