10" mitre saw blade question

[memzey]

Hi everyone,

I've had a scan for previous threads on this topic but not found an answer to my quandary. Apologies if I have missed something but here goes anyway:

I recently invested in a Makita LS1018 10" SCMS. It came with a decent 40t blade which has been fine for most of the (relatively rough) work I've had so far but I fear that the next few jobs I have lined up for it (laminates, architrave, skirting in either hard wood or MDF) will need a finer finish than it is capable of. What I need is a 260mm blade which can perform fine cuts as I have described above but that will also be able to handle the occasional bit of alu/plastic to boot for a reasonable price. I've been in contact with Atkinson Walker and Doug at Cutting Solutions who were both super helpful but unfortunately presented me with options costing a chunk more than I had hoped I'd be spending. They both recommended 60t blades though so I set that as the benchmark for further investigation. Having done some further digging I see I can get this blade http://www.makitauk.com/accessory/cutti ... -saws.html for under £45. Do you think it would meet my needs as described above? Does anyone have another, similarly priced, suggestion I should also consider?

Thanks in advance!

 

[marcros]

you could have a look at wealden- they are atkinson walker blades under their own name. But to be honest I have always found the cutting solutions ones to be well priced and very good quality. For a decent blade, I dont think that you will beat Cutting Solutions or Wealden Tools.

The freud blades are worth a look, but I can never remember the numbers that you need for what. toolstation do a 60T @ 10" (260mm) for £48.

The cutting solutions one appears to be £30.45 though on the website + VAT?

 

[memzey]

Hi marcos,

Thanks for responding.

The cutting solutions blade I think you refer to has a 250mm diameter but I am looking for a 260mm one as you suggest. Doug gave me a price for a 255mm one but that was with a long lead time and for a greater price than the AW one (which I would prefer given a straight choice of the two). Bit of a tart alert here (sorry) but I'm not too keen on the Freud as the red colour spooks me a bit :shock: . It looks vaguely sinister to my mind in a funny sort of way although that's just me being daft.

Do you think the 70t Makblade-plus I linked to would be any better or worse than the Freud? What do we think of Makblade-plus blades in general? The 40t one that came with the saw (a cracking bit of kit by the way) has been fine for the stuff I have thrown at it but I'm mindful that any 40t 10" blade is bound to have limited refinement.

 

[pcb1962]

I bought a Trend blade recently for my SCMS from this eBay seller, they have a selection of 255 and 260mm blades:
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/MTS-Power-Tools/TREND-/_i.html?_nkw=trend+blade+(255,260

 

[marcros]

i have never used one, so couldnt comment. I have had freud and cutting solutions- the atkinson walker have a very good reputation too, hence the recommendations.

there are 2 factors in my mind- price/vs what you are getting and the amount of carbide on it to allow sharpening a few times.

that is to say that it is all very well buying a cheap blade but sometimes better to pay a bit more for more carbide that you can sharpen over and over.

The makita one may well be ok. If it doesnt look up to much when you get it, send it back! I have used silverline ones, the cheapest of the cheap. They didnt last particularly long, and werent worth re-sharpening, but they cut ok when new, proving that even the nastiest of blades can be ok for a while! As a hobbiest, not long was still a few months! The makita one is probably worth risking. You should get the finish you want, and it should last a while.

 

[memzey]

Cheers marcos. I've actually found it a bit cheaper on amazon as well (£33 delivered) so I'll probably just take a punt on that. Do you think it will be ok for laminates, alu, etc as I describe above?

 

[memzey]

I bought a Trend blade recently for my SCMS from this eBay seller, they have a selection of 255 and 260mm blades:
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/MTS-Power-Tools/TREND-/_i.html?_nkw=trend+blade+(255,260

Thanks for that. How did you find the Trend blade pcb and what have you used it for?

 

[carlb40]

I've always used Freud in my mitre / circular saws

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FREUD-PRO-HM- ... 4acbbfffcf

Never had any issues

 

[pcb1962]

I bought a Trend blade recently for my SCMS from this eBay seller, they have a selection of 255 and 260mm blades:
[/quote] Thanks for that. How did ...r.com/5547/14151969475_a03964c454_o.jpg[/img]