Replies

1. 
   hammer1 | Jan 01, 2008 06:52pm | #1

   SystiMatic blades were some of the best when they were made in the USA. They moved to an Eastern block country and the quality control went downhill. My local distributor stopped carrying them because of this. I think they are back manufacturing in the USA now. My older SystiMatic blades are exceptional. I hope they are back to the original quality.

   It's hard to find anything that isn't made in China these days, not that it's a bad thing. Some of their manufacturing facilities are the most advanced in the world. Vietnam sounds like it's ready to take business away from China, cheaper labor.

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

1. 
   rev_w | Jan 01, 2008 07:12pm | #4

   Thank you for your reply.  I have two Forrest blades and they are durable and I encountered the systimatic dado cutters (USA) and was impressed.  Being a Nam veteran I have questions about who is backing the Vietnamese manufacturing.  The individual craftsmen in Vietnam were amazing but I have some questions about their overall manufacturing capability.

2. 
   Knotscott | Jan 01, 2008 06:53pm | #2

   I've got a Systimatic Superfine dado with 42T cutters and 6T chippers that's made in the US. It's very good and very expensive....close to $300 new.

   I've never tried one of their single blades, but I've seen 3 reviews that included their 40 and 50T general purpose type blades and none was very favorable....Wood, FWW, and Pop WWing all rated them mid pack at best. The most recent showed the Systimatic blade as made in the Czech Republic.

   Forrest and Ridge Carbide blades are top notch, both made in the USA, and both come in a choice of kerf widths. Infinity blades are designed in the USA and made in Italy....extremely good blades IMO. Freud's Industrial line is very good and is made in Italy, as is their entry level Diablo and Avanti lines. Amana has a few lines made in Germany or Israel....Timberline is a budget line from Amana. CMT says "European Union", but I'd always thought it was Italy or Germany. Delta's recent Industrial line is made in Great Britain by DeWalt, but Wood's review says their made in the US...the DW "Precision Trim" series in made in the states. The DW "contractor line" comes from China. The Craftsman Professional line and Ridgid Titanium are made by Freud in Italy to similar standards as their Diablo and Avanti lines AFAIK. Tenryu Gold Medal is made in Japan...their Rapid Cut series is well made in China...the Hitachi line is made in China by Tenryu to Hitachi's specs and use softer carbide than the better Tenryu blades. The old Irwin Woodworking series was made by Leitz in Germany, but is no longer a current line...it's pretty much become the HO Schumacher line...the Irwin Marathon line is made in New Zealand but is not a premium blade IMHO. Skil, Vermont America, B&D Piranha, Workforce, etc....dunno, don't much care...

   http://woodworkerszone.com/wiki/index.php?title=Table_Saw_Blade_Comparisons

   
   

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   Edited 1/1/2008 11:02 am ET by Knotscott

1. 
   rev_w | Jan 01, 2008 07:09pm | #3

   Thank you very much.  Your information is very helpful.  Until a few years ago (age has caught up with me) I was only using the table saw for ripping.  Now I seem to use it more and more for finer (sic) work and leave the superfine work with my cherished hand tools.  I look forward to the day when we return to manufacturing high end industrial tools in our country.  That is my bias.  There are some very fine tools made elsewhere but my experience with items made in India, China and former Soviet-bloc countries is spotty at best.

2. 
   Syma | Jan 01, 2008 08:12pm | #5

   Hey Scott,
   Pretty good run down of who makes what where. I'm impressed. One blade company missed and they happen to be the best available but little known.It is a company called Kanefusa from Japan. http://www.kanefusa.netThey don't have the marketing and hype like a giant like Freud but Kanefusa actually was the originator of polymer injected vibration dampening slots, and sub micron .4 carbides. Their plates set them far and away from anyone else. They are tensioned precisely to their intended purpose and the machine they are to go on (RPM's). Past that it's up to us that we use the blade correctly.Problem is Kanefusa is more intended for sliders (Altendorf, Martin,etc..), beam saws (Holzma, Selco, Schelling, etc...), and gang rip machines like Raimann, Mereen-Johnson, and Diehl.Most readers here at FWW have never heard of the above machines, most of us run Powermatic, Jet, General, and the like.Certainly you could buy a Kanefusa blade with a 30mm bore and for $12 install a T-Bushing to reduce it to 5/8"-1".

3. 
   JohnCabot | Jan 02, 2008 07:59am | #6

   Your comparison of table saw blades is excellent. Thank you for the usefu;l information.

   John Cabot