How long does it take to dull a dado set? I got a new 8″ Freud stacked dado set from HD just recently, and have been using it to cut half-lap joints in 2×4’s to build a lumber rack. I’ve probably cut about 40 joints so far, and the dado set seems to be getting dull already. Does this seem right? Because I’m a beginner, I have no concept of how much cutting I should get out of a blade or a dado set before it needs to be sent out for sharpening. I have to admit, this seems like a much shorter interval than I was expecting.
-M.
Replies
That seems like a pretty short life to me also. If it seems dull it's likely that it is dull. Perhaps you might have hit a nail, staple, piece of gravel. or etc. If you take it to a good sharpening shop it will probably come back sharper than it was new. Try that.
Unless you've done this already, you should probably start by cleaning it. That wet pine will gum it up pretty quickly.
I have been using the same dado set for over 2 years without needing to have it sharpened.
Jon
TXJon made a good point Mark. Soak the blades in kerosene, or use Simple Green to get the gunk off -- a toothbrush helps. I used to use oven cleaner, per several articles and tips, but Charles From Freud, Inc., has said that's not a good habit to get into.
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I also use the same dado set and 1 - 2 years between sharpenings has been adequate .You didn't say what tool you used to make the half lap ? So you removed about 3/4" of material ? did you do it in one pass ? too big a bite or too fast of feed rate can be hard on all cutting tools , maybe this contributed to premature dulling .Lasty in the case of an under powered machine , I would imagine that could take its toll also.
good luck dusty
Thanks everybody.
I'm pretty sure it's not a feed rate or power problem -- I've got 3HP cabinet saw, and I was pretty modest with my feed rate. (Well, I *think* so, anyway -- I took about 4-5 seconds per pass to waste out the 3/4" deep by 3/4" wide dado, taking a full-width cut only on the initial cuts at my scribe lines, then about a half-width cut for each pass to clean it up --and I tried to balance the "half-width" cut on both sides of the dado set. Does this seem reasonable?)
I'll try cleaning the blades and chippers. What is "Simple Green"? Haven't heard of it before. I've got kerosene though.
Forest Girl, how long do you soak them? ...and you use an old toothbrush (and specifically NOT a wire brush)?
-M.
Hi Mark. Simple Green is an all-purpose cleaner you'll find in most grocery stores and hardware stores that carry household cleaner (like Ace).
You shouldn't need anything as aggressive as a wire brush once the gunk has soaked. It should pretty much lift off, and the toothbrush helps you get the stuff that's hunkered down next to the shoulders of the teeth. IMO, wire would scar the surface of the blade. I like mine nice and shiny <g> (read: slick).
How long you soak depends on how gummy. A couple hours to overnight maybe? Have to admit, I haven't cleaned since I got the news from Charles, but I've used kerosene to soak other nasty, gunky things and it usually doesn't take all that long.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
The orange oil based waterless hand cleaners, like Fast Orange, also work pretty well at softening pitchy type gunk. I use it in the kitchen to remove the adhesive residue from food bottles that I'm recycling to hold fasteners. Sometimes I use a Brillo pad to hurry things along.
I can tell you from experience that a dado set seems very dull if any of the pieces is in backwards.
Have to agree with the possibility that your blades are gummed up. Softwoods have a lot of pitch in them to begin with, and these days most of the 2 by stock you buy isn't sufficiently dried, so you have to deal with a lot of pitch.
Won't help with your dado set, but for other cuts I keep several cheap blades on hand and just throw them away when they get gummed up.
Jeff
Edited 3/24/2003 8:19:05 AM ET by Jeff K
I to used to use lye and one day tried hot water (160F) at the tap and gloves with pine resin it works(never thought of water, only think of beer! ) <g> . Burnt on particle board residue seems to be a lot tougher but the beer works on me
I suspect your problem is related to sand and other materials that might be sitting on the 2x4's prior to cutting the dato.
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