Replies

1. 
   mrles | Dec 18, 2002 08:36am | #1

   Anything that will fit, we recently had a discussion about dado blades. Most agreed to stay away from wobble blades as they will give you round bottom dadoes. A stack set seems to work a lot better. I would opt for the 8" set, you can cut deeper dadoes if you need to, there may be some other reasons I'm not aware of.

   God Bless and Happy Holidays

   les

2. 
   BG | Dec 18, 2002 02:07pm | #2

   Trevor,

   I'm not sure you can use a dado setup with a table top model. First, the arbor is not long enough to accomodate a full set of dado and, second, I'm not sure the arbor can support the weight of a dado.  For the past two years I sought to do the same thing with my table top model and no one would endorse the idea.  Given that the arbor would only accomodate up to maybe 3/8" dado, I thought about trying it with three regular blades...  I never did...kept on getting this vision in my mind of me telling everyone, after the accident,  it seemed a good idea at the time....  

3. 
   RickL750 | Dec 18, 2002 03:50pm | #3

    Hi Trevor,

   I've used an 8"dado on a portable table saw in the past without problems. You need to check two things the arbor length and the clearance, you may not be able to use all the shims but it works just fine. STAY AWAY FROM WABBLE DADO BLADES as indicated by someone else they don’t work well.

   Good luck,

   Rickl

   
   

   ---

   Edited 12/18/2002 7:51:10 AM ET by RickL

4. 
   quinbychris | Dec 18, 2002 05:31pm | #4

   Trevor--I have used inexpensive 6" HSS stacked dados on a portable saw.  A carbide-tipped dado is, of course, much better, but you should check your saw's running speed before buying one.  Most portable saws are direct drive, and some of them run much faster than the maximum speed for carbide-tipped blades.  The HSS dados are available at Sears, Lowes, Home Depot, etc. for about $40.00.  As long as you work slowly and take fairly small bites, they do a decent job in solid wood, but are less effective in plywood.  I wouldn't dream of using one in MDF. Good luck.--Chris

5. 
   snomaker | Dec 18, 2002 06:26pm | #5

   Trevor,

   I would agree that for a direct drive table saw it might not have the power to drive the dado set up without gradually burning out the motor.  Back when I had no other choice, I used mine to make a series of cuts to slowly carve out the dado, but that is time consuming.

   Now with a belt driven saw, I have a wobble set but I don't use it because it just scares me.  I would like to know if anyone else has recommendations for an 8" carbide set of decent quality.  While I would really love to have the Systematic, my kids need to eat.

   Good luck!

   Rich

1. 
   mfg_king | Dec 19, 2002 11:07pm | #6

   My Freud 8" stack dado set has been great. You can get it at Home Depot for about $90. Look carefully at all the carbide teeth for chips before you buy. I think those HD employees throw them around the store because I went through 4-5 sets before I found one that didn't have any chipped teeth.

1. 
   JeffKurtz | Dec 20, 2002 07:09am | #7

   An 8" dado is a whole lot of blade for a small saw.  Remember that you not only have the wider kerf to contend with, but also the added weight of the dado stack.  When I bought a dado for my old 2 hp. Jet, the dealer said nothing bigger than a 6" dado.  If that's the case, I can't imagine using any sort of dado on a bench top.

   Jeff