Freud SD608 8-Inch Dial-A-Width Stacked Dado Set 5/8-Inch Arbor

by Freud

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Experience the speed and convenience of a stacked dado without the need for shim adjustments with the Freud SD608 Eight-Inch Dial-a-Width Stacked Dado Set. This patented dial system clicks into place to allow blade-width adjustments up to .906 inch in fine 0.004-inch increments. Included are two razor-sharp blades that cut with ultimate precision, so you can achieve clean edges and flat bottoms. This versatile dado set is designed for the serious woodworker set and cuts a wide range of materials from hardwood to laminate.

Exclusive Dial-a-Width System for Quick, No-Shim Adjustments
The Freud SD608 is an innovative dado set, ideal for serious woodworkers who require an efficient and precise way to create precise, flat-bottom dadoes. It combines the clean, high-quality results of a traditional stacked dado set with the speed and precision of a dial dado. By eliminating the need for adding or removing shims, this set works quickly to help you tackle more jobs in less time.

And because producing the perfect dado is often reliant upon finding the perfect blade width, this set allows you to make fine-tuned adjustments up to .906 inch. Each click of the dial moves the blade 0.004 inch, so you have total control over the precision of the cut. Just use the included wrench to make safe and easy adjustments by loosening the dial, clicking it to the desired width, and retightening.

Razor-Sharp Blades for Smooth, Splinter-Free Dadoes
So you can achieve perfect results every time, the set includes two proprietary razor-sharp outside blades. These high-quality eight-inch, 24-tooth blades with 5/8-inch arbors cut dadoes and grooves that are clean, flat, and virtually splinter free.

Best of all, the Freud SD608 adjusts easily to right- and left-operating machines and accommodates a wide range of materials, so you can use it from project to project. Use it to create dadoes and grooves in hardwood, softwood, chip board, plywood, and laminate (not recommended for non-ferrous materials).

Four-Wing Chippers for Truly Flat-Bottom Grooves
The set's five included chippers (four 1/8-inch chippers and one 3/32-inch chipper) save you time and energy. With their four-wing design, they efficiently remove waste material and smooth the edges of your work pieces.

MicroGrain Carbide Tips for Long-Lasting Performance
So you can get maximum performance out of this set, the blade components are constructed with Freud's TiCo Hi-Density Carbide. This means the blades can withstand numerous sharpenings and still retain their precision. And a Tri-metal Brazing process gives the blades impact resistance, so they last for the long term without dulling (a condition that can cause torn wood and uneven cuts).

About Freud: A History of Innovative Manufacturing
An industry leader for more than 50 years, Freud America, Inc. is a manufacturer and marketer of superior carbide cutting tools for the woodworking industry. Freud is the only manufacturer of woodworking tools in the world that produces its own MicroGrain Carbide with Titanium, called TiCo, a high-density combination of Titanium and Cobalt.

By producing its own carbide, Freud has the unique ability to formulate each tool for each specific application, thereby maximizing the cutting life and performance of the tool. Freud's full line of high-quality woodworking tools includes saw blades, router bits, shaper cutters, power tools, and more.

This product is covered by Freud's Limited Lifetime Warranty.

What's in the Box
Freud SD608 Eight-Inch Dial-a-Width Stacked Dado Set, including two eight-inch blades (with 5/8-inch dadoes), one wrench, four 1/8-inch chippers, and one 3/32-inch chipper. Storage case included.

Product Description

The Dial-A-Width Dado set performs like a stacked dado, but Freud has replaced the shims with a patented dial system, and their exclusive Dial hub ensures accurate adjustments. Each click of the dial adjusts the blade by .004". The Dial-A-Width is easy to use and very precise. Set includes two outside blades, five chippers, a wrench and a carrying case. 5/8" arbor

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Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 12 x 12 x 0.2 inches ; 10.8 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 11 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000089H8P
• California residents: Click here for Proposition 65 warning.
• Item model number: SD608
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,831 in Home Improvement (See Top 100 in Home Improvement)
  • #41 in Home Improvement > Power & Hand Tools > Power Tool Accessories > Blades > Table Saw Blades

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Dado, December 25, 2003

By 

Eric D. Hresko "Clutch freak" (Abilene, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Freud SD608 8-Inch Dial-A-Width Stacked Dado Set 5/8-Inch Arbor (Tools & Home Improvement)

I got this dado blade for Christmas, and WOW! is it fantastic.
The fit and finish of the blades is wonderful, although the case seems a bit flimsy. The plastic is pretty thin and hard. It think it would crack pretty easily. I think I'll make myself a wooden carrier in the next few weeks...
I started out by testing it out on some scrap 1/2" Baltic birch plywood. I used the included guide for sizing a 1/2" dado and went to town cutting. Unfortunately, the dado was a bit undersized. BUT, instead of having to remove the outer blade and start adding shims, I just measured the size difference between the dado and the plywood. Each click of the dial is .004" so I divided the difference by .004 and came to 5.5 clicks. I rounded that up to 6 clicks, loosened the nut on the blade, clicked 6 times, tightened and cut. The dado fit perfectly, and it took less than 5 minutes from installing the plates to final cut! This system really works!

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Good and the Bad, January 12, 2007

By 

Bigfoot (Pacific Northwest) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Freud SD608 8-Inch Dial-A-Width Stacked Dado Set 5/8-Inch Arbor (Tools & Home Improvement)

As a carpenter who cuts a lot of plywood, I was interested in upgrading from a 'wobbly' dado to this system. In general I was impressed with this set. The plates and chippers are all substantial. They are manufactured out of nice thick, flat stock, with large carbide teeth and a nice clean black finish.

I do my work on a Craftsman Professional 10" tablesaw with a 1-1/8" long threaded arbor.

The first thing I had to do was reassemble the outer plates to change the setup from a right-tilt, to a left-tilt configuration. Before making dado cuts the user must consult the manual and determine the appropriate type and number of chippers to install between the outer plates. A little color coding or some stenciled part numbers on the components would simplify the process, but if a person can read, they should be able to figure this out.

I found slipping the assembly over the arbor threads to be a little bit of a challenge due to the thickness of the components. There is no 'slop' in the 5/8" arbor hole so you need to have room to slide them on square with the arbor threads.

Practical Feedback:
This system works nice. Pretty quiet for a dado and very clean, flat cuts. I found the dial settings recommended in the manual to be only approximations. Adjust your settings and make notes for future reference.
On the negative (and its a significant point) I found I could not safely utilize the wider settings on this dado. When I installed the components required for a 3/4" dado I found I couldn't even get a full turn of the arbor nut when tightening up everything. ...and that still leaves one chipper in the box. So, using this set for wider dados will require me to make two separate passes at different settings. (Seems like it kind of defeats the purpose of a dado, doesn't it?)

I don't know whether to place responsibility for this problem with Craftsman or Freud, but as a buyer it seems like a little more up front information would be helpful.

In summary, this is a great product if your tablesaw arbor threads are long enough to accept the unit(1-3/8" or over). If not, keep looking.

Just a followup note: One of the primary benefits of these reviews is to alert other potential customers to salient issues. Based upon the number of forum comments, it would seem that buying one of these, only to find they aren't fully functional on a specific table saw is not an uncommon issue. When, as I did, customers consult point of purchase materials, Amazon promotional write-ups, and tablesaw manuals without finding any illumination on the topic, its probably a point others would like to know. That said, I still think this Dado is excellent for those with the appropriate platform.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Freud SD608 8" dial-a-width dado, February 20, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Freud SD608 8-Inch Dial-A-Width Stacked Dado Set 5/8-Inch Arbor (Tools & Home Improvement)

This dado does fit a Delta Uniasaw (I understand there are some problems fitting some saws). I've tested the dado and it performs as advertised, very nice. The reason I didn't give it a five star review is the manual and assembly from the factory wasn't quite right. The manual needs to be brought up to date. To convert the dado to left tilt it is necessary to switch parts on the outside blades. The instructions talk about 2 silver screws (there are 3 and on one blade they are black. As shipped the ball bearing and spring had fallen out of place in the adjustment hub. The two shoulder screws (which could have accidently been removed when converting to left tilt saws because of the poor manual) that hold the adjustment dial together wouldn't tighten all the way. I had to remove filings that stopped the screws from seating properly. The filings were never removed after the threads were tapped in the mating piece.
If you have some time to figure out the manual, cleanup and reassemble the unit, it works very well.