Customer Reviews

Freud TKR303 7-1/4-Inch 40 Tooth ATB Thin Kerf Teflon Coated Finishing Saw Blade with 5/8-Inch and Diamond Knockout Arbor

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I needed a blade that would cut lots of sheet goods without burring or stripping off the veneer of hardwood veneered ply, and I ultimately decided on this one. It really has been great. I can cut 3/4" MDF and 3/4" birch veneer ply all day long without fear of bogging down in the MDF or tear-out in the birch veneer ply. It cuts a nice, predictable thin kerf every time and doesn't burn.

I switched from a rip-oriented blade with a lot fewer teeth and I was afraid that I was giong to give up a lot of speed for the precision I expected to gain. Boy was I wrong! This thing cuts almost as fast as my rip blade, and I can actually work faster because I don't have to constantly slow down because I am worried about tear-out. Highly recommended.

I mounted this blade in my Milwaukee tilt-lok circular saw and have used it with great success make a lot of splinter free cuts in sheet stock. I often find that the cuts are as good as I get with a top of the line hybrid table saw. I am most impressed with the results I get cutting oak veneered plywood and MDO. I have not experienced one bit of kick back so I don't know what the problem was with that other reviewer. The blade does indicate that it will not perform as well on rip cuts so I avoid those and use it exclusively for cross-cutting panels and breaking down sheet goods into manageable pieces.

I highly recommend this blade for finish work and fine woodworking applications.

I am not sure why the poster below said there was kickback. The only thing I can think of is that he had the blade installed backwards. If you look at the blade, the arrow is pointed in the direction of normal blade right saws. If the porter cable the guy was using below was a blade left saw and he installed it so you can still see the writing, then he installed the blade backwards which could and would cause kickback. I have a feeling that is what his problem was. I bet if he reversed the blade it would work perfectly and you wouldn't have any problems with kickback.

This is absolutely a first rate blade. I use my circular saw primarily for sheet goods, and this is the first blade I've found that cuts smooth, clean cuts with no burning. I have used it to cut 1/2" and 3/4" birch plywood, and to cut 3/4" MDF. Today I used it to cut through a sandwich of two pieces of MDF (1-1/4" total) plus a high pressure laminate. Cuts were perfect with absolutely no burn.

I'm not sure what problems the earlier reviewer had, but this is the first blade I've used that gave me these superior results.

I have over a half dozen 7 1/4" blades in my shop.

I'm a woodworker, set designer - I've done contracting work as well, but with all due respect to one of the other review(s) for this product - this is the best circular saw blade I've ever used.

As an FYI, I use the blade on a Dewalt DW369CSK and the PSI Portable Panel Saw System to get functionality close to a panel saw.

It's a fine blade - not quite as good as Freud's LU85R010 - you still have to sand the cuts with this blade - but splintering is kept to a minimum.

Still don't believe me? This is the same metal blade as Freud's TK303 - which gets 4.5 stars at Amazon. The only difference is the Perma-SHIELD.

I am no wizard when it comes to circular saws but I simply cannot keep this blade from kicking. I use a powerful, top quality Porter Cable saw and have aligned the base plate parallel to the blade to within .001". I have verified that the blade is perfectly flat and that each of the massive, beautifully polished carbide teeth are razor sharp and properly positioned and have even measured the total run out of the blade as installed on my saws arbor to be within .001". I always use firmly clamped straightedge guides - a Tru-Grip for rips, and a c-clamped triangle for crosscuts. I try to keep the stock well supported and am very conscientious about supporting the waste and ensuring that the kerf does not close in or strain apart. I maintain a steady and appropriate feed rate yet roughly 30% of my cuts end up kicking. The blade binds somehow in the kerf and tears the wood to pieces in a violent explosion of red Teflon coated splinters. It occurs mostly when cross-cutting but also somehow with rips and plywood trimming! I don't know how this is all possible and for quite some time I refused to believe that the blade could be the culprit, focusing instead on the saw, the material, and most intensely, my technique. But time and time again, when I mount my old...Irwin Marathon 40T blade, I get perfect cuts every time with no exceptions whatsoever. I hope that someone else will add their experiences with this blade because it is a major source of confusion for me.

Being somewhat of a novice woodworker, I first tried the standard blade on my Makita circular saw to cut a piece of veneered wood... well, I don't have to tell you what happened.

This Freud blade did the trick beautifully. Clean, smooth cut with no chipping. Fantastic! (and i didn't encounter the kickback problem the other reviewer ran into)

This blade produces smooth, chip-free cuts in plywood as well as silky smooth rips and crosscuts. I've used this blade on soft woods such as white pine as well as quartersawn oak and the edge left by this blade is remarkable. Nearly as good as the 80-tooth Freud TKR806 on my table saw.

I have no idea why another reviewer had problems with kicking back. I have had no problems with this little gem, or any other Freud products for that matter. Highly recommended.

I mounted this blade to my Milwaukee 7-1/4" circular saw. It provided a clean cut through cabinet grade 3/4" Melamine Laminated Particle Board. I did tape the cut line as a precaution. The cut was equal to my FREUD LU97 10" Melamine cutting saw blade. If you had difficulty with this blade, I would suggest placing masking tape on the cut line, adjust the depth of cut and it those two items don't provide acceptable results, switch to another circular saw. I'll bet the problem is the SAW!

Mounted This Blade On My Portable Skil Saw. This Is One Excellent Saw Blade. I Have A 10" Freud Diablo Mounted On My Table Saw And I Have To Admit The 7 1/4" Almost Cuts Better Then The 10" Blade.
I Built A Set Of Tower Speakers For My Stereo System Out Of 3/4" MDF. The Length Of The Speakers Was Too Long For My Table Saw To Handle At 36"! I Placed The Sides Together, Lined Up A Straight Edge And Clamped The Whole Thing Down To My Work Mate Bench. Making A Final Check On Measurements And Alignments, I Then Let This Blade Go To Work And Did It Cut. Cuts Were Very Smooth And Fast. I Won't Have To Do Much Sanding On The Edges Either, Very Little Marks Left From The Blade. Not To Mention The Sides Were Perfect. No Alignment Problems, Putting Cabinets Together!
This Is The Best Blade I Have Ever Used On A Portable Saw. The Individual With The Kick Back Problems From An Earlier Post, Must Of Had A Bad Blade Or Something. I Experienced No Kick Back Or Even The Faintest Hint Of One.
Purchased This Blade From Amazon. Reasonable Price And Faster Then Speed Of Light Shipment. Thanks Amazon!!!