The first thing you might be thinking, as we did, was how do you get a “construction grade” blade you would also consider an “Extra Fine Finishing” blade. Seems kind of like an oxy-moron but after testing the Bosch DareDevil 7-1/4” against the competition in the recent Circular Saw Blade Showdown and being very pleased with it, we thought we would give this one a shot as well.
The larger finishing blade utilizes many of the same technology including the 3 edge sharpening for longer blade sharpness and blade coating for less resistance while cutting. We would also hope with the construction designation it would hold up better than typical finishing blades to staples, nails and other metal hits but we couldn’t bring ourselves to ruin this blade right out of the package.
The Bosch DCB1080 construction blade can go on any 10” table saw or 10” miter saw with a 5/8” arbor. It has a nice chart printed right on the blade to highlight its strength of (crosscutting & hardwoods) and weaker areas (ripcuts & framing lumber) which should be somewhat obvious as a finishing blade although again it is still a “construction” blade so perhaps not so clear. In our experience for table and miter saws for finishing work we have found the saw blade makes a huge difference, perhaps even more so that the saw itself. We would rather use a medium quality saw with a high-end blade than a high-end saw with a medium quality blade.
Above is a look at several 10” blades, 40T vs 60T vs 80T blade we’ve used on the Bosch 4100-09 ($617, Ohio Power Tool) which is an excellent option for a precision jobsite table saw, ideal for onsite finishing work.
This particular blade however will most likely spend the rest of its time on this DeWalt 10” slide saw which at first glance just looks wrong. All that blue/grey against all that yellow/black of the saw; we can’t help but think that DareDevil logo is making those angry eyes because he’s mad at us.
After buttoning the saw back up and making a few cuts however we realized Bosch and DeWalt can get along very well together! If you took the blue coating away, our guess is you would have a very hard time telling the difference between this DareDevil blade and other (more expensive) 80 Teeth Pro Finishing Saw Blades when it comes to smoothness and accuracy of the cut. It’s hard to tell if this blade will become a success or not, dressed up and priced like a construction blade but with performance closer to a high-end blade. Our guess is it will cut through the confusion and find some serious fans we are just not sure who they are, maybe some thrifty woodworkers.
Check out the Bosch Saw Blade page of Ohio Power Tool and you should find the DCB1080 (for less than $50) and other new DareDevil blades coming in September or October at the latest. If you have other questions on saw blades for construction or finish carpentry give the Ohio Power Tool pros a call 800-242-4424. See more pictures in this Facebook Album.
