We heard about this new Diablo blade about 6 months ago but it was a “rolling change” for their most popular Freud Diablo 7-1/4” Framing Circular Saw Blade keeping the same part number. Great news is you can now get the new Diablo Track Point 7-1/4” saw blade D0724PX ($10, limited time BOGO), but be careful to make sure you see the “New Tracking Point” graphic on the left side of the blade or you might actually be buying the older version of the D0724PX. The older version is still a great blade but hopefully after you read this article and watch video you’ll have a better idea why the new blade with Track Point is better.
What is Track Point?
One of the carbide tooth blade advancements, common place now, was to add ATB (Alternating Top Bevel) tooth geometry, basically alternate the point of each tooth left and right for a cleaner, faster cut. Most high quality blades you buy today use some form of this technology. Track Point basically adds a third bevel into the sequence with a point in the middle to act as a rudder to keep the blade stable. With each left and right tooth pulling in opposite directions this third tooth lowers vibration without adding drag you might see with a flat or “rake” tooth you could find on a $100+ cabinet saw combination blades. It is a big surprise to find a feature like this on a 7-1/4” framing blade which sells for $9.99.
In addition to lowering vibration (reducing resistance) the tracking point technology allows the blade to be more stable at a thinner kirf of only 1.5mm (.059”). The thinner the kirf the less material removed and longer blade will last. Building this on top of Freud’s other trademark features of TiCo high density carbide, non-Stick Perma-Shield Coating and improved laser cut anti-vibration vents and this is a lot of engineering into a framing blade.
What are the Results?
This new blade is promising a to be the toughest framing blade on the market which we had an opportunity to cut nail embedded wood with other nasty material on top and it handled the task beautifully. In the video above they did the cutting against the Irwin Weld-Tech ($15) which is designed as a tough demolition blade and the Diablo blade easily out-performed. Typically to get a tougher blade the tradeoff might be a thicker kirf which will naturally be a little slower cutting, with the new Diablo the opposite is the case.
This new blade works equally well on corded or cordless but is targeted at cordless saw owner such as Milwaukee M18 FUEL 7-1/4” 2731-20 ($229, bare tool) or Makita 18V 7-1/4” XSH01 ($199, bare tool) because they can expect 45%-65% more run-time per charge just by using this blade. Run-time is still a big problem with cordless circular saws, getting to that point where you only need to swap the battery once during the day would mean the cordless circular saws may finally hit the tipping point, fully replacing corded circular saws for more users. For 6-1/2″ cordless circular saw users you’ll need to wait just a few more months but there will be a 24 tooth Track Point Blade coming for you as well.
Can the new Diablo Track Point circular saw blade actually replacing 5 of your premium circular saw blades from Irwin, Dewalt and others? From what we have seen it certainly seems plausible, pretty likely at least 2-3x depending on the application which still means these would be a big savings. Currently the intro Buy One Get One deal makes it a no-brainer to at least try them out and decide for yourself. We would love to hear your feedback!
