ATBR vs ATB

I believe your train of thought is correct. If you have a flat top blade, I can’t see what use an ATBR would be. I received an ATBR years ago, not knowing the difference and it works great though. It’s a Forrest Woodworker II 40T.

With what you have I’d say go for the “Gold” “Tenryu GM-25540 10 40t combo gold medal

Manufacturer specs.

-- Think safe, be safe

With what you have I d say go for the “Gold”

- therealSteveN

Au contraire. Newbie17 nailed it with the Forrest Woodworker II. There is no finer blade for the table saw.

-- Half of what we read or hear about finishing is right. We just don’t know which half! — Bob Flexner

Depends on who’s reviews you read. I like people actually buying, and using a blade’s opinion, not a buncha guys getting free blades for saying gee these are great.

-- Think safe, be safe

Depends on who s reviews you read. I like people actually buying, and using a blade s opinion, not a buncha guys getting free blades for saying gee these are great.

- therealSteveN

Well, I’ve paid for every one of mine, and I say they are great. That’s from actually using them, not just reading reviews. I bought my first one in the early ‘80s after seeing seeing it in Fine Woodworking magazine. It was the “Mr. Sawdust Signature Line” blade with Mr. Kunkel’s signature on it. Through the years, I’ve tried others in an attempt to save a buck, but always come back to Forrest. Generally, I find that even a cheap blade will cut well at first, but don’t stand up over time. The thick carbide on the Forrest can be resharpened many times, which is another thing cheap blades lack.

I’m not suggesting for a moment that there aren’t other excellent quality blades, but for several decades, Forrest has been the standard for quality, and are still made in the USA. That’s important to me.

-- Half of what we read or hear about finishing is right. We just don’t know which half! — Bob Flexner

I have the Freud 410, a couple of WW IIs (a 30 and a 40), and the Ridge Carbide TS 2000 (ATBR). My favorite is the Ridge. Not necessarily because I think it’s a superior quality (maybe it is, maybe it isn’t), but I really like the raker tooth. I often use it to cut slots to fit the “new age” 1/4” plywood (often almost 3/16”, or maybe 5MM) and the flat bottomed kerf is useful with no blade changes on the TS. I’ve also used it to cut 1/8” wide box joints and it really worked well. I realize you said that’s not a requirement for you, so if that’s the case almost any of the blades talked about above are very,very good blades.

-- Our village hasn't lost it's idiot, he was elected to congress.

I’m quite happy with my Freud blades (I have several). For the price I haven’t seen any that are better. I also have a Forrest cross cut on my radial arm saw that makes “perfect” almost shiny end grain cuts….it is 35 years old and been sharpened once. Obviously this is one of those somewhat subjective things to discuss.

A lost or chipped carbide can be replaced by any good saw shop so if the other teeth are still sound I would get the missing one fixed and have is resharpened at the same time.

-- Les B, Oregon