The Blade Test

[Back2Jake]

I have noticed a number of posts on the forums where members have mentioned how much they love Flying Dutchman scrollsaw blades. I had never tried them and wanted to test them out for myself.

In the interest of blade comparison, (and not to mention I didn't have much to do that day) I decided to "test drive" some different brands of scrollsaw blades. Since I couldn't do the blindfold test I had a friend put different brands of blades in unmarked envelopes. Since I didn't know what brand was which, I was unbiased.

I cut the same pattern on the same types of wood and then evaluated the blades performance while I cut, and afterwards on the inside of the cuts, the surface and the underside.

I expected I would find a blade I liked better, I expected I would pick the famous Flying Dutchman, but as it turned out, I chose the same brand of blade all over again.

What is your favorite brand of blade?

[Forester21]

I haven't tried the Pegasus blades - don't think I have even heard of them.
I did use the Olsen blades this fall when I ran out of the FD. I had less breakage, and more cutting before dulling the blades with the FD.
So, what brand did you end up likeing best??
T

[jttheclockman]

Toni

Now I am not going to knock your test but have to bring to lite some things you are not taking into consideration. First if you are truly going to test blades you must be fair. You must use all the same types of blades such as all reverse teeth, all polar blades, all double teeth, All precision ground teeth, so on. They must be the same kind the same number such as #5 with #5 and so on. You must use the same wood type and prefeable from the same piece. Wood changes piece to piece. You must use the same speed of the saw. You must use the same saw. So you see it is not as easy of a test as you made it out to be. I can tell you this there are other factors in buying blades such as service, cost, and the quality. I have tried so many different blades over the years and have a drawer filled with them. I have chosen the Flying Dutchman blades for a few simple reason and I think if anyone has scrolled for awhile will know what I am talking about. First they stay sharper longer, and the thing I like is they are true. When they say they are a #5 blade they are a #5 blade throughout the dozen not like I have found with Olsons and gotten different numbers mixed in. Also the cut is true I have gotten blades where they will drift more to the left or more to the right. With the flying Dutchman blades they cut the same way from the first to the last and the next batch. I am in no way affiliated with Mike but I think his blades are the best.

What I suggest Toni is to apply all the things I mentioned at the beginning and make all your cuts in 3/4" red oak. For that is a good wood to really test blades.

[goobydoosdad]

I am gonna tell ya how I voted..................other.................I do not know anything about the other blades, I have only used the Dremel ones that came with my saw. Soooooooooooooo..................the ones I currently own, work, so they are the best for me.

[Sparkplug]

Whatever works best
Sparky

[Back2Jake]

Toni

"Now I am not going to knock your test but have to bring to lite some things you are not taking into consideration.... So you see it is not as easy of a test as you made it out to be. "


"I have chosen the Flying Dutchman blades for a few simple reason and I think if anyone has scrolled for awhile will know what I am talking about. "

Hi John,

Let me start by saying that over the last 20 years of scrolling, I too have tried countless blades. Some were absolutely dreadful.

Perhaps I shortened my post on the testing procedure .... hmmm. Ever think of that? LOL. I had set out a written criteria prior to testing the blades and did follow the same procedures for each comparable blade. You are correct, there are many factors involved in performing an objective testing / review and I am please to see you post to add that information.

Thanks!

[jttheclockman]

Toni

My mistake I did not know you did all the things stated and have come upon a favorite blade. Scrolling for 20 years means you have tried many different blades and I think we would like to know which blade you have chosen and why. Hope others would join in and report their findings.

[AuDust]

Blades

Toni,

I use FD, Olson and Eberle blades for different reasons. When cutting pieces for box puzzles the copper colored 2/0 Eberle blades are easier to see against the black lines.

Have used FD and Olson when stack cutting baltic birch tray puzzles for children. Have had the best luck with 9R olson, less chip-out without having to use clear tape. Make 4 to 500 a year, so that is a lot of clear tape to peel off the pieces of every fourth puzzle.

The FD's seem to work best in solid wood for me, make nativities in 4/4 and 5/4 mahogany and red oak. The FD's seem to be a cross between a stamped and precision ground. The precision ground blades are, at least for me, too aggressive for intricate work. They are great for cutting out shapes with little detail requiring sharp turns.

Just my 2 cents worth.

AuDust

[3_M]

All scroll saw blades are milled not stamped.
Mike M

[wwalker47]

Flying Dutchman by far. The only blades I will use.

[Back2Jake]

Toni,

I use FD, Olson and Eberle blades for different reasons. When cutting pieces for box puzzles the copper colored 2/0 Eberle blades are easier to see against the black lines.

Have used FD and Olson when stack cutting baltic birch tray puzzles for children. Have had the best luck with 9R olson, less chip-out without having to use clear tape. Make 4 to 500 a year, so that is a lot of clear tape to peel off the pieces of every fourth puzzle.

The FD's seem to work best in solid wood for me, make nativities in 4/4 and 5/4 mahogany and red oak. The FD's seem to be a cross between a stamped and precision ground. The precision ground blades are, at least for me, too aggressive for intricate work. They are great for cutting out shapes with little detail requiring sharp turns.

Just my 2 cents worth.

AuDust

Thanks AuDust! You made some points which I tend to agree with.

[minowevie]

well for me. i have tryed alot of blades . an brock alot of blades. pushing an sawing at the rough speed has tought me alot. but not enouph. hahah. its a toss up between Flying Dutchmon an Sroll Amirica. the Flying Dutchmons was way to fast an sharp for me at first. so i stuck to the Sroll Amirican. scrolled slow. worked great. but when i got faster. woops brock them too. for they got dull very fast. found my self going back to the blades i had from Flying Dutchmon. to finish my work. old blades, I had already used. haha rely sharp . so i would put them aside , an saved them . for when i got better at cutting,.its so funny . when i got better at cutting , i needed long lasting blades that held their sharpness. an guss what it was Flying Dutchmons. not only was those the best blades. but the seller , MIKE M , was a great metor in scrolling. He not only sells you his blades , but tells you how to use them , gives lots of advice. an becomes a freind in the prosses. He will back up his blades, and deal with you too. walmart wont do this nor will home depot. or lowes . like you could get good blades there . hahah , You can learn on any blades. and i mean any. but when you wont to get good at it. we wont the best. and i have found no better than Flying Dutchmons. not becouse He is my friend. but Becouse He sells the best . an stands buy them. your new friend Evie

[Jediscroller]

I've yet to try the Pegas brand so I can't comment on those. I cut a lot of very intricate portraits out of 1/8" BB typically in stacks of 5. I've tried several different Olsens and the results are always the same, they dull very quickly, typically in under 15 minutes (if they don't break first). With FD-SR #3's I usually get 30 - 45 minutes of cutting time and I think I've broken 1 blade. With the #1's I get about 20 - 30 minutes cutting time on this size stack. I've also tried the TC's but found them too difficult to control for my type of cutting. I've found this same thing when cutting hardwoods from 1/2" to 2", the FD's always outlast comparable Olsens (for me) by at least a 2 - 1 margin. Recently I cut some 2" Padauk, a #9 Olson dulled in about 3 minutes (literally) and burned from the start, the only other viable option I had were FD-SR #7's which is really not the right blade for this thickness but I gave them a try and managed to get about 20 minutes of cutting time out of them as well as having no burning and being able to finish the project.

Kevin

[jttheclockman]

Torture

I do not for the life of me know why I want to torture myself every now and again. Today I was cutting some napkin holders such as the ones in the photo.

When cutting these the outer part must be cut from the center at an angle. So I decided this would be a good place to use up some of the many blades I have accumilated over the years before I found the FD blades. I did not care if I used one blade for each cut. Well let me tell you after the first one with the pushing and the burning I gave up and broke out the FD blades. From there it was a piece of cake. I tell you these blades can't be beat. By the way I was able to cut 4 with the FD blade as opposed to one very tough one with othr blades. There is a savings right there. No more torture. When will I learn??

[chrisyates]

Where does one find these Flying Dutchmen blades?

I've been using Dremel, Ridgid, and VA blades for awhile and seem to work fine for my purposes, but would love to try something new if you all claim they are that much better! (I am mostly using pinned skip tooth by the way)

(actually those Dremel blades dull out way too fast)