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Post by HankRocks on May 15, 2019 9:17:09 GMT -5
What's the best 10" Diamond Blade for slabbing? I have an MK303, 10" X .050", it's not a good blade as it needs to be sharpened after every slice now. Lot's of kerf left on blade so it should have lot's of life.
I did check the belt and it was tight, and both pulleys, no slipping. The feed screw is turning as required and it runs the carriage through with a rock.
Thanks
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on May 15, 2019 9:34:36 GMT -5
What's the best 10" Diamond Blade for slabbing? I have an MK303, 10" X .050", it's not a good blade as it needs to be sharpened after every slice now. Lot's of kerf left on blade so it should have lot's of life. I did check the belt and it was tight, and both pulleys, no slipping. The feed screw is turning as required and it runs the carriage through with a rock. Thanks I am curious to see some other responses. I have always used and liked the MK303 series for 6", 8" and 10" saws. I do step over to the MK301 Gemking for anything larger though and love those blades. Chuck |
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Tommy
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Post by Tommy on May 15, 2019 9:41:07 GMT -5
I love the MK-301 in my 18" saw - it has been a workhorse and barely shows wear after several years. I also have had an MK-301 in my 10" old LS-10 until I sold it and then I took that blade and put it on my 10" 'push thru' saw which led to it's ultimate demise but it lasted a long time overall. While a little thick, what you lose in product is made up for in productivity and longevity IMHO.
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Post by HankRocks on May 15, 2019 10:34:02 GMT -5
I bought this blade in late 2018. Production hasn't moved to China has it? If it has then I have my answer.
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Post by Peruano on May 16, 2019 8:00:35 GMT -5
If you really have a 10" slab saw with a power feed, I'd not hesitate to recommend the MK225. I have a 12" that has been running for several years on a slab saw that is worked hard with lots of pet wood and agate. The blade never needs to be dressed and its still going strong. In various discussion here its been stated to be the equivalent of the Agate Cutter another stalwart blade. Because it has the slots like bigger blades it would probably not be a blade for hand fed cutting.
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agatemaggot
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Member since August 2006
Posts: 2,195
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Post by agatemaggot on May 16, 2019 10:48:42 GMT -5
I have purchased a bunch of wheels and blades from Jadecarver and have had NO problems with any of them.
Good quality and long life ! He even carries radius wheels, inside and outside curvature .
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on May 16, 2019 17:39:49 GMT -5
As far as currently produced diamond blades, the MK/BD-301 is my first choice for slabbing with oil. Although that may be changing soon. I've been using the MK-225 Hot Dog blade that Peruano mentioned for trimming slabs on a Raytech 10" trim/slab saw with Duroprime 90 mineral oil for a coolant and LOVE it! As of today I've trimmed over 560 cab preforms total on this one blade, of mostly agate and jasper with a high percentage being large preforms and preforms cut from large slabs. I've abused the heck out of this blade and it's still got a lot of diamond showing. I haven't tried slabbing with it yet but will probably get a new one now to try for slabbing. If it proves to be as good at slabbing as it is at trimming then it will probably become my go-to blade for 10" and 12" saws. A MK/BD factory technician told me over the phone that the MK-225 Hot Dog blade is the exact same blade as the BD-305 Agate Kutter blade. The Hot Dog blade is a popular 10" tile saw blade for contractors so it can be bought at a much better price from some of the discount industrial supply stores. The 12" version is much more expensive but I plan on getting one of those too to try with water on my vintage 12" Slik Drop Saw this summer. It should be noted that the MK-225 is a little "chippy" and throws micro-gravel like crazy when hand feeding it slabs, especially when new. So if you're going to use one for trimming or slabbing with an open saw DEFINITELY WEAR SAFETY GLASSES!  Larry C. |
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Post by hummingbirdstones2 on May 16, 2019 20:11:30 GMT -5
I also use the MK-225 Hot Dog on a 10" for hand slabbing, using a sheet metal angle fence. The slotted blade carries more oil into the cut, and they usually last me at least a year - with what most would call serious mistreatment. By that I mean slabbing rocks up to 4-5" thick, flipping them to finish the cuts as needed.
I've been wondering how much rim depth you have left on that 303. They do slow down as the rim gets used up. I've used the 6" 303s all the way down to the core, but have seen performance drop over time on the larger ones.
Also would be curious to know the rim speed of your saw in feet per minute. Wondering if it could be glazing. |
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Post by catmandewe on May 17, 2019 10:55:39 GMT -5
Try flipping your blade over, many times that will work.
Tony
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Post by Peruano on May 19, 2019 21:50:15 GMT -5
There is nothing wrong with the 303 and 301 blades but the 225 has a proven record of resisting being bent or tweeked perhaps because of a thicker core.
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Post by hummingbirdstones2 on May 22, 2019 22:20:37 GMT -5
I just swapped a new 10" 303 out for a new 10" Hot Dog while slabbing some Regency Rose. The Hot Dog is slicing them off about twice as fast as the 303 was. Same weight on the gravity feed, and no other changes. Both were brand new out of the box.
I still like the 303 for anything a little softer or more fragile. |
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Post by Rockoonz on May 23, 2019 11:24:19 GMT -5
I almost never have to dress the 303 in my 10" slab saw.
My guess is your feed is too fast or blade speed too slow. 5 minutes per inch is the fastest you want to feed, and slower in larger saws. Blade rpm should be at the 1725 rpm motor speed or a little faster. I have a 2" pulley on the blade and 2 1/4" on the motor, about 1900 rpm.
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Post by Rockoonz on May 23, 2019 11:33:29 GMT -5
Also, if your saw is a trim/slab saw, your problem could also be from overheating oil because of the small sump, the reason I don't slab with a trim saw.
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Post by greig on May 23, 2019 12:00:35 GMT -5
Here might be a quick solution before replacing the existing blade. Try cutting an old brick with the saw to clean up the blade and expose the diamonds. I get my diamond blade plugged up with silver when cutting ore and this little trick usually solves the problem. I got my brick from a demolished building site.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 18, 2022 21:46:03 GMT -5
After having recommended the MK-225 Hot Dog Blade on this thread three years ago I feel I should let anyone researching 10" blades know that I am no longer as enthusiastic. Today I received two new MK-225 Hot Dog blades (ordered through Home Depot but the order was drop shipped from MK Diamond Products in Torrance, CA). The quality of these blades appear to have dropped from what they were 3+ years ago. Both blades I received today are cupped. They appear to have gotten cupped during the arbor hole boring/stamping/? process. And both have very little kerf and what kerf they do have feels uneven.
They will probably still be okay for trimming slabs but being cupped may be an issue if trying to slab. I may be able to flatten them a little by laying them on the milled flat iron surface of my table saw and tapping them with a wooden block and hammer. Using this method I've been able to straighten older softer steel lapidary blades that have gotten cupped. Not sure if it will work on the MK-225 steel core or not.
My older MK-225 blade still has some use left in it so it will probably be a while before I try using these new ones. When I do, if there is a noticeable difference in how they perform when trimming slabs then I will do a follow up post.
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Post by liveoak on Aug 19, 2022 10:24:30 GMT -5
So my question is has Mk's quality dropped in general & would a new MK-303 also not be as good as the older ones?
Or is this just showing up on the 225 Hot dog ?
Patty
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 19, 2022 11:29:32 GMT -5
So my question is has Mk's quality dropped in general & would a new MK-303 also not be as good as the older ones? Or is this just showing up on the 225 Hot dog ? Patty Sorry but I haven't purchased a new MK/BD 303 or 301 for several years now so can't answer that question. Perhaps someone else on this board has and will be able to respond? For my medium to larger sized slab saws I usually seek out the old stock U.S. made blades and purchase those when I can find them.(i.e. Vanguard, Felker, Star Diamond, Lortone Black Panther, Congo, the earlier Mk 301 and 297 blades, and the U.S. made Raytech Black Blazer are all good blades.) A few years ago I had a large lot of agate and jasper slab trimming to do and had seen positive comments posted about the MK-225 Hot Dog blades being a good aggressive blade so decided make to give one of the 10" Mk-225 blades a try. It performed very well for trimming slabs and since they were inexpensive I had decided to order a couple more while they are still obtainable. Wish I had done so sooner while they were still better quality. |
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Post by liveoak on Aug 19, 2022 19:41:45 GMT -5
Personally my thinking is to order a blade from a source that is easily returnable, so if the quality control isn't what it should be , you can easily send it back. I've been most happy with my MK-225, so I'm thinking to order a new one through Amazon that offers free returns if there's an issue. I read today that all MK blades are made in Asia - so I'm betting hit or miss.
Patty
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brybry
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Post by brybry on Aug 19, 2022 21:01:03 GMT -5
I had good luck with this blade QEP 6-1003Q Continuous Rim Diamond Blade, 10-Inch Diameter, 5/8-Inch Arbor, Wet Cutting, 6115 Maximum RPM a.co/jdq3hvMI also got the hotdog blade and to date zero issues with it. |
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