Table Saw RPM

[Ankle Deep]

My table saw currently turns the blade at 3450 rpm with a 1:1 pulley system and a 1 hp motor. The motor is a hard starter so I picked up a 1 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor at a garage sale. The 1 1/2 hp motor came with a pulley attached and the new ratio will turn the blade at 2415 rpm. What are the pros and cons of a slower blade rpm? Should I proceed or purchase a pulley that will bring me back to 3450 rpm?

[Ankle Deep]

My table saw currently turns the blade at 3450 rpm with a 1:1 pulley system and a 1 hp motor. The motor is a hard starter so I picked up a 1 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor at a garage sale. The 1 1/2 hp motor came with a pulley attached and the new ratio will turn the blade at 2415 rpm. What are the pros and cons of a slower blade rpm? Should I proceed or purchase a pulley that will bring me back to 3450 rpm?

[Ankle Deep]

My table saw currently turns the blade at 3450 rpm with a 1:1 pulley system and a 1 hp motor. The motor is a hard starter so I picked up a 1 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor at a garage sale. The 1 1/2 hp motor came with a pulley attached and the new ratio will turn the blade at 2415 rpm. What are the pros and cons of a slower blade rpm? Should I proceed or purchase a pulley that will bring me back to 3450 rpm?

[Ken Hutchins]

For general home shop DIY projects I personally think a slower speed is better especially if you cut a lot of hardwood. Higher speeds are great IF you can push the wood through fast enough so that each tooth actually cut a chip instead of just making fine dust and with pushing the stock thru by hand a constent feed fast enough is just not possible. With the lower speeds you will get much better blade life.

[ 11-10-2005, 05:38 AM: Message edited by: Ken Hutchins ]

[Ken Hutchins]

For general home shop DIY projects I personally think a slower speed is better especially if you cut a lot of hardwood. Higher speeds are great IF you can push the wood through fast enough so that each tooth actually cut a chip instead of just making fine dust and with pushing the stock thru by hand a constent feed fast enough is just not possible. With the lower speeds you will get much better blade life.

[ 11-10-2005, 05:38 AM: Message edited by: Ken Hutchins ]

[Ken Hutchins]

For general home shop DIY projects I personally think a slower speed is better especially if you cut a lot of hardwood. Higher speeds are great IF you can push the wood through fast enough so that each tooth actually cut a chip instead of just making fine dust and with pushing the stock thru by hand a constent feed fast enough is just not possible. With the lower speeds you will get much better blade life.

[ 11-10-2005, 05:38 AM: Message edited by: Ken Hutchins ]

[Ron Williamson]

At a lower blade RPM,you'll also have more torque for a given horsepower.
R

[Ron Williamson]

At a lower blade RPM,you'll also have more torque for a given horsepower.
R

[Ron Williamson]

At a lower blade RPM,you'll also have more torque for a given horsepower.
R

[Tom Lathrop]

The important thing is the tip speed in feet per minute, not RPM of the blade. Smaller diameter blades should run at higher RPM than large ones. As long as the motor is strong enough to handle it, I like high speed and sharp teeth. I agree with Ken to the extent that, for best blade life, there is an optimum speed for each thickness, wood hardness and feed speed but we have to accept a compromise.

For the home workshop, blade life is not one of my first concerns as opposed to cutting ease and smoothness of cut. Blades can be sharpened while a cut that is ready for gluing without further work as on a jointer is more important. With a properly set up saw working within its limits, heat should not be a problem.

[ 11-10-2005, 08:41 AM: Message edited by: Tom Lathrop ]

[Tom Lathrop]

The important thing is the tip speed in feet per minute, not RPM of the blade. Smaller diameter blades should run at higher RPM than large ones. As long as the motor is strong enough to handle it, I like high speed and sharp teeth. I agree with Ken to the extent that, for best blade life, there is an optimum speed for each thickness, wood hardness and feed speed but we have to accept a compromise.

For the home workshop, blade life is not one of my first concerns as opposed to cutting ease and smoothness of cut. Blades can be sharpened while a cut that is ready for gluing without further work as on a jointer is more important. With a properly set up saw working within its limits, heat should not be a problem.

[ 11-10-2005, 08:41 AM: Message edited by: Tom Lathrop ]

[Tom Lathrop]

The important thing is the tip speed in feet per minute, not RPM of the blade. Smaller diameter blades should run at higher RPM than large ones. As long as the motor is strong enough to handle it, I like high speed and sharp teeth. I agree with Ken to the extent that, for best blade life, there is an optimum speed for each thickness, wood hardness and feed speed but we have to accept a compromise.

For the home workshop, blade life is not one of my first concerns as opposed to cutting ease and smoothness of cut. Blades can be sharpened while a cut that is ready for gluing without further work as on a jointer is more important. With a properly set up saw working within its limits, heat should not be a problem.

[ 11-10-2005, 08:41 AM: Message edited by: Tom Lathrop ]

[Hughman]

Originally posted by Ankle Deep:
My table saw currently turns the blade at 3450 rpm with a 1:1 pulley system and a 1 hp motor. The motor is a hard starter so I picked up a 1 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor at a garage sale. The 1 1/2 hp motor came with a pulley attached and the new ratio will turn the blade at 2415 rpm. What are the pros and cons of a slower blade rpm? Should I proceed or purchase a pulley that will bring me back to 3450 rpm?I replaced the 3450 with a 1.5 1750 on my 10" saw as well. I put a 4" pulley to bring the speed up to about 4k rpm, and wished I had more torque with difficult wood. however, I get best results with 24 tooth (rip) blades, as the 40 tooth and above blades will heat and begin to bind.

pretty much what was posted above. ;)

[Hughman]

Originally posted by Ankle Deep:
My table saw currently turns the blade at 3450 rpm with a 1:1 pulley system and a 1 hp motor. The motor is a hard starter so I picked up a 1 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor at a garage sale. The 1 1/2 hp motor came with a pulley attached and the new ratio will turn the blade at 2415 rpm. What are the pros and cons of a slower blade rpm? Should I proceed or purchase a pulley that will bring me back to 3450 rpm?I replaced the 3450 with a 1.5 1750 on my 10" saw as well. I put a 4" pulley to bring the speed up to about 4k rpm, and wished I had more torque with difficult wood. however, I get best results with 24 tooth (rip) blades, as the 40 tooth and above blades will heat and begin to bind.

pretty much what was posted above. ;)

[Hughman]

Originally posted by Ankle Deep:
My table saw currently turns the blade at 3450 rpm with a 1:1 pulley system and a 1 hp motor. The motor is a hard starter so I picked up a 1 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor at a garage sale. The 1 1/2 hp motor came with a pulley attached and the new ratio will turn the blade at 2415 rpm. What are the pros and cons of a slower blade rpm? Should I proceed or purchase a pulley that will bring me back to 3450 rpm?I replaced the 3450 with a 1.5 1750 on my 10" saw as well. I put a 4" pulley to bring the speed up to about 4k rpm, and wished I had more torque with difficult wood. however, I get best results with 24 tooth (rip) blades, as the 40 tooth and above blades will heat and begin to bind.

pretty much what was posted above. ;)

[merlinron]

i'd give that 2415 rpm a try. even at that speed you're giving away roughly 1/3 of your new motor to overdriving, so you're actually back to the same 1hp( give or take) at the blade. the 1-1/2 hp. motor will have a little better torque, so it might cut heavy the stuff a little better, but with that 1725 rpm. motor, you're basically right back where you started for power, but with a lower blade speed.what you need to find is a 1-1/2 hp., 3450 rpm. motor, so you can run it 1 to 1 and get all the power at the blade, or, even pullied down to 2415( which is actually plenty of blade speed if you keep sharp blades on the saw) and have even more torque at the blade for the big stuff. the saw will also run a little smoother pullied down, especially if the saw is a contractor type the motor out back and a long belt.

[merlinron]

i'd give that 2415 rpm a try. even at that speed you're giving away roughly 1/3 of your new motor to overdriving, so you're actually back to the same 1hp( give or take) at the blade. the 1-1/2 hp. motor will have a little better torque, so it might cut heavy the stuff a little better, but with that 1725 rpm. motor, you're basically right back where you started for power, but with a lower blade speed.what you need to find is a 1-1/2 hp., 3450 rpm. motor, so you can run it 1 to 1 and get all the power at the blade, or, even pullied down to 2415( which is actually plenty of blade speed if you keep sharp blades on the saw) and have even more torque at the blade for the big stuff. the saw will also run a little smoother pullied down, especially if the saw is a contractor type the motor out back and a long belt.

[merlinron]

i'd give that 2415 rpm a try. even at that speed you're giving away roughly 1/3 of your new motor to overdriving, so you're actually back to the same 1hp( give or take) at the blade. the 1-1/2 hp. motor will have a little better torque, so it might cut heavy the stuff a little better, but with that 1725 rpm. motor, you're basically right back where you started for power, but with a lower blade speed.what you need to find is a 1-1/2 hp., 3450 rpm. motor, so you can run it 1 to 1 and get all the power at the blade, or, even pullied down to 2415( which is actually plenty of blade speed if you keep sharp blades on the saw) and have even more torque at the blade for the big stuff. the saw will also run a little smoother pullied down, especially if the saw is a contractor type the motor out back and a long belt.

[Ankle Deep]

Thanks for all the replys and advice. I think I will give the 1 1/2 hp at 2415 rpm a try. Thanks again, this is a great forum.

[Ankle Deep]

Thanks for all the replys and advice. I think I will give the 1 1/2 hp at 2415 rpm a try. Thanks again, this is a great forum.

[Ankle Deep]

Thanks for all the replys and advice. I think I will give the 1 1/2 hp at 2415 rpm a try. Thanks again, this is a great forum.

[Tom Lathrop]

I would add one further comment related to safety. The most dangerous table saw is one that has insufficient power. A saw that slows down any significant amount when making a cut is much more likely to bind and kick the work piece back at you.

Don't skimp on the power. It's cheap insurance.

As in all cutting tools, the safest one is a sharp one.

[ 11-11-2005, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: Tom Lathrop ]

[Tom Lathrop]

I would add one further comment related to safety. The most dangerous table saw is one that has insufficient power. A saw that slows down any significant amount when making a cut is much more likely to bind and kick the work piece back at you.

Don't skimp on the power. It's cheap insurance.

As in all cutting tools, the safest one is a sharp one.

[ 11-11-2005, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: Tom Lathrop ]

[Tom Lathrop]

I would add one further comment related to safety. The most dangerous table saw is one that has insufficient power. A saw that slows down any significant amount when making a cut is much more likely to bind and kick the work piece back at you.

Don't skimp on the power. It's cheap insurance.

As in all cutting tools, the safest one is a sharp one.

[ 11-11-2005, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: Tom Lathrop ]

[Mrleft8]

I wouldn't fool around with anything that could nip my hand off faster than a blink. There's a reason the saw was running at a particular TPM, I'd be inclined to keep it that way.

[Mrleft8]

I wouldn't fool around with anything that could nip my hand off faster than a blink. There's a reason the saw was running at a particular TPM, I'd be inclined to keep it that way.

[Mrleft8]

I wouldn't fool around with anything that could nip my hand off faster than a blink. There's a reason the saw was running at a particular TPM, I'd be inclined to keep it that way.