Hercules Circular Saw Blades for Metal

[Paul Fithian]

I've found these blades to be excellent for cutting steel and aluminum with a cordless 7 1/4" circular saw. Cuts easy, very nice finish on an accurate cut

For steel, HERCULES 7-1/4 in., 48T Steel Cutting Circular Saw Blade HA25-B11 58357

7-1/4 in., 48T Steel Cutting Circular Saw Blade

Amazing deals on this 7-1/4In 48T Metal Circular Saw Blade at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

For aluminum,
HERCULES 7-1/4 in., 56T Non-Ferrous Circular Saw Blade HA25-B12 57712

7-1/4 in., 56T Non-Ferrous Circular Saw Blade

Amazing deals on this 7-1/4In 56T Nonferrous Circ Saw Blade at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

 

[Makintrax73]

I purchased a Hercules 10" non-ferrous blade for my miter saw when I was doing some work on AL angle and plate. I would agree that blade worked really well for me.

 

[Paul Fithian]

I can further advise this setup should not be used for small diameter items. I tried to cut a piece 15/64" drill rod that didn't work.

A tooth from the blade caught the rod and wrenched it out, causing the bend and some scratches to the miter saw. The bent drill rod landed on the floor a few feet away, Good fortune that there were no injuries - it could have turned out really bad

 

[GeneT45]

I think most metal-cutting blades work well out of the box, it's the longevity that distinguishes a good blade from the rest. Have you used one of these long enough to wear it out or convince yourself that you got enough cuts that it's a good value?

I've been using the Milwaukee steel cutting blade$ and they're pretty proud of them, so an alternative that worked as well (or nearly as well) would be welcome. At my former employer we had a metal cutting miter saw (probably an Evolution, but I don't really recall) and picked up some inexpensive blades (I don't recall what they were) but they dulled very quickly in steel. We set them aside for aluminum - these blades seem to go forever with just aluminum. A little wax saw lube goes a long ways with aluminum as well. I'm not so sure it makes much difference in steel.

GsT

 

[projectnut]

There was a discussion about these and other blades a while ago on one of the professional boards. Thy were discussing the 10" and 12" sizes. The consensus was that while they do an adequate job, they have a short life compared to the higher quality blades like Freud, Lenox, Morse, and others selling in the $125.00 to $175.00 price range. The higher quality blades were averaging 1,000 cuts before needing to be sharpened. The Hercules blades were averaging around 300 cuts before needing to be sharpened.

The Hercules blades could generally be sharpened up to 3 times before needing to be discarded. The higher quality blades could be sharpened up to 10 times before being discarded. If you're doing limited cutting of small diameter or relatively thin flat stock, they might be cost effective.

Just to add confusion you can usually find some of the higher quality blades on eBay for prices similar to the HF offerings.

 

[o0norton0o]

Round stock of any kind can be problematic with toothed blades because blade contact on the outter surface induces a rotational force which round stock has little ability to resist. Clamping it in a round cradle sacrifice piece helps reduce that tendency to roll.

. One of the worst examples is freehanding firewood rounds through a bandsaw. The blade can grab and roll the stock rather then cut it. I've seen some really frightening mishaps where it happens lightning fast with an explosive bang and binds up the motor leaving it humming but frozen momentarily until it's shut it off... It's not so much the blade not being a good match for the material, It's more the nature of cutting round objects and the blade imparting rotation to an object that has a tendency to roll.