What diameter is a 10" TS blade?

[Wade Lippman]

I just bought a Rockler 10" table saw blade. I measured it and it is 9.85". I measured the Freud blade I am using now as 10", and two old blades I have are also 10".
A 9.85" blade will not fit a SS properly, and since I bought a 10" blade, I want a 10" blade. (sure, I can adjust everything everytime I change a blade, but why would I want to do that when I wouldn't have to if the blade was actually 10"?)

I contacted Rockler and requested return authorization. They say I can return it but have to pay shipping both ways, as there is nothing wrong with it.
It seems to me that if a 10" blade isn't 10", then there is something wrong with it.

Am I overreacting here? If something isn't what it says it is, then it is wrong, no? Just want to do a reality check here before I protest the charge on my credit card.

[Mike Henderson]

I agree with you. If it says that it's a 10" blade, I'd expect a 10" blade. If the blade is metric, they should specify that it's 250mm and not 10".

Mike

[David Kumm]

Take a look at the thread currently running " Saw blade sizes and the Sawstop". Should answer your questions. dave

[Rod Sheridan]

I just bought a Rockler 10" table saw blade. I measured it and it is 9.85". I measured the Freud blade I am using now as 10", and two old blades I have are also 10".
A 9.85" blade will not fit a SS properly, and since I bought a 10" blade, I want a 10" blade. (sure, I can adjust everything everytime I change a blade, but why would I want to do that when I wouldn't have to if the blade was actually 10"?)

I contacted Rockler and requested return authorization. They say I can return it but have to pay shipping both ways, as there is nothing wrong with it.
It seems to me that if a 10" blade isn't 10", then there is something wrong with it.

Am I overreacting here? If something isn't what it says it is, then it is wrong, no? Just want to do a reality check here before I protest the charge on my credit card.

Wade, there's nothing wrong with the blade from a manufacturing perspective.

Most of the world, and hence most of the tooling in the world is metric.

You have a 250mm blade which works just fine in place of a 10" blade unless your riving knife won't adjust properly. You'll find a lot of blades are metric, 250/300/350mm diameter are common.

As you see more imported tooling in Canada and the USA, you'll see more metric blades.

Note that metric blades are also made in Canada and the USA.

Regards, Rod.

[Rod Sheridan]

I agree with you. If it says that it's a 10" blade, I'd expect a 10" blade. If the blade is metric, they should specify that it's 250mm and not 10".

Mike

I suspect Mike, that it's due to the odd situation in the US where metric items are still listed by their nominal Imperial sizes.

I notice that on plywood when I'm in the US, it's been metric in thickness for years yet I still see it marketed as Imperial.............Regards, Rod.

[Judson Green]

Funny nobody questions the real size of a 2×4.

½" chisels are not all ½" wide.

[Wade Lippman]

Wade, there's nothing wrong with the blade from a manufacturing perspective.

No, but it says 10" and it is 9.85".

If you bought a 11/16" drill because needed a 11/16" drill, but it actually measured 5/8" would you accept it just because it was manufactured properly?

[Chris Padilla]

Is this a trick question, Wade?

[Chris Padilla]

No, but it says 10" and it is 9.85".

If you bought a 11/16" drill because needed a 11/16" drill, but it actually measured 5/8" would you accept it just because it was manufactured properly?

Of course not but a drill is a different beast than a saw blade. The '10 inch' part of the blade isn't really all that important in terms of its intended use. It is more of a category for it to be used in. As we all know, dado blades don't come in 10" diameters for a '10 inch' table saw.

[Dennis Aspö]

I've noticed similar things before, usually blades are 250mm here, but sometimes I see 254mm and I wonder why the extra 4mm? Then I realized an inch is 25.4mm and they where 10" blades. I don't bother with a 4mm difference in potential height, I haven't yet needed it that badly, I could make the cut on a bandsaw instead, or I just flip the piece and cut it twice.

If there's some extra special purpose I can always put a 300mm blade in my saw which it'll take, but I haven't needed it, and less so with a bandsaw in my arsenal.

[John Huds0n]

Funny nobody questions the real size of a 2×4.

½" chisels are not all ½" wide.

I was just going to mention the 2 x 4 issue - since Lowes paid $1.6 million to settle a lawsuit for "using incorrect product dimensions"

http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_26419809/marin-judge-orders-lowes-home-centers-pay-1

[Phil Thien]

No, but it says 10" and it is 9.85".

If you bought a 11/16" drill because needed a 11/16" drill, but it actually measured 5/8" would you accept it just because it was manufactured properly?

I've seen this sort of thing come up before where SawStop saws are concerned.

Rockler should pay shipping both ways.

Why? Well because SawStop has a major part of the market, Rockler SELLS SawStop, and the reduced diameter of the blade is a hassle and they should know all about it.

I know about it and I neither own or sell SawStop saws. So they should certainly know about it.

If they didn't know all about it, they do now, and should cough-up the shipping both ways for the lesson. Then they can send a lackey out to the warehouse and measure all the blades and update the website reflecting the true diameter of each blade.

[Keith Hankins]

Funny nobody questions the real size of a 2×4.

½" chisels are not all ½" wide.

You are wise man beyond years grasshopper!

Forrest blades are not truely 10" either. I had that issue with my SS. When changing from their blade to my WWII, i would have to adjust the cartridge. Forrest said they got complaints from some saw manufacturers that could not take a true 10" blade so in an attempt to compromise they are slightly under by a hair. No biggie really, I've not changed from my Forrest blades since that episode anyway and my SS blades although good, are delegated to emergency backup should I get a cartridge fire.

In the scope of things not a big deal.

[scott vroom]

I agree with Wade. If they advertise 10" without the word "nominal" then he should expect 10". I think it's an intentional deception by Rockler because they don't want to scare away business by advertising 9.85". I'd demand they pay for round trip shipping on the RMA.

[Tony Joyce]

Of course not but a drill is a different beast than a saw blade. The '10 inch' part of the blade isn't really all that important in terms of its intended use. It is more of a category for it to be used in. As we all know, dado blades don't come in 10" diameters for a '10 inch' table saw.

Au contraire, I have two dado sets that are 10" for 10" saw(5/8" bore). Maybe not the most common, but not a good example.

Tony