OSHLUN SDS-0630 6-Inch 30 Tooth Stack Dado Set with 5/8-Inch
OSHLUN SDS-0630 6-Inch 30 Tooth Stack Dado Set with 5/8-Inch Arbo
Full Body Chippers
Full body chippers for easier setup and less vibration.
4 pcs of 1/8″
1 pc of 3/32″
1 pc of 1/16″
Storage/Carrying Case
(Design may vary)
Shim Set Included
Shim Set for Fine Adjustments
2 pcs of 0.005″
2 pcs of 0.015″
2 pcs of 0.010″
2 pcs of 0.020″
Score Marks
Blades produce small score marks on the outer edges to help eliminate tear-out and splintering.
| Weight: | 227 g |
| Size: | 6-Inch Dado |
| Dimensions: | 21.5 x 20.5 x 6.5 cm; 226.8 Grams |
| Model: | SDS-0630 |
| Part: | SDS-0630 |
| Colour: | Steel |
| Pack Quantity: | 16 |
| Batteries Required: | No |
| Batteries Included: | No |
| Manufacture: | Oshlun |
| Dimensions: | 21.5 x 20.5 x 6.5 cm; 226.8 Grams |
| Quantity: | 16 |
| Size: | 6-Inch Dado |
This havy set of blades with chippers and shims, came as bare tools; no box, no bag, stacked in 3/16″ carton box. I made one solid wood box on my own. Also, shims have smaller holes that the arbor size is (5/8″); I file all shims.
Blades are good. The set includes allot of options. The 2 outer blades are not quite the same size so there is a small ridge left in 1 side of the dadoo that requires chiselling out which is pretty annoying.
Used on pre finish Baltic plywood for drawers using the 1/4 1/4 1/4 joint process. Chip out on bottom end splintered the finish… almost like a tear ou
A little too big for my table saw, but didn’t have any smaller.
i set the set up for 3/4″ dado in plywood and it was a perfect cut no chipping
Very happy with this. Cuts clean, neat dados. I also use it for tenons. I bought the 6 inch which is perfect for my use. I use it in my Dewalt 744 (type 1) saw. If you’ve got this saw, it will fit. Just take out the inner washer and switch it for the outer washer then put the arbor nut against the blade. If you’ve got a different saw, READ YOUR MANUAL to see if this fits.
Well made, having only used single blades before surprised by the stacked weight. Needs a robust motor. My Ryobi RA 2500 copes well. Be aware of the increased ‘bite’ and allow for it.
Good value easy to set up for odd size plywood when making dados so far they have been good cutting slots in maple plywood
No telling how may MILES i have used this setup and it keeps on plowing away. A little dress up after the cut but that is to be expected.
This blade is perfect for what I wanted to use it for, which is spline cuts for the corners of wooden boxes. It worked like a charm… clean cuts and sharp corners of the groove.
Good product did exactly as it says. I should have went for the 8″ stack it would have been better for my needs, but the 6″ works perfectly
Great blade that produced a nice cut in plywood and hardwood. My father liked it so much, I ordered one for Christmas for him.
Super sharp blades that came in a cardboard box layered with foam. I am not sure how long the box will last.
I’ve been using this dado set for years. It makes accurate dadoes with sharp, square corners and flat bottoms even when used with my cheap portable table saw. I take good care of them, and they have yet to need sharpening.
Pelo valor da mercadoria, merecia uma embalagem melhor, as lminas intermedirias vieram umas sobre as outras, dependendo do cuidado(falta dele) no transporte, pode acarretar em quebra dos dentes por atrito.
Aconselho uma nova embalagem. O meu chegou bem, nenhuma avaria aparente. Resta agora testar para ver se tudo cabe na DW7492.
I’ve never had a dado set before and I looked around quite a bit before buying these. They work well. They’ve done a bit, but not a lot, of work and they are still like new. I definitely recommend them.
The only thing I don’t like is how hard the blades and spacers are to get off the arbor. It can definitely be a chore!
Very quick delivery as received the next day. Super sharp and has various spacers to het exact dado width required. Only negative, I am in Australia and we are metric and this Dado set is imperial. Easy to convert required blade setup and cut ever so clean. Very well made. very good buy and well worth the money
Excellent set of saws that runs nice and balanced with no additional vibration, unlike some of my ripping blades. Easy to set up and align although the full stack is pretty heavy. My saw has an 1800W 240V motor and can handle it without a problem.
I’m in the UK and was really impressed to take delivery within 3 working days.
Works very well, especially given relatively low cost. Produces nice, smooth bottom slots with clean sides. Has very complete set of chippers and shims, permitting wide array of cut widths. Note that for most applications, there is no advantage to getting a dado stack of diameter over 6″; you rarely need to make cuts deeper than the 6″ will, larger units cost more, and require much more powerful saw to work properly. Also note that on many table saws, especially contractor type, the motor mandrel may not be long enough to accommodate all the supplied chippers and shims, limiting the slot width below the max specified. You will also need to omit mandrel washer/stiffener to maximize cut width, but units works well and is safe with retaining nut alone as long as at least 3 threads visible. Also note for best results you will need a dado-wide insert specific to your saw, which can be hard to find, but are pretty easy to make.
Dado set cuts a clean, square bottom. The set arrived wicked sharp and of a consistent diameter.
The blade design nests adjoining blades which produces a clean cut across the width.
The set arrives in a sturdy cardboard box with a foam insert that keeps the carbide tips separated during storage. A metal box would be a worthwhile upgrade as this set will last a lifetime.
The shims are the only area where I have a problem. There is absolutely no slack in the internal shaft diameter. They are an absolute bear to get on and off the arbor of my Jet table saw. I find that I need to use a chipper blade to push/pull the shim on/off the arbor.
Other than the shim hole diameter being a touch too tight, this is a great value.
The teeth width of my 1/8 blades vary from the described size, so to have the good dado size I needed to rewrite the instructions book. The shims are to tight and hard to use. Other then that the blades make perfect dados that don’t need any sanding.
before serious shopping, i had a set of wants (for a 6″ stack) and a target price. the brand was already on my radar for well exceeding the minimum specs and being significantly below my indifference price. then amazon offers me the 8″ stack (which thankfully my tablesaw is man enough to run) for… less than the 6″? OK.
ill probably upgrade to magnetic shims, but you’re really stretching for a complaint of those not being included is your big gripe, right?
i havent had it long enough to attest to durability, but ive had a pretty good time making sawdust, recently.
I’ve only been using this product for a couple of weeks building some shop storage. It came in an excellent package that’s reusable and so far has cut excellent dados in plywood. This set was rated very highly on an internet search I saw, and is much less expensive than others.
I bought the Oshlun after thinking about it for a while. I liked the Oshlun full-blade inner cutters. My previous versions had vane cutters on the inside with two carbide chipper points separated by 180. Aligning the Freud stack required an inner chipper arrangement from experience to preclude nick-cuts and occasionally reshuffling the inside blade saw spindle balance. No knock on Freud … the dado was worked hard and lasted a long time.
My first project for this Oshlun was on 14 4×6″ half-lap joints. The Oshlun dado is noticeably heavier – more blade, more carbide tips. Noticeably tighter tolerances on the saws 5/8ths shaft. The tighter tolerancing extends to flatness. The blades arrive lightly oiled and oddly joined with a tight vacuum weld between the uber-flat blades.
The dado cut at max thickness was like a hot knife through warm butter.
Much better than expected. It’s the best dado set I’ve owned.
Bought this as I’ve got to make 20 drawers with finger joints out of 6 mm birch ply. just using the two blades without the chippers all the cuts are clean and accurate. Very happy all round.
The micro scoring it does on the inside wall of the cut is great. Excellent and clean cut, sharp and no resistance. Cut through oak and oak ply like butter. Fit was flawless. Only negative I have to say is I intended to use this on my radial arm as a dedicated dado cutter (mine is the last model made but craftsman that has the safety cable for slow draw and zero pull/kick); but it’s way too heavy. I don’t think I’d use it in a jobsite type saw either. I have a general 350 with a heavy arbor and upgraded 5 hp Baldor so it handles great on the saw. For the value and quality of cut, very pleased. Just a little bummed I can’t use for what I originally purchased it for.
The full stack is very heavy and if not comfortably secured could wreak havoc in your workshop.
As it is the performance is fantastic. Effortless and crisp clean rabbets and dadoes performed in seconds. The blades are uber sharp and the shims supplied mean you can achieve cuts in tiny increments up to just shy of an inch per pass. Being a US product it is sized in Imperial but you can easily convert to metric (I use a micrometer and just hit the convert button). You need to remove a conventional blade guard assembly but you can retain a riving knife if yours doesn’t sit higher than the blade although it serves no purpose here being a fraction of the width of the cut. I don’t buy into the idea that these are dangerous – any number of tools in the wrong hands can kill you. Just make sure you are fitting them to the right machine. Highly recommended.
I bought this 6″ set that did good clean cuts. My first was of course a test cut that I adjusted for my final workpiece cuts. I did a 3/4″ for some track in my router table.
If cutting the same width then the cut will be very smooth on the bottom but if cutting a larger width cut that requires repositioning then no it’s going to have some ridges that can be sanded, no problem. I was pleased with the test cut and the final I did one my workpiece.
If cutting a 1/4 that requires just the two blades (according to the instructions), it will require some shims because the blades are undersized, hence doing test cuts. The chippers are exact 1/8,1/16, 1/32. I have not used the shims yet.
I would recommend this set over those that only have 2 blades on the chippers, either end. This set has 5 and made a nice even cut for me. I think the 5 blade chipper makes for a better distribution of cuts.
Definitely looking forward to utilizing this set for more things. And this is my first dado set!
This is my first time using a table saw and using a dado stack so I am pretty sure that my results using them are impacted by this fact. The Oshlun dado was highly rated by purchasers on most websites on which I found it to be offered. The price was the best I found at the time so the value was 5 stars. Accuracy – hmmm – 4 stars at least but I found the instructions to be lacking (1 page maybe) for a first-timer. I was making 1/4″ dado grooves and they just weren’t as perfect as I had hoped. Same thing with sheerness but, again, I am not sure of whether it was me or the blades. But I am certainly happy with the purchase all things considered.
However, I also intended to use this for other joinery like rabbets, box joints and general cleanout on half-lap/bridle joints, something this set is not suited for. For example, if making a half-lap, you end up with bat ears in random places throughout the cut (depending on how many passes you make and where), which means you end up having to clean up the joint like you would with a standard combination or ATBR blade. If doing box joints, you end up with bat ears in every finger, meaning you either have to fill them in or have an unsightly joint. Rabbets aren’t quite as bad as long as you set the stack width wider than your rabbet, so you only end up with one bat ear on the inner corner.
It’s definitely a quality set of blades, but your options with the kind of joinery you do is quite limited. Looking at other dado sets, it seems they all pretty much do this. I’m not disappointed in buying the set since it has its uses, but if I were to do it over, I’d have just bought a 10″ flat kerf/rip blade instead.
As a complete novice woodworker, I watched YouTube videos of people doing amazing and easy finger joints with dado stacks. Most said for basic work you don’t need to buy a really expensive set.
Well, maybe you don’t, but do not go the cheapest set your local store has. Get these instead.
I bought a Skil brand dado stack for 40 bucks at a local store. I made about 5 attempts at notches. I adjusted them, I tried every blade they gave me. All the cuts were horribly uneven, had a lot of blowout in the back, and I was extremely disappointed with them. I uploaded pictures of the best ones.
I then decided to go with suggestions on these reviews and give these a shot, for not much more than my terrible Skil experience. I got them today, tossed them on, and made a cut (I’m just using a miter gauge and a clamp for the test cuts).
I was amazed. It was a lazy cut, I’m not using a sled like I normally would, I’m not even using a zero clearance throat plate. Just a miter gauge. And the cut was near perfect and uniform. I uploaded several pictures.
There is no blowout the back, and in fact I can’t even tell which side I cut from just by looking at it.
While I’m sure these aren’t as precision as a much much more expensive set, for the relatively cheap price these are very worth it. Get them and don’t waste your time with skil.
Well I need to order my 2nd set of these because I damaged the carbides on 2 of the blades. 2 of the blades spun and shaved the sides of the teeth off (my fault for using bad spacers). I’ve had them since 2013, and they’ve had lots of use.
As far as cutting goes, they are excellent. Very minimal chipping, even with plywood. And they do a nice even dado. I never had to sharpen them.
They are a bit of a pain to take off my delta unisaw. Can only do 2 blades at a time. The spacers are pain to use, because they catch on the threads. Best to take them off by moving the inside blade and the spacer a little outside, then moving the blade inside back giving a gap to grab the spacer on opposite sides to get the spacer out. Nothing I would knock a star off for. The 6″ blades would be easier to take on and off since the guard on the unisaw won’t get in the way.
Excellent value, quality dado set. This has a good complement of chippers and shims to make nearly any width groove you want. The chippers cut smoothly with little to no vibration. The top-bevel teeth on the scoring blades (outer) do make a slightly deeper corner cut as described and as is the norm for this style dado. This dado set has much less tendency for chip-out compared to a router bit, and much improved resistance to burning compared to a router bit.
Oshlun Customer service is excellent. I received one shim with a slight manufacturing defect. Oshlun customer service provided a complete replacement shim set promptly upon identifying the problem to them.
Be aware that the shim set is manufactured to a tight tolerance fit to the arbor, as are the cutting blades. This can make removal of the shims and blades a little slow, but you are assured of good centering of the blades and shims on the arbor. I don’t regard this as a defect.
I am very pleased with this dado set and recommend it. I also have an 8-inch Oshlun box joint saw set that has also pleased me.
Amazon Prime delivered very promptly and delivered pricing was excellent.
Having used this set for a few months, including just minutes before writing this review to make a decorative dentil molding for a furniture piece, I feel it is a great value for the money for an amateur hobby enthusiast like me. The accuracy is very good, the set easy to configure with pretty clear instructions, and it produces a pretty clean cut. I don’t give it five stars because it leaves some very mild ridges at the bottom of the cut (not enough to affect the fit of any joinery made with it), and the packaging, consisting of a box with a heavy stack of blades separated by thin sheets of foam, makes it a little more difficult to take the blades out for use and find the ones needed to make a curt of the desired width, but these are relatively minor points of concern to an otherwise pretty satisfied customer.
the cut is clean, and I say clean and not only because I havent tried other sets from other vendors, but watching many youtube videos I can see that the quality of my blades is better . accurate and true. I havent found a need to use the spacers, but I am sure I will at some point. I believe they are priced well, made well, and gave them a 5 stars because they performed flawlessly
I am not sponsored by this seller nor any one else. straight shooter all around.
I recommend this product.
Update: Far better than I expected. 5-13-19 Ran these through Azek to make window sills and this kit did the job very well. As good as any dado set I have ever run, including Freud products.
I hadn’t run these blades yet but was quite pleasantly surprised at the quality when I opened the box. I used to own a cabinet shop and have used my fair share of blades. Now I just needed an economical dado set and took a chance on these. I expected thin blades with minimal carbide on the tips. This set far exceeded my expectations. Great teeth, good brazing and a nice back bevel on the carbide teeth. Stiff disc and about the only quibble I have is the lack of a deep gullet or blade expansion slots. The tooth tip bevel will help ensure minimal tear out and I expect a darned good cut from this kit. I hesitate to say this but I’m thinking I got a darned good dado set for a reasonable price.
I tried it out today and it makes nice cuts and is smooth running. One of the chipper saws is a fraction of a millimeter bigger in diameter than the others, that will sort itself out when I come to getting them sharpened again. The saws are very sharp. they don’t come with a designated storage box, but that’s OK I will have fun making one myself.
Would I buy a set again? Definitely!
Post Edit – 27/7/16 I have used this set now to make 1000 Beehive boxes – Side Rabbets, Frame rests and Handholds. I had to change it out after cutting all the joints and 50 hand holds on the first 400 boxes as it was quite dull by then and labouring the saw. After getting it professionally resharpened and using it to make another 600 Beehive boxes and about 40 hand holds it was dulling again. The performance after the resharpen was even better than when first used, the 1 blade that was fractionally larger in diameter was sorted and the set gives crisp smooth cuts. I will definitely buy another set. These are better than the $700NZD Forrest set I purchased at the same time and are less than half the price.
This is my first dado set. I have a Ryobi BT3000 table saw that is recommended this size blade so as not to overwork the motor. I was able to make a 1/2″ stack today and use the dado for the first time! It was really smooth in cutting a groove in the western red cedar. It was also super quiet compared to making multiple passes using the regular ryobi blade. I’ll upload a couple pictures, but the groove was very smooth and almost completely perfect. The wood itself has some imperfections, which is the reason why I’m saying this.
Previous reviews have been critical about the case. I think in previous years there was a beefy plastic case. Unfortunately it’s a cardboard one that’s padded with plastic spongy layers. It’s not bad if you plan on using it once in a while. I’ll have a picture of it as well.
I can’t comment on the comparison between Oshlun and the popular Freud. Definitely a competitive product for under $100!
This dado set has two full blades, 1/8″ each, and an assortment of interior blades so that you can adjust the set to any width. The interior plates are actually full plates- which does make the stack heavier, but I found I trusted it far more on my table saw than the Freud set I have that are just ‘arms’ that stick out. The bottoms of the grooves and dadoes I was cutting were a lot cleaner too.
I’ve used this set so far with Oak, Poplar, soft pine, and walnut- with excellent results on all. My only warning would be that the cardboard box with hard foam insert that it comes in will not be a good permanent solution to store this blade set. Since I already had a case to store it in this wasn’t an issue to me- but it might be for someone else. I didn’t take a star off for this because the blades and how they perform were what I was really buying. Easy to set up and use, especially for beginners.
I inspected all of the blades and found everything in order: no chipped carbide, no bad brazing, no signs of use. Despite the lack of awful smelling machine oil that usually coats new steel bits and blades, everything was clean and rust-free.
I built a finger (box) joint jig and was able to dial in a perfect fit for one-by stock with three of the included shims. I learned the hard way how sharp the carbide tips are when I tried to adjust one of the chippers and pushed a tip right through my thumb nail. With 42 tips on the blades, you have to be careful not to stack chipper tips against them. Balancing the chippers is a breeze with six tips each. The cuts are smooth as a baby’s butt and the anti-tear-out bat ears are imperceptible.
Because of the six-tip chippers, this is a heavy set. My cheapo Delta floor table saw gives out a screech when it starts up but it cuts red oak with ease. Despite the anti-kickback angles of the blade tips, it still kicks back if you try to rip too deep. I thought, “if it can cut a 3/4″ box cut through oak with ease, why not a 3/4” deep rabbet. Fearing for my life after two tentative pushes, I dialed down the depth and the rabbet came out perfect in two passes, leaving only a 1/16 strip intac
I wasn’t sure how often I would use this set, but I bought an incra ibox jig and wanted a dado stack to go with it. Some of the dado stacks available are frighteningly expensive, this doesn’t put me off, I like quality tools, but considering my initial lack of use I was reluctant to spend 100’s of $$ for a tool I might use occasionally.
I found this Oshlun set with good reviews my only choice being 6″ or 8″? I have to send this to Australia and the postage was $25 difference before the cost of the goods, obviously not an issue for some people getting free postage. I also read a few reviews on 6″ sets and the consensus was nobody seemed to need the extra cut height the 8″ model added. So I purchased the 6″ and put it straight to use with the ibox after a few test cuts.
Firstly the box everyone complains about…..? It’s fine. It’s a crappy cardboard box with foam to separate and support the plates. Mine arrived all the way to Australia without so much as a mark on it. Will it outlast the dado stack? Of course not but it’s actually usable as a storage device until i make or find something else. Much better than some other packaging this stuff arrives in and none of that terrible unopenable Chinese plastic! I can see this helps keep the price down.
First few cuts to test the width and it performed flawlessly. The instructions are clear (easy to follow, no chinglish conversion) and a useful table to tell you which plates to use to achieve the desird thickness.
As noted on the amazon ad and instructions, the dado has a small groove on the outside edges of the cut to prevent chip out. This works well, the groove is slightly visible but only if you are looking for it and 2″ away from your eyes.
The height of the 6″ cut may be a concern for some, if you are using this with timber directly on your table saw it would be fine for the DIY/hobbiest work I do, but In this case I used the ibox jig which lifts the workpiece 1/2″ or so off the table. So you loose 1/2″ cutting capability. This worked for the box joints I was making but could be an issue for some.
Over all I am very happy with hone 6″ set, I would buy it again but if you don’t mind spending a few extra $$ (and get free postage) the 8″ set does give a deeper cut should you need the maximum capability. In my limited use, first dado set and higher shipping costs the 6″ was a perfect option which gave results exactly what I was looking for.
Happy customer!
Pros: High tooth count, decent manual, smooth cut, flat bottom (see note about edge scoring) and big chippers
Con: Box – many dados come in a box that doubles as a storage case, not this one. The cardboard and foam is adequate for shipping, but not suitable for storing.
Would I recommend this to a friend? Yes
Note: All dados claim to leave a flat bottom. That does not mean that the entire bottom of the cut is actually flat. It does mean that the bottom will be flat except for a fine score at each edge of the cut. Each edge of the cut will leave a very fine score line to minimize tear out. If the cut is just one pass, the bottom looks perfectly flat, the score lines are quite a non-issue and difficult to see. However, if used in multiple passes to remove larger amounts of material, such as in making tenons or larger slots, the outside edges of each cut will leave a fine line that is easily seen. Don’t confuse “flat bottom” advertising to indicate a true flat bottom and smooth cut. A truly flat bottom cut would likely come with a bit of tear out. If you absolutely must have a true flat bottom, stick to a router.
When my router was stolen in the middle of a project requiring lots of grooves and dadoes, I decided to go a different route (no pun intended!) and try a dado set for my tablesaw. I have a small, contractor grade saw that only takes a 6″ set, and chose this one.
Reading the previous reviews of the case, I expected the thing to come in a cardboard box. To my surprise and delight, it arrived in a metal case. It’s like a small briefcase – metal, with a latch, handle, and shaped foam inside to protect the stack. So either Oshlun upgraded the case or…well, I don’t know what the other reviewers got or what they were expecting, so I can’t say for sure what happened with theirs. But it exceeded my expectations and it is solid enough to toss around a bit if I was carrying it from job to job.
So far, I have used it mainly for cutting dadoes in plywood, and for the most part, it’s worked very well. The bottom and sides of the dadoes are acceptably smooth and adjusting the stack is pretty easy as Oshlun has supplied a set of shims to finagle the width to exactly what one needs. My suspicion is actually that any wobbles or problems with using it have to do more with my tablesaw setup than this set.
If Oshlun or the supplier upgraded the case based on customer feedback, then well done and thanks for listening to us!
As far as I can see, no other reviewers have had this problem. The thread on my arbor is very coarse. I suspect that modern saws have a finer arbor thread so this is not an issue for most users. Therefore, I will not fault the dado set for this problem which apparently is unique to me and a few other owners of old Craftsman saws.
A few other comments:
1. As several others have noted, the arbor hole is a bit snug, especially for the shims. I plan to take another reviewer’s advice and sand the shim holes (using sandpaper around a dowel) to slightly increase the hole diameter.
2. Contrary to another reviewer who reported a wide discrepancy between the marked value and the thickness of his shims, mine were right on the money when measured with electronic calipers.
3. The cuts that I have made so far are nice and clean with a flat bottom. Be aware, however, that I am not an experienced user of dados and have only an ancient Craftsman set for comparison.
4. The case is great!
Incidentally, I love my old Craftsman table saw. It was made back in the days when Craftsman was a high end tool. I am 70 years old now and I remember my dad using it for innumerable projects when I was a little kid. After my dad passed away, I used it for innumerable projects of my own. It still sings with old-fashioned quality every time I turn it on and that nostalgic sound takes me back 60 years to the warmth of my dad’s workshop. I also have his 50’s vintage drill press and wouldn’t trade either for anything.
I can’t write much about the cut quality because I’ve barely used the blades (although so far it looks good). I’m primarily writing this to mention that Oshlun has apparently listened to the complaints about the packaging. I bought this set strictly because of the positive reviews about cut quality. I assumed I would need to make my own case. To my surprise it arrived in a nice plastic and aluminum case with hinges and a latch. It’s not a premium quality case, but it is quite nice and it resolves the only complaint most people had about this dado set. Kudos to Oshlun for fixing this problem.
UPDATE: After making numerous cuts in plywood and MDF, I’m very happy with the quality. I get very little chip out when cross cutting plywood, but I use a zero clearance insert which helps. The bottoms of the dadoes are completely flat with only very minor bat wings in the corners. One thing to note is that the set comes with an instruction sheet that includes recommendations for different dado sizes. Those recommendations are nothing more than a starting point. I set up for a 23/32 dado per the instructions, and the resulting cut was more than 1/16 undersized. This is common for any dado set, but make sure you take some test cuts and use the included shims to dial in the exact size you want. I’ve begun adding notes to the instruction sheet that include what blades and shims I used to achieve a particular dado size.
A big thing I keep reading in the reviews is how people feel the supplied box is just god awful and deduct a point or two for it. First off, I didn’t spend $65 (6-inch set) for a cardboard box, I spent that much on the product inside. With that being said, and considering what people were saying about the box, I was really expecting something with a thickness less than a cereal box to be what held the dado set, but to my surprise, the box is actually very sturdy. It’s also really nice that individual styrofoam cutouts were made to separate the saw blades so that they don’t contact each other and chip the carbide tips. I plan on using the box as a long term storage piece for the time being until a time comes when I may need to build a wooden case for the set, but even then I’ll use the original foam inserts for extra protection.
Aside from that, the blades cut a very smooth and flat bottom with very little chipout on the ends. The scoring was a little bit deeper than I had thought it would be initially, but it’s not enough for me to worry about or deduct stars for. It hasn’t done anything to lessen the quality of glue ups in my cuts, but if it had there’s still 220 grit sandpaper to smooth it out in a few strokes.
Overall I am very pleased with this set. I’ve found it incredibly easy to change the setup and the included chart for sizes is really nice as well. I have no regrets about the purchase.
While I would love to drop $250 on the Forrest Dado King, I was really not in the market for that kind of investment. I have other Forrest blades and could not be happier with their performance, and the rehab and sharpening service available from them, so I am sure the Dado King is a superior option…and should be for the price. Which brings me to the compromise of the Oshlun. I looked at a new Freud set, but to be honest I wasn’t particularly happy with the Freud…I found set up with the winged chippers to be difficult as you have to be picky about staggering the cutting edges and balancing the pack with one hand while threading the arbor nut with the other hand. If all this did not come off well, the stack would not tighten correctly on the arbor and be off balance and untrue…if there were shims involved, it was even more tedious.
As a consequence, I decided on this Oshlun set for $10 less than the Freud…all the bargain priced sets are made in China, anyway. The nearly full plate chippers, additional teeth and the 3/32″ chipper were the attractions…as well as the price. I was stunned at the weight of the box upon arrival…those full plate chippers add lots of hefty iron to the set. I inspected all the blades…which all the parts were in the box as promised …all the teeth were present and sharp…all the plates were flat and warp free. The set comes packaged in a handled box with die-cut foam between the blades…no doubt to protect on the long voyage out of Nanking. The box will quickly become worthless for storing the set (the Freud comes with their ubiquitous red plastic, two-sided storage case…nice, but doesn’t make up for the tedium of winged chippers) so I fixed a 1/2″ carraige bolt to a plywood scrap and saved some die-cut foam to cushion the all important cutting edges….then pitched the box and the rest.
Today, I mounted 3/4″ of plates and chippers and plowed dados in some plywood clamping cauls….they came out crisp and clean with nary a fuzzy edge or chip out and a dead flat bottom…then I cut 1/2″ box joints in some tough white oak scraps to perfect a set up for a planned project…again the set performed well making crisp edged joints in the oak and flat bottoms. The set up was easier with the full chippers, which seat nicely against each other and the set ran noticeably quieter and smoother than the Freud. I’m satisfied with the purchase…all the parts were in the box, all the edges were sharp, all the saw plates were flat and true, the cutting edges lined up perfectly on the arc resulting in flat bottoms…I can’t honestly ask for much more from 25 lbs. of Chinese iron and carbide, so my compromise is satisfactory.
This thing is the tops for me. For under $90, you can get this thing and get WONDERFUL dado cuts for your projects. I use it for box joints often! Make sure to TEST it on some pieces, get good at it a few times. Use the shims to get finer adjustments (because not all saw rulers are created equal). The dado might be set to 5/8″ and you move the ruler over 5/8″ and you may be 1/32 or 1/16 of an inch too big. Sadly, this can affect your box joints and dadoes. Still, it comes with the shims, so I just put in a few of them to widen the blade a little bit, just barely, and it turns out perfect every time! Once you get it tuned up, this thing will be your friend for life.
Be mindful of how long the arbor is on your table saw…some table saws only have an arbor that is 5/8
or 11/16″ long, so all of these blades will not fit on the arbor safely! The box that this thing comes in is awful! I wish it had a nice carrying case made of rubber or plastic.
Still…works great. looks great, easy to learn how to use if you’ve never done it before, and great if you want to make cuts that are 1/4″ thick all the way up to almost an inch thick. I use the 3/4″, 5/8″, and 1/2″ setups ALL the time because those are pretty standard lumber sizes. Just go to the hardware store and get your choice thickness, and you can make all kinds of cool stuff once the blade and wood are the same width. Think about it…BUY THIS THING!