6″ Vs 8″ Dado Stacks

Article - January 10, 2011

This article was inspired by a question from Rick.

One thing that I find myself in need of is a stack dado set. I’m wondering which I should purchase, a 6″ or 8″? And apart from the obvious (which is 2″), what is the difference in the two when in use? Also, I noticed the price of the 6″ is lower. I know this is probably a dumb question but I need to find out and hope to hear from you on the subject. Again thanks for your help in this matter and for a great program, you have instructed me on many a problem so far.

This is a fairly common question and if you haven’t had much time with a dado stack, you might not have a clue which one to purchase for your saw. Before answering the question, lets review what a dado blade is, just in case you have no idea what I’m talking about. A dado blade is a special collection of blades designed to be stacked together for extra wide cuts. So instead of the standard 1/8″ kerf width (and slightly less for thin kerf blades), the width can be anything from 1/8″ to just over 3/4″. This allows us to make dados, grooves, and tenons of all sizes. Its a very handy accessory for your tablesaw.

Most dado stacks come in two sizes, 6″ and 8″ (while 10″ and 12″ do exist). Since most of us have 10″ saws, you might initially think an 8″ dado would be the logical choice. After all, why go smaller? Well, in all of my years of woodworking, I have never used more than the top 1″ of my dado stack. I do own an 8″ stack, but never even come close to using its full capacity. 99.9% of what I do only requires the blade to be up 1/2″ or less. So for me in my shop, a 6″ dado stack would be more than enough.

So if you’re in the market, I say save a few bucks and pick up the 6″ stack. The cut quality will be exactly the same as the 8″ version and your saw won’t have to work as hard to spin all that meat around.

I’m curious if anyone with an 8″ dado blade has ever truly used the full capacity. Any disadvantages to going with a 6″ stack? Leave a comment below!

Discussion

Dan Drabek January 10, 2011 10:31 pm

The smaller diameter blade might get you closer to the mark when cutting stopped dados. And squaring the end of a stopped dado would be a little easier.
The bigger blade would probably cut faster. (faster speed at the edge).
The smaller blade might be cheaper to re-sharpen. (fewer teeth)
The smaller blade would hurt less if dropped on your foot.

DD

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- Owen July 28, 2016 4:40 pm
  
  I hear it is less work on your saw too to use a 6 inch set.
  
  Reply
Bryan January 10, 2011 10:42 pm

Wouldn’t the speed off the teeth on an 8″ blade be faster. I use a 6″ dado set and have been happy with it, but in theory you might get better cuts out of a larger blad.

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- TimV January 11, 2011 6:02 pm
  
  I agree with Bryan, the tooth speed is faster with an 8″ blade versus a 6″. Theoretically, a faster tooth means more cuts per inch of board. More cuts typically means a more clean cut.
  
  I’ve used an 8″ set in a direct drive saw prior to my cabinet saw and I got the same performance out of both. I could hear the cut and adjust the feed rate accordingly. For us non-production users, feed rate isn’t an issue.
  
  I choose 8″.
  
  Tim V
  
  Reply
  - Ryan October 11, 2012 6:16 pm
    
    The tooth speed is faster on a smaller diameter blade.
    
    Reply
    - jim j November 8, 2013 9:57 am
      
      Ryan said “The tooth speed is faster on a smaller diameter blade.”
      
      Don’t want to offend but that statement is exactly backward.
      
      The rotational speed for both 6″ and 8″ blades is the same (around 3500 RPM).
      
      The linear speed is FASTER for the 8″ blade.
    - Χωρίς ΟΝΟΜΑ September 11, 2014 1:23 am
      
      Think about it this way: The perimeter of a 6″ blade is less than a 8″ blade. So, in one full rotation a tooth on the 6″ blade has traveled less distance than a tooth on the 8″ blade. Since the amount of time it takes for both blades to complete one full rotation is the same, then it figures that the speed of the tooth on the 6″ blade is less that the one on the 8″ blade. The formula is:
      
      Speed = Distance/Time.
      
      Time is constant regardless of the blade, therefore Speed is directly proportional to Distance. Thus, more distance to cover (i.e. 8″ blade) more speed.
    - Jason Goff March 11, 2017 8:06 pm
      
      I know I’m coming in at the 11th hour, but I feel like I need to clarify this as no one else has.
      
      Speed (the type everyone here seems to be thinking of) is a Linear object, devoid of direction. Since we’re dealing with a rotating body, we can’t say speed. It’s Angular velocity.
      
      The angular velocity (w) is a product of the radius (r) times the change of the angle of the point in question (delta-y) and the time it takes to make that change (delta-t) or:
      w=r*(dy/dt).
      
      Yes, the angular velocity at the tip of an 8″ blade is, in fact, higher, however, the torque exerted would be lower due to the amount of Force (F) required to continue motion in the face of resistance (we’re ignoring mass for simplicity sake) and can be written as:
      
      t=||r||*||F||*sin(theta) with theta being the angle at any given point along the line.
      
      Rearranging for the Force and considering theta to be 90degrees (sin(90)=1) for the maximum torque applied yields
      
      F = t/r.
      
      This shows that as the cutting blade increases in size, the Force exerted at the tip will be indirectly proportional to the radius, or 1/r (again, ignoring the additional mass).
      
      As an example, and ease of understanding, let’s use blades of dimensions 1″ and 2″ (diameters of 2″ and 4″), and a static torque applied of 10hp (120lbf-in). Plugging those in to the above equation, we see that the Force is reduced to half when the radius grows to 2″ (F=120lbf-in/2in = 60lbf vs 120lbf at 1″).
      
      In relation to the above dados, increasing the blade radius by 2″ reduces the effective horsepower seen at the tips of the blades by 33% which means that, yes, the angular velocity is, in fact, higher, but the work generated at the tip is only 66% of the 6″. This translates in to an increase in loading on the bearings in the motor as well as additional current draw since the motors encountering resistance. (Motors are rated in Full Load Amperage and generally operate at lower current loads when running at speed).
      
      Simply put, using the 8″ blade on the same motor gives a perceived increase in quality when, in reality, the smaller blade will cut cleaner since the motor speed isn’t reduced as much given the same feed rate. Sure, if you’re table saw has a 10hp motor in it, you can fit the blade, AND you feel you need the extra 1″ in cutting height, go for it, but really, it’s a waste of money unless it’s absolutely necessary.
- steve c June 20, 2017 6:18 pm
  
  Why?
  
  Reply
  - rick green January 8, 2018 8:15 am
    
    Jason you are incorrect .. the linear velocity of the blade increases with its size. the number of teeth per inch also increase with size. at a given rpm this gives the blade more cuts per inch and it will give finer cuts. think of it.. a smaller blade has fewer teeth than a larger blade and they both complete one revolution in the same amount of time so the larger blade can put more teeth in contact with the wood in the same rotation. i don’t think it matters much so buy the smaller dado however.
    rick
    
    Reply
    - rick green January 8, 2018 8:26 am
      
      i want to clarify my comment:
      there maybe not be a change in the number of teeth on any particular dado however the number of cuts per revolution will still increase with a blade diameter increase at a given rpm. linear velocity on the outer edge of the blade increases with size.
      Rick
    - Troy April 11, 2019 12:14 pm
      
      Rick,
      
      This is correct with no load, however I think Jason is talking about the variable of how much leverage is at the end of an 8″ vs a 6″. When those teeth at the end of an 8″ Dado meet resistance the power required to keep the teeth at the full RPM is greater than with a 6″. So it could possibly be dependent on the Hp of your motor and the hardness of your wood that determines what would have the higher SFPM under load.
  - Randy April 13, 2019 6:11 am
    
    Thanks Jason… it’s been awhile since I’ve been in school but it sounds like a bigger blade would be hard on my saw which is recommended in my manual. I’m ok with cutting slower :-)
    
    Reply
    - Matt October 23, 2020 10:34 am
      
      hedidthemath
      
      lol, glad to see someone mentioning torque.
      
      and for everyone doubting what he’s saying, physics isn’t intuitive. it’s actually pretty counterintuitive. when we compute the hang time someone jumping in an upward moving elevator has, we want to think well the floor is moving up. if they jumped they’d have less time to complete a flip.
      
      it’s really the exact same amount of time as someone standing on the floor or ground that isn’t moving. but instinctivally we see or feel something else.
      
      i also think that there’s more teeth on those bigger blades for the reason’s jason gave. they wouldn’t cut nearly or as cleanly as the 6 inch blade without more teeth.
      
      this changes with a 3 phase, which can pull more power when it’s needed.
  - John F March 18, 2021 5:39 pm
    
    If two things both turn 360 degrees in 1 minute, you might assume they turn at the same speed. Well, they do… and they don’t. The larger radius has a larger circumference. That circumference means that in 1 minute, it will have traveled a further distance (along a hypothetical plane) than something with a smaller radius, thus a smaller circumference.
    
    If I have a wheel with a circumference of 1 foot, and another with a circumference of 2 foot, and turn them (independently of one another) at the same rate of 360 degrees in 1 minute, the outer surface of the 2 foot circumference wheel has traveled twice the distance of the 1 foot circumference wheel.
    
    So the small wheel travels 1 foot per minute, and the larger travels 2 feet per minute, but both have been turned at the same rate of 360 degrees in 1 minute.
    
    Reply
    - Dave July 10, 2021 7:13 am
      
      I am not a rocket scientist but I do know if I have a pick up truck with 20 inch wheels and I’m pulling a trailer with 12 inch wheels at 60 miles an hour those 12 inch wheels are moving a lot faster than my 20 inch.
    - DaveLab June 22, 2022 3:50 pm
      
      @Dave: Faster in terms of rotational velocity (e.g. RPM) but the same in terms of tangential velocity (i.e. speed at the surface of the tire), because both vehicles are traveling at the same speed down the highway.
      
      It’s the opposite with a saw: the rotational velocity is the same (determined by the motor), and as a result the speed at the edge of the blade is greater for the larger blade because that circumference has to move faster to make it all the way around at the same RPM as the smaller blade.
Dan January 10, 2011 11:03 pm

The only time I need the extra capacity of an 8″ was when I needed to precisely mill a lot of deep dados for half lap joints. I made a miter sled from 3/4″ MDF, so I cold screw down stop blocks. If memory serves a 6″ stack would have left me an 1/8″ shallow.

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Xett January 11, 2011 4:37 am

You touched on it, but an important point is saw power. Myself, and I know many others, have smaller ‘contractor’ grade saws. Spinning a 3/4″ wide, 8″ stack works the saw extremely hard — particularly if you’re going through a hardwood. You must either feed extremely slowly, take multiple shallow passes or you will slow down your blade speed, leaving a less than ideal cut.

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- strolgen January 11, 2011 1:58 pm
  
  Bull eye.
  The reason why I choosed a 6″ dado set instead of the 8″ was because of the limited 1 1/2hp of my saw. Below 2hp, I think 6″ is good enough.
  
  Reply
- gary amy May 27, 2021 10:48 am
  
  Best answer yet.
  
  Reply
Chad E January 11, 2011 7:24 am

Perfect article timing, I was just thinking about this the other day. Besides a DC, a dado stack would be the next item on my wish list. I’ve decided on the 6″ but curious what brands others out there are completely satisfied with. I find a $100+ difference between a bunch of them out there. Oshlun vs. Freud Super, vs Infinity Dadonator vs Forrest, etc.

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- Al May 2, 2021 7:17 pm
  
  If you want a good cut without bogging down your say avoid Oldham
  their blades are terrible , poor cutting and dull quickly !
  
  Reply
Joey G January 11, 2011 10:03 am

My concern with a 6″ would be the height adjustment of the saw. I could see a scenario where you might not get full height needed especially if used in combination with a jig and plywood base, such as making finger joints, etc.

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Beej January 11, 2011 10:54 am

I have had the 8″ Freud set pictured in the article for 4 years. It’s a great stack and I’ve been enormously pleased with the results. Take the time to make a zero clearance throat plate. My saw came with a dado throat but it is so wide I’ve never dared use it. Also, for those w/ “contractor” saws, watch out! Often the arbor is shorter and can’t handle a full stack. I usually have to just plan multiple passes with a thinner stack to make it work right.

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Bob January 11, 2011 11:13 am

I ve raised the stack 1.25 to notch 4×4 s for out door stuff.
I never tried raising the stack all the was so I don’t even
know how high it will go. Have had the freud 8 dado for
3 sharpenings….Use it a lot.

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TomB January 11, 2011 12:47 pm

I’m not a SS owner (yet) but from my research, the Dado brake will only work with the 8″ stack and up to 13/16 width.

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Jason Pell January 11, 2011 12:51 pm

I use a sled which has a 18mm base and I have on occasion had to so deep dados of 22.5mm and 45mm – not sure what the depth of cut of a 6″ dado would be but I am glad I have an 8″ set.

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AZSteve January 11, 2011 4:46 pm

I have the Freud 8″ SuperDado set and use it with a 10″ Jet contractor saw. Both have performed well for many years and I have set it up with a 3/4″ stack many times w/o any problems. Only time I ever used the full capacity though was when I made that finger jointed jewelry box out of 12/4 hard maple ;)

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- Dan Drabek January 12, 2011 8:59 am
  
  That must have been a big jewelry box. ?
  
  DD
  
  Reply
  - Bob Schantz October 2, 2016 1:58 pm
    
    Custom jewelry box for Mr. T.???
    
    Reply
Ron Rivas January 11, 2011 7:02 pm

I have both Freud 8″ and 6″ dado blades sets and use both of them although not at the same time LOL. I have found that the 8″ works better on my Radial Arm saw just due to the fact that with a 6″ blade I have to lower the motor to close to the table. I do have to agree with the other comments that if you want to save a few bucks buy the 6″ it will serve you well.

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Medfloat January 12, 2011 1:03 am

I have the CMT 6″ set (shims included) and have used it in my Jet JWTS-10 for two years now. The widest I have used was 3/4″ and the deepest cut was 3/4″. The set has done everything I asked it to without fail. As with any cut on a table saw one must pay attention to the feed rate and the listen to the saw for slowing. If the set is for the hobbiest then get the 6″ set and save money.

Dan

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Alex Kara January 12, 2011 2:48 am

I do a lot of lap joints using structural timber. I’ve found you can set an 8″ blade set to cut a 1/2″ dado but never a 6″ to cut a 2″ dado. Whie one can fall back on the trusty chisel, lets be honest, we buy dado blades for convenience, accuracy and neatness. If the piggy bank (and/or wife) allows it spend those few shekels on the versatility of the 8″, allbeit seldom exploited.

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Tim Caveny January 12, 2011 6:19 am

I use a 6″ set that belonged to my great uncle, who taught me the trade. He bought it just after WW II. Over the years, I’ve used it for everything including a run of collapsible modular chairs back in the late sixties.

I also have an 8″ set that I never use.

The point about getting closer to the end of your stopped dados is one of the best arguments for the smaller set.

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Tom Applegate January 12, 2011 7:09 am

I have an 8″ set. The one use I have had that a 6″ would not work for was cutting 3/8″ wide slots, 2″ deep for splines in some cutting boards I recently made.

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- gary amy May 27, 2021 10:54 am
  
  3 passes with the saw blade would have made those spline slots. No one would have ever known the difference. If it’s so seldom needed you might not want to spend the extra on the 8″.
  
  Reply
Will January 12, 2011 8:26 am

Just looked up the info for SS myself. I have a SS but not a dado set, but it looks like for the contractor so you have to use a 8″ dado set.

http://www.sawstop.com/contrac.....brakes.php

I tried looking up what the industrial and professional SS cabinet saws support but their web site suddenly slowed down massively. Oh well.

-Will

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Pat January 12, 2011 9:55 am

I have been told by tool table saw manufacturing reps that 8″ dado sets exceed the design capabilities of most saws. Specifically, the 8″ set is too heavy for the arbor. Therefore, I have been advised to only use a 6″ dado. I have not addressed this question with a sawstop rep.

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- Dan February 6, 2015 2:43 am
  
  That depends on the manufacturer and the power behind the saw. My 10″ saw recommends an 8″ dado out of the manual. My previous and less powerful 10″ saw from another manufacturer called for a 6″ dado. It will say what to use in the manual and if it doesn’t, call or email the manufacturer.
  
  Reply
Tom Buhl January 12, 2011 7:58 pm

seems it wasn’t directly asked, but not all dado stacks cut as “flat of a bottom.” My first set, which cost in range of the high quality sets, did not leave a very satisfactory bottom. Quality blades and such, but weak design. More recently bought Infinity Dadonator. Much better. Any other experiences out there?

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- thewoodwhisperer January 13, 2011 9:12 am
  
  I have use three dado sets over the years. The Freud version, pictured in the article, gave surprisingly flat bottomed cuts. I was always pleasantly surprised by it. The Forrest Dado King gives nearly perfect flat bottoms, and the price reflect it. And a the Tenryu dado set, which cuts like a hot knife through butter, but leaves terrible grooves in the surface.
  
  Reply
- Deb Malloy January 14, 2011 1:07 pm
  
  Tom, I’m in the market for a dado blade, and was considering the 6″ Infinity Dadonator. My main concern is with the flatness of the bottom cut.
  Are you happy with the Infinity ?
  
  Thanks
  
  Reply
- Heath January 18, 2011 12:29 pm
  
  I’ve used 3 dado blades – two wobbles and a stacked set.
  
  The first dado blade I used was a cheap Oldham brand. The thing is horrible. Leaves a curved and grooved bottom and lots of tear out. I’ll only use it now on treated lumber to cut half lap joints for fence gates and such.
  
  I was later given an older Craftsman wobble blade and was quite surprised by it. It’s really hard to adjust, but leaves a surprisingly flat and smooth bottom. Since it is so hard to adjust, I don’t use it much.
  
  And I have a 6″ stacked dado set. I forget the brand. It wasn’t expensive, but it cuts very nicely. Square corners, flat bottom, no grooves, etc.
  
  Reply
  - Heath January 18, 2011 12:39 pm
    
    I just remembered (thanks to Jim_WoodWarden’s post), my stacked dado set is an Oshlun brand. I got the 6″ for about $50 and have been very happy.
    
    Reply
- Ben January 23, 2011 9:31 pm
  
  I bought a Freud 8″ dado (or possibly Avanti–don’t remember but I’ve heard Freud makes Avanti anyway…) from Home Depot and it left me such a horrible bottom to the cut that it was totally useless. I took it back for a refund and decided to either nibble with a standard kerf table saw blade or use a router. My problem dado was not the Freud pictured, but the cut’s bottom was actually rounded–yeck!
  
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Steven Tindell January 13, 2011 7:43 am

I am a saw stop owner and the saw stop brake for the dado set only works with an 8″ dado set. With the my older delta saw I used a 6″ dado set for years and never went higher than 1″. I have had my SS for about six months and my last project required 1.25″ deep dado and that seemed very high to me. My old 6″ would have also handled that. I use the Frued 8″ and it make nice cuts. Good luck and make lots of saw dust safely.

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TheOneHandedHandyMan January 13, 2011 7:56 am

As a relative newbie to the hobby it is my opinion that since dados are normally hidden, the quality of the bottom cut is not as important as it is made out to be. I mean, sure a perfectly flat bottom is desired but how much of a difference can it make if the bottom cut is not perfectly smooth? Are we talking structural weakness? I use a cheaper mibro set and have never had a joint fail because I didn’t anti up and purchase a several hundred dollar dado set.

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- Jim_WoodWarden January 14, 2011 8:52 am
  
  The problemn with the rough cut bottoms is mostly how good of a glue line do you get if its a though dado and the part that sits in the dado can be seen. For example hardwood shelving where the edge of the shelf and the edge of the outer case of shelf maybe seen if the bottom of cut is rough then there is gaping in the joint that is visible (for those of us who like to avoid use of wood filler and get good snug joints). The other problem I had with my big box hardware store cheapy $50 set (and some here in the comments are reporting rough cuts with more expensive sets) was that the cut was rough enough and not always clean at the edges that whatever I was joining cause things to push apart just enough to give assembly issue problems on the project and required a paring chisel to clean it up. I’ll repeat my earlier posting that if money is a concern the Oshlun 8″ stack at $80 from Amazon makes great cuts, stays sharp and you can’t beat the price.
  
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Matthew Hills January 13, 2011 4:20 pm

Sawstop reportedly requires an 8″ dado set to work with their dado safety cartridge.

I’ve was really happy with the Delta/DeWalt 8″ set I had. I gave it to my dad to use with his RAS.

I’m now using a Freud 6″ set that I got free from a sawstop convert who needed to upsize. Seems okay. But if I was buying new, I’d probably buy the 8″ Delta/DeWalt over again.

Matt

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jHop January 13, 2011 5:51 pm

I wish I could remember exactly what the rep from Forrest said when I asked about dado sets. From what I remember, one of the types of table saws have a clearance issue. I don’t remember the exact clearance figures, but the Forrest rep recommended the 8 inch. I think the direct drive does not allow for clearances with the 6 inch stack.

I want to emphasize I don’t remember the exact figures or conversation. I’ve been considering the 8 inch more for the clearance issue. I’ve also been considering using the router to run dados, and avoid the whole stack issue altogether.

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Jim_WoodWarden January 14, 2011 8:37 am

@ChadE and others –
I bought the Oshlun set from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Oshlun-S.....038;sr=8-1

I am hugely impressed with it and its price (currently right near $80). It makes flat bottom cuts with only a barely visible score cut near edges of dado. It’s gotten great reviews in both magazines and online with the only real negative comments about it not coming in a nice wood case or other storage case. It does come in a very heavy duty cardboard box with pretty decent foam separators to protect the teeth. My answer to the storage box issue, if you’re really put off by the cardboard box your a woodworker make a damn storage box – LOL (there are certainly plenty of plans for ones floating around on the internet and in magazines)

The chipper blades are full diameter blades and not just what essentially amounts to a bar with a hole in the middle and a tooth or two at each end (or I have seen what I call the x-bar style chippers where each chipper has four arms instead of two – I don’t have experience or ever heard of it but my thinking is the 2 arm or 4 arm style chippers I wonder if they every get bent enough woudl it throw your stack off any – I have always tried to treat my dado stacks as gently as possible).

Plenty of shims are provided for fine tuning the stack; though personally I find it easier to not mess with the shims and make the stack one chipper thinner then I need for the dado. Then I make all the first pass cuts in any material needing dados at a particular fence setting (along with maybe a scrap piece to help adjust the final pass). After the first pass cuts are made I then move the fence to make the final pass. This method works well for me and I get very accurate width cuts this way every time. Personally I find the thin shims get caught up in the square threads of the arbor and mangled around the center hole somewhat. They are also just a pain to get in and re-stack the blades and take another test cut and such (which you may have to repeat a couple of times until the dado fits snugly).

I have been using this stack for almost 18 months now – the use has been of a serious hobbyist use and I have not sharpened it yet. Next time I take blades in for sharpening I may throw the outer blades in for sharpening since they are always used. It just works so well and the price is affordable I haven’t seen a reason to pay for a higher priced stack (and I did have a big box store what I call a cheapy stack I think I paid about $50 for previous to this one that truly sucked that had tear out problems and rough bottoms to the dado).

So that’s my two cents. There maybe higher priced stacks available, and maybe the cut quality is marginally better but I am just not sure a $200 to $300 stack provides so much better quality to justify the price increase relative to the quality/price of the Oshlun stack. The only exception in my thinking is maybe the Freud dial a width is worth the price since it removes the pain in the ass shim issue, but I have no experience with that one.

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Rick LoDico January 14, 2011 9:48 am

I have a Forrest 8″ Dado King. I’m not sure what the capacity is on it but I’ve only needed more than 1″ or so when I needed a half lap in a 4 X 4 on a mail box post. I suppose if I was buying again, it would be a 6″. BTW, most of my dados are cut now on a table top Bosch TS with the Forrest. Saves me a bunch of blade changing annoyance because it’s pretty much guaranteed that as soon as I put the dado set on the PM66, I’ll need to rip something.

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Joe January 14, 2011 10:32 am

Most of this has been well covered. The one difference that i haven’t seen mentioned is that the 6″ blade has more wear per tooth since it has fewer teeth – so will dull a bit more quickly for the outside blades. I have a 6″ & 8″ freud set and they have both performed well on both a RAS & my delta contractor saw, though i am careful to adjust my feed rate for the smaller blade.

As far as flat bottoms go, the knicker teeth on the outer edge which leave the “bat ears” is there to reduce tearout, especially on the less expensive blades. my dad’s delta set leaves huge ears & cuts rough with all but the slowest feed rate. My 2 freuds have cleaner cuts with smaller ears.

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Bruce January 14, 2011 10:38 am

One thing I think should be mentioned…. I fell into this one early on. do not get one of those wobble dado cutters… yes they are east to setup, but do not cut a flat bottom but something that looks like a large ATB tooth saw cut it so you wind up with a tapering gap when you insert the piece tht fit into the dado.
Thanks, bc

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matt January 14, 2011 12:45 pm

I’ve used an 8″ set doing half lap joints on 4×4’s for some really stout outdoor furniture. I already had a nice Freud 6″ set so I tried nibbling away 3 1/2 inches with my 10″ blade but it was taking an eternity and looked horrible. So I went down the street and bought a cheapo 8″ from harbor freight for something like $25. Perfect dadoes weren’t crucial so it was more than adequate. It actually surprised me how well it did. I always wanted to test it on a hardwood scrap but have never gotten around to it.

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wes January 15, 2011 9:17 am

I currently own the frued 8″ and sever others. I would think that one difference between the two sizes would be blade life. It would seem to me that you would have to sharpen a 6″ more often.

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Stew Chubbuck January 20, 2011 4:15 pm

Not knowing the math off the top of my head I don’t have numbers to share but there is a considerable speed difference between the 6&8 inch enough to make a difference on the quality of the finish cut. The 10 inch would be better yet. But for the average wooworker they wouldn’t really benifit from having a 10 inch. One other thing to consider is the life span. A bigger blade the wear is spread out over more teeth so the life is going to be longer. And the bigger the blade more speed less effort to get the chips out less stres on the saw.

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Chris Crockett January 29, 2011 7:54 pm

How about if you use the stack in a different tool say like a radial arm. You wouldnt have to lower the arm so low and you could see your work better if you use the 8″.. C.C.

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Jim February 1, 2011 8:19 am

I use a 7″ Craftsman (old) dado set. All steel alloy. I have one of my experienced woodworking mentors who has owned a cabinet shop for many years. He uses wobble dado sets due to a stacked set close call (read above about the short arbor issue) that spooked him away from them forever. In order to get the truly flat bottom he desires, he bought several of them. Set them to the desired widths and had them professionally ground to remove the crown/high points. He gets perfectly flat cuts (and can fine tune the cuts to maintain that) every time. But definitely at a price.

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Brian December 30, 2011 10:15 pm

This discussion is a little old now but I came across it while searching for info on stacked dado sets. I noticed some errors in people’s understanding of saws and blades and wanted to contribute to clarify. First, a saw’s rotational speed (rpm) is fixed (assuming it is not bogged down) so a larger diameter blade will have a greater blade speed than a smaller blade but both will turn a full revolution in the same amount of time. Some of the comments on wear may not be right. On the Infinity model I noticed that both the 6 and 8 inch sets have the same number of teeth so a smaller set doesn’t necessarily mean fewer teeth. Lastly, a larger saw puts more stress on a saw. It weighs more so requires more force to get it up to speed. While it has more inertia due to its greater weight, the larger blade diameter means it is easier to stop than a smaller blade. Basically, it would be easier to stop a saw by overfeeding with a large blade than a smaller one. This is the same reason why guys that upsize their tires on their trucks also often choose to go with taller gears (gives more torque at the ground to compensate for the larger tires). In the end, I think the only reason to go with a larger diameter set is depth of cut.

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Randy Rosenberger October 25, 2012 11:39 am

My wife bought me a 10″ Forrest dado set for my birthday. It looks great and I’m sure is a good quality blade. I have a Sears 3 hp portable table saw which I would like to replace some day as I am an amateur woodworker just getting started. All the talk seems to be about 6″ or 8″ dado sets. Is the 10″ way too big for the saw I have or should I return the 10″ Forrest dado set for a smaller size? I haven’t used the blades yet so I could return them. Also, I would someday soon like to upgrade my table saw to a Ridgid R4512 or Grizzley GO715P Hybrid table saw. Would the 10″ Forrest set work with either of those as well?
Thanks!

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Shawn February 26, 2013 4:34 pm

I just read the owners manual for my saw and it said it was designed for use with a 6″ stacked dado. I looked at the owners manual for my dad’s saw and it said it was designed for an 8″ dado. Both were rigid saws from home depot. One was the mobile version and one was the non-mobile.

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John Tomczyk July 3, 2013 1:33 pm

I’ve bought 2 Freud tools over the years, including a dado set. Both were crap. I bought a 6″ set made by who knows at Rockler on sale and it worked fine on my PM 66 10″ tablesaw. Now, I have a Sawstop and can’t use the 6″ set. It requires a 10″ set or the saw won’t run. Also needs a dado brake and a Sawstop insert. Brake and insert run about $130.00 total. If I buy a Forrest dado set I’ll be in for $400.00+. Ouch!

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- Jon August 10, 2014 9:18 am
  
  I use a DeWalt 8″ stack on a SawStop (cabinet type, don’t recall the model number or anything) without a problem. But you have to change out the sensor. Blade size changes SUCK on the SawStop.
  
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David Pettinger January 9, 2014 9:16 am

I have both 6″ and 8″ dado sets. I personally have only used my 8″ set maybe 3 times since I’ve owned it. The 8″ was a gift from my kids, otherwise I would have sold it.

I rely mainly on my 6″ dado set. I really don’t see a need to ever buy a 8″ set. If I need to go that deep, I will use a mallet, chisel. and a hand saw. Probably will be faster any way.
I have built big timber tables and pergolas and was never tempted to use my 8″ dado to try and nibble out a wide deep dado. Good sharp hand tools always work the best.

I have never looked for a perfect flat bottom from my dado sets. That is what I have shoulder planes, router planes and chisels for. But then again, I love hand tools.
Just my 2 cents.
Dave
The woodworker with the most hand tools wins, problem is you can never have enough hand tools, so when do you have the most???????

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Scott Spencer February 15, 2014 11:42 am

A 6″ set isn’t always cheaper, and not all manufactures offer a 6″ set. The 6″ won’t necessarily cut exactly the same as an 8″ either, though it should do a sufficient job. Excluding the 8″ sets really narrows your choices. By including the 8″ sets in your search, you’ll increase the chances of finding the best sale price on the best set available at any given time. Even when I had a modest Delta 36-600 saw I’ve spun an 8″ set, so all but the most modest saws should be able to handle them, within reason.

My experience has been that the Infinity Dadonator is the best performer of the sets I’ve tried, and the Delta/DeWalt 7670 has historically offered the best bang for the buck near the $100 mark, but recent price increases on that set may negate some of the value. The basic Freud set will do a good job, as will the better Oshlun and Avenger sets…..it’s worth noting that Oshlun and Avenger offer some cheaper sets that have C2 carbide vs C4….I’d stick with C4 if possible. The Irwin Marples and basic CMT sets are similar designs as the basic Freud set, and should perform similarly.

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Robert From Marietta,OH February 18, 2014 2:41 pm

Mark,
With regards to saw blades, is it worth spending more for a name brand blade versus a generic manufacture? Does it matter? Have you ever done a comparison? Blades I am referring to would be for miter saws as well as table saw. An would be a regular blade to a finish blade.

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Vincent Penrose March 27, 2014 5:29 am

I have a craftsman 10″ contractor table saw and need a dado set for making Bee supers. Although the guy at Woodcraft said all the same as above about cleaner cuts and faster blade speed with the 8″, I think a 6″ will suit me. Amazo has great prices but I can drive over there today and have it in my paws in 20 mins..

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Mark Levine May 2, 2014 6:39 am

Saw: Grizzly 0444Z
Fence: Shopfox Aluma-Classic
Miter: T-Slot
Blade: Oldham 8″ Stacked Dado Set $59.00 – Grizzly Industrial

The decision between the 8″ and the 6″ really came down to how high I wanted to adjust the arbor every time I ran a dado process. The particular brand came down to the general performance reviews and overall price, but since the Oldham set did not have any reviews, it was purely on price, and Grizzly has been great with returns.

I tested the blade on a sorting shelf attached to my shaper with 3/4″ frame and 1/2″ shelves. There is less than 1/64″ of play with an appropriate stack, which is perfectly fine, and nearly a press fit in some areas. Clean flat bottom dado if you don’t rush the cut. Totally worth it!

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Jon August 10, 2014 9:15 am

I realize this is a very old post, but I wanted to add for future reference that I have used the full depth of an 8″ stack on a 10″ SawStop, but only once: when making a rack for my Revo clamps. I actually wished I could set it deeper, but at the full depth I got just enough for a stable rack.

Personally I do keep a wobble blade around for times when I need to cut out a gap that doesn’t have to be precise width or depth, because it is much faster to set up than a stack.

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les cantle October 8, 2014 5:21 am

use an 8″every time will cover all options,ive got a 6″inch dewalt and its way to small for dewalt radial arm saw.

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Barry October 28, 2014 4:26 am

My only comment is from a physics point of view. The 8 ” set has a higher mass therefore will have more inertia than the 6″ set. Think of a flywheel on an engine. If the set is allowed to acheive maximum velocity prior to making cuts, it will be less likely to bog down during the cut creating a more consistent cut. Of course as mentioned you need to be tuned into the sound of your saw during the cut to minimize speed changing.
The only caveat is if you mess up,like a fly wheel, the higher mass also takes longer to slow down. Always work safe with power tools.

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- tahwos February 21, 2016 5:28 pm
  
  Moment of Inertia has little, if any impact at that RPM – in fact, the 6″ will likely plow ahead much more easily, than the 8″, from the torque of the motor alone. The longer fulcrum created, by the larger radius blade, is going to be the debilitating factor here, not the mass.
  
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Jeff May 11, 2015 1:09 pm

If you use a SawStop table saw, it appears you are limited to the 8″ size–they don’t make a brake for the 6″. From their FAQ: “SawStop recommends only using 8” stacked dado sets, with a maximum thickness of 13/16”. “Wobble” dado sets are not recommended, as they may not engage correctly with the dado brake cartridge. Do not use dado sets with solid-plate interior chippers or blades with molding heads, as neither brake cartridge is designed to stop those blade types.”

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Donna October 25, 2016 8:14 am

Hi I’m new to woodworking and I’m looking to get a used table saw. At some point I would like to add Dado blades to it. My question is, how many amps/RPM’s do I need? I’ve been searching all over the web but can’t find the answer.
Thanks, Donna

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Robert February 22, 2017 3:04 pm

FYI, not all saws are created equal, some table saws, due to design, cannot use anything larger than a 6″ dado set. example: Makita model 2705.

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ereic EVS February 28, 2017 7:30 pm

try this dado fans! I have had my Vermont American carbide tipped adjustable dado blade 30+ yrs made USA and it worked great and safe.I could adjust to any size cut which was great for surfaces that were custom .I finally chipped a tooth and it cant be fixed.Would anyone happen to know where I could find another? this was an excellent tool. I’m really trying to avoid stackables

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Bob Heatwole September 15, 2018 5:15 am

Recomended surface feet per minute for hardwoods is 7000 to 9000 and softwoods is 10000 to 11000. The blade speed mentioned earlier was 3500 rpm’s, that puts the 8 inch dado at 7326 sfpm and a 6 inch dado at 5495 sfpm. A more important question is whats the exact diameter of the threaded area where your dado stack is being placed? There should be little to almost no play and no more vibration from the saw than when you have one blade on that fits a .625 (5/8) arbor. If you have runout on the OD of the dado stack you could very well shorten the life of the arbor bearings. Ive seen arbor threads under size by as much as .023. There should be no more clearance between the dado ID and the arbor threads than .002 to .003.

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Gerald Austin February 9, 2019 5:18 pm

I have a Craftsman 10 inch table saw Model 315.218060. I may have overlooked what I am about to comment on but thought if this is still active, it might serve some purpose. The manufacturer gives operational instructions on making a dado cut on page 34 of the saw manual. The manual says: “This saw is designed for use with a 6 inch stack dado (up to a width of 13/16 inches. Do not use an adjustable dado on this saw.” My comment therefore is that anyone should consult the saw operator’s manual. If in the case like this older saw, it is often easy to find a manual on line to review or print. Thanks for the good article.

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- Gerard Rushe April 20, 2020 8:38 am
  
  Thank you Gerald!
  When all else fails, is neglected, is over thought and when the math fails due to “operator error”, rtfm!
  
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brendan riddle December 12, 2021 1:19 am

The Oshlun 6″ stack works flawlessly. Creeps up on stopped dados way better than any 8″ stack I’ve used in the past.

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bmajor August 14, 2022 2:12 pm

There are 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who understand binary and those who don’t. This seems applicable to rotational kinetics as well.

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G Boyd October 15, 2022 1:11 pm

When I owned a Ridgid job site table saw they recommend a 6″ dado blade.
I own a Saw Stop contractor saw now and they only have a brake for the 8″ so the 6″ isn’t recommend

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6″ Vs 8″ Dado Stacks

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