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TPI SELECTOR

DeWalt Blades

Which Blade to Choose:

To get the best out of your DeWalt production metal cutting band saw blades, analyze your sawing application.  Knowing the band saw blade dimensions (length x width x thickness) is usually all that is necessary.  The next step is to find out the characteristics of the material you are going to cut.  What is the grade of the steel, the hardness (if the material is treated), the shape, size and is the material to be stacked (bundled) or cut at one at a time?  You should also consider the specifics of the application:  is the metal cutting band saw blade to be used for production or utility/general purpose sawing; what is more important to you – fast cutting or tool life, and; is the material finish important? 

The next step for the use of your DeWalt band saw blade is to determine the number of teeth you will need to use (TPI or Tooth Per Inch).  If you are having difficulty choosing between two tooth pitches, the finer of the two will generally give you better band saw blade life.  As a general rule for bundle cutting, determine the correct TPI for one piece and then choose one pitch coarser for the bundle.  For your easier to cut materials, one tooth pitch can cut a wider variety of material sizes.  For difficult to cut materials, your band saw blade life will suffer if the tooth pitch is not correct.

The third step to get the best out of your DeWalt band saw blade is to make sure the blade and TPI chosen is available in the required blade width.  When compromise is necessary, choose the correct TPI first. 

DeWalt Band Saw Blades.com recommends checking your speed and feed rate for your band saw blades cutting different types of material with our bi-metal blades, adjusting band speed for different sized materials, different fluid types and different heat-treated materials.

The charts below will help you determine the best TPI to use for the cutting application.

  1. Determine size and shape of material to be cut
  2. Identify chart to be used (square solids, round solids, or tubing/structural)
  3. Read teeth per inch next to material size.
TPI Chart

BUNDLED/STACKED MATERIALS:

 
To select the proper number of teeth per inch (TPI) for bundled or stacked materials, find the recommended TPI for a single piece and choose one pitch coarser to cut the bundle

Specific Metal Cutting

The following charts are designed for specific types of materials.

Solid Cutting Only

1. Determine size and shape of material to be cut
2. Identify chart to be used (square solids, round solids, or rectangles)
3. Read teeth per inch next to material size.

Structural Cutting Only

1. Determine size and shape of material to be cut
2. Identify chart to be used (tubing/structurals)
3. Read teeth per inch next to material size.