Graphical Construction Glossary >> Tools. >> Power Tools >> Diamond Saw Blade

Diamond Saw Blade: A saw blade that has a matrix of diamond chips. Used for cutting ceramics, concrete and masonry. Generally falls into two categories, wet or dry cutting.

A view of the MK Diamond 152205Z MK-799D 14-Inch Dry Cutting Segmented Diamond Saw Blade with 20-Millimeter Arbor for Masonry from Amazon

A quick glance at the three saw blades on this page should be enough to convince you that all diamond blades are the same.

There are two main categories of diamond blades, Wet cutting and dry cutting.
Wet blades typically have less provision in the blade for expansion or cooling, because water is the method of cooling the blade down. So, NEVER use a wet blade dry if you want to get the most value out of your money.
Dry cutting blades typically have a segmented construction with large slots to allow for the inevitable heat build up in the blade cause by sawing material like concrete. Another popular way of cooling the blade is by the so called "turbo" slots around the rim.
Dry blades on the other had can be used wet. In fact I recommend it. Only use a blade dry for short and snappy jobs or if it is not convent to do so. Just because it says on the pack, dry cutting, you will keep your blades in better condition and get longer life if the are used wet.

Bosch DB4542 Premium Plus 4-1/2-Inch Dry Cutting Turbo Continuous Rim Diamond Saw Blade with 7/8-Inch Arbor for Masonry from Amazon

As always with any sort of tool try to cultivate a feeling for when it is working well, and when it is overloaded

I go back to the days of extremely expensive diamond saw blades. At the hire company, with the large diameter blades costing several hundred of dollars they used to measure the blades with a micrometer and charge for the blade usage as well as the hire. Here are a couple of tips that I can give you from the days when I used to run a 24" twin cylinder Wisconsin engined concrete saw.

When sawing wet, with a nice flow of water onto the blade you should never see sparks coming off the saw blade. This means that you are pushing it too fast and wasting diamonds.
The exception to this of course is when you are sawing through a piece of rebar.
Most materials tend to wear the blade normally, the matrix and the diamond chips wear equally so that new diamonds are exposed evenly.
Sometimes this doesn't happen and the cutting action fades off. To expose new diamond material cut a few pieces or dress the matrix with a clay brick.

MK Diamond 158436 MK-225 Hot Dog 10-Inch Wet Cutting Continuous Rim Diamond Saw Blade with 5/8-Inch Arbor for Porcelain and Vitreous Tile from Amazon.

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Please Note! The information on this site is offered as a guide only! When we are talking about areas where building regulations or safety regulations could exist,the information here could be wrong for your area. It could be out of date! Regulations breed faster than rabbits!
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