Know What To Look For In Diamond Band Saw Blades?

by
Rudy Silva
Diamond band saw blades are the part of a diamond bad saw used for cutting abrasive materials.
The diamond blades are excellent for cutting very abrasive materials like glass, brick, concrete and
stone. However, rather than cutting through the materials, the diamond grinds because of the
rectangular teeth containing the diamond crystals.
These saw blades are categorized according to their shapes, methods of manufacturing and their
uses. A diamond saw blade has diamond-tipped teeth.
When it comes to their shapes, the diamond blades are similar to circular saw blades, band saw
blades and gang saw blades. The most widely used and also the most commonly available is the
circular diamond saw blades.
Blades for diamond gang saw are made of long steel plate welded with diamond segments. In order
to cut or grind through raw stone blocks, you will need to use tens or hundreds of diamond gang saw
blades.
Generally, the diamond band saw blades are flexible closed steel band fixed with diamonds on the
teeth of one side of the band.
Now, to fix the diamonds onto the blades base, several methods can be employed. The most common
is sintering the mixture of metal bond and diamonds to form the cutting edge of the blade complete
with diamond segments.
Other methods include vacuum brazing, electroplating, extruding and many more. Electroplated
diamond blades can be manufactured to be extremely thin. The diamonds are electroplated onto the
base of the metal blade, the thickness of which may be tens of microns.
In electroplating, the diamonds are coated onto the blades using an electrical current which entrusts
the coating onto the blade to produce brittle and hard Ni matrix and keep the diamond in place. This
enables accurate cutting on different materials.
Depending on the materials to which the diamond band saw blades are used, there are granite,
marble, concrete, general purpose, asphalt, and gem-cutting diamond blades.
Although most Saw blades are made from different materials, the steel is the most commonly used
because they are inexpensive. There is also the HSS or High-speed steel which is harder than a
typical steel blade. Examples of blades made of high-speed steel are scroll saw blades, jig saw
blades, and reciprocating saw blades.
Each diamond blade is designed for a particular purpose. Hence, its reaction may differ under
varying conditions. Diamond blades are also made of steel core or impregnated with diamonds for
optimal results.
Manufacturer of diamond blades have their own way of providing the blades. A few of them make
harder blades, while some make softer blades. However, you need to know that this has nothing to
do with the quality of the blade. The hardness or softness of the blade affects only the bond that

holds the diamond in place.

Because Diamond band saw blades are designed for specific application, it is crucial that you know
which type of blade is best used for the materials you plan to cut or grind.