Freud SD508: 8" Super Dado Sets

I'm very pleased with the way this dado set is working out. I was concerned with using an 8" stack with a 1-1/2 hp delta contractors saw, but so far it's working out great--even with all the blades installed. I don't have any experience with other dado stacks, but to my eye the cuts from the SD508 are superb. Clean, flat bottoms and sides. No chip out at all. The only thing that is a hassle (not unique to Freud) is that it IS a dado stack. Putting the both cutters and the chippers together for a cut can be a chore. Now I know why Bill Hylton says avoids using a dado stack in favor of using a router to make dados in some of his books. :-) Other reviewers said that they had a hard time judging which chipper is which. There are 4 in the set. Two 1/8", one 3/32" and one 1/16". I found that looking at them carefully from the side made it easy enough for me to determine the widths without resorting to using a dial caliper or other measuring device. The box the blades come in is nice, sturdy and protects the blades well. Just make certain the tabs to hold it closed are secure. Otherwise there's the potential for all your blades to fall out if you aren't careful. There's a dvd with an intro on how to use the dado, as well as a chart that tells you which cutter and chipper combos will produce a certain size dado/groove, that comes with the set. The dvd is specific to the dial-a-width product and really doesn't cover much other than the 'basic of basics' on how to use the dado. It also has a plan on it for a dado sled. One other thing. Using any saw blade can be dangerous; using a full dado stack the first time can be VERY intimidating and dangerous if you aren't careful. Make sure all your safety gadgets are in place so you can deal with the intimidating part so you don't 'accidently' experiance the dangerous part of while using it. That said, after making a full depth, clean bottomed dado in one pass, all I can think to say is "sweet"! Feeling intimidated by all those spinning blades quickly fades to healthy respect.

As I state in most of my reviews, I don't mind paying a little more to get a little more. If you're like me, this is the blade for you. I'm building a built-in wine rack for my house and wanted to use veneer plywood for the carcass. Well, as anyone knows, you need a _damn_ good blade to crosscut a dado in veneer plywood with no tear-out. This blade performed magnificently. Setup was a snap with the chart. Look up the thickness that you need in the manual, and it tells you which size chipper to use in conjunction with the outside blades. The bottom of the dado was so sqaure that you could use it on an exposed joint, such as a bookcase. The top of the dado was razor sharp and the fit was perfect. Also, this comes complete with a nice, metal, shim set. I've used the paper shim set in the past and you can never get a duplicate thickness once you've torn down the blade. Tighten the arbor screw a little more then last time, compress the paper a little mode and , viola, a thinner dado. Not the case with the metal shims here. One last thing to add is the carry case is a nice touch. Each of the blades and chippers are separated with a plastic ring. The entire thing filts in a small brief-case looking case. Again, well worth the money if you don't mind spending it....

If you read the reviews, like I did, BEFORE you buy this, you know the case is no longer included. *** AMAZON - CHANGE THE PICTURE WHICH SHOWS THE CASE *** Yes, the blades are not labeled with their size or the letter designation in the chart indicating which blades to use to make up a stack for a specific dado. You can easily measure the width of the plate (not the cutting head) and mark it on the chipper with a Sharpie. I wish they had marked the blades like the model number was done, but it's not a deal breaker. On my first series of test cuts I did see a small high line in the dado bottom. But that was easily removed with a pass with a chisel. HOWEVER, in my 2nd series of test cuts on undersized plywood, I never saw a ridge. I made sure to use all the blades, but all the bottoms were smooth. The order in which the blades are set in the stack might have something to do with the tiny ridge I experienced at first. I don't know how the order could make a difference, but for now, that's all I got, and I can deal with it if it happens. I am impressed with the quality of the cuts on plywood, softwood and hardwood. Bottom line: Should have a case OPTION if they are not going to include it. Should have blade sizes etched in the chippers. For the price, compared to others at twice the price, the cuts are smooth and accurate.

I usually use a router to make dado cuts, but there are some uses like lap joints that are better to do with a dado head. The Freud 508 set is less expensive than Forrest's Dado King, but it got a good review in Fine Woodworking, so I ordered it. It's been several years since I've used a dado set, and now I remember why -- setting up is a bit of a pain. But... I tried making lap joints once on a router and had to interrupt the work with a trip the emergency room for a few stitches. To get reacquainted with dado sets, I made some 3/4" wide x 1/4" deep cuts with the Freud set in some scrap walnut, in melamine-clad particle board and in cherry plywood. The cuts were perfectly smooth, with a perfectly flat profile and no tear-out at the exit. Very impressive that it can handle such different materials. The set comes in a plastic case with very thin plastic spacers to separate the chippers and blades. I don't think these will hold up very well, but it will be easy enough to make substitutes. There's a useful DVD behind the foam in the upper section of the case, along with a chart showing how to combine the blades and chippers for various widths. This is one of several Freud dado sets. Less expensive sets than this one use chippers that use two pairs of cutters rather than four, and that may result in less smooth cuts. The next step up (SD608) uses a device that offers an additional width -- 7/32" -- and uses an adjustable insert to eliminate the need for shims and reduce the amount of shuffling of chippers and that you need to do to change widths. But unless you need to change widths frequently during each session, this set (SD508) is an excellent choice. It will definitely give you a good range of widths and clean, accurate cuts.

This is an expensive set of dado blades. I own two other sets that are also Freud sets. The quality of the blades are excellent. My complaint is that they sent these in a cardboard box with a foam insert to hold everything. The photos in the ad plus every video I watched reviewing this set shows it stored in a nice plastic case. What's going on Freud? This is the most expensive set I have purchased and you put them in a cardboard box. Plus this is faulty advertising. Not a happy camper. I see that several people have commented on the box packaging. I have not received one reply from seller nor Freud to address this situation. This is VERY POOR customer support. I own several Freud products, however I can't support them anymore if this is how they treat their customers after the sale.

I've had this set of blades for over a year now and am very pleased with them. I use them on my Delta Unisaw and they work great. The most freqent use I get from them is making dados in plywood or hardwood cases for plywood shelves and dividers. The adjustability with the various blades and shims helps me to match the groove exactly to the various widths of my sheet stock. The bottoms of the dados are very smooth. Not router bit smooth, but perfectly acceptable for fit, finish, and glueups. They make very clean cuts and I have seen almost no tearing or chipping when cutting in veneered plywood. In a pinch I had to use this set once on a project that used green treat lumber. They tore through it with ease, and most importantly kept their edge. These are very high quality blades and should cut great for years if properly taken care of. I store them back in their hard case with the supplied dividers between blades after every use, so they still look like new after many hours of use. ***As other posters mentioned, the shims are not labeled. Something I cannot believe was not done on a set as expensive as this. One of the first things I did was mic the shims and mark them with a Sharpie as to their individual thicknesses. This has saved me headaches and trial and error numerous times.

You'll need a real case to store blades in. I have used and enjoyed Freud blades and router bits for more years than I can remember. When I got this dado stack, I had to say something. It weighs about 8 to 10 pounds when you receive it. Open one cardboard box and all the parts are in another cardboard box. I spent over $200 and they don't even offer the option of a case to be bought separately. There is some sort of foam insert keeping everything close. There are no pegs to set the blades over, there is nothing to keep the carbide from clanking around with the other blades and messing up the sharpness. I'll have to build a box to protect everything but Freud has missed the boat on this one. I don't mind building but the point is, I shouldn't have to for this price. The blades look fine but first impressions being what they are, I am just warning others that might expect more.

I will qualify this review by saying that I've only had the Freud SD508 Dado stack for a few weeks. In that time, I've used it to make dado cuts in Baltic birch plywood, HD 'sand ply' plywood, hard maple, yellow birch, poplar, MDF and MDF with laminate. In all of these materials, I was impressed with the flatness of the bottom of the dado and the clean edges at the top of the cut. The outside blades do leave a light scoring mark in the bottom of the cut, but that's about it to my eye. I made some dados that were wider than the maximum stack, requiring multiple passes to get the width. Even with these dados, the only visible-to-the-naked-eye marks were the light scoring of the outside blades. I am very happy that this set includes a 3/32" chipper. Cutting dados to fit 'standard' plywood thicknesses is much easier. I also like having perfectly sized steel spacers in increments of 0.004". Much better than using paper or plastic shims. The first thing I did was to mark the thickness on each shim and chipper with a sharpie. I can be a bit dyslexic at times, so I also marked the 2 outside blades with an L and R. Makes it much quicker to set up a stack. I was particularly impressed when I cut a 1 1/4" wide X 1/2" deep dado for an INCRA Miter Channel - 32" in a 27" x 36" router table top. I made the top from a double thickness of 3/4" MDF edged with 3/4" poplar and with 1/16" laminate glued to it. I checked the surface flatness of the laminate with a straightedge and feeler gauges before I made the cut and it was flat within 0.010". The cut with the Freud dado stack produced no chipping of the laminate at all; the edges were sharp and clean. I want to qualify that a bit because I did take some precautions with these cuts. I used a zero clearance insert on my table saw, and cut the exact slot width with the cutters I was using. I also used a sacrificial board clamped against the exit side of the dado to prevent any blow out of the poplar or laminate. And of course the dado stack was quite sharp, being relatively new. I also took the precaution of running the first 3/4" wide cut down the center of the slot, checking the edges, and then enlarging the slot in both directions. After that first cut, I ran a piece of blue tape across the corner of the exit end, for extra insurance. It all worked and the bottom of the dado was very smooth, with 2 light score marks. From end to end, the width of the slot varied by 0.004". Other reviewers have dinged this set because of the low quality of the box it comes in. I agree that it is poor quality, particularly the red, blow molded insert, which arrived cracked and a bit shredded, but still useable. Personally, I would prefer to have Freud put their money into the dado stack, not the box. These things are expensive enough; I don't really want to pay even more for a better box. If it really bothers me in the future, I might make my own *really beautiful* box, but I probably won't.