Change of Blade Prefernce

[Oscar Myer]

Hi all...

Technically, I am a long time scroller seeing as I've had my DeWalt 788 for more than seven years.  In real life I'm pretty much a newbie.
When I bought my saw I managed to do a couple of patterns.  But shortly after that, a lot of changes were happening in my life that kept me away from the saw - parents passing away within 5 years of each other.  And a total of five foot surgeries within two years.  And so all of this kept me away from the saw.  But I'm happy to report that life has started to level out and I now am back at it.

Back when I first got my saw, Flying Dutchman seemed to be everyone's choice of blades.  I now see that Pegas blades are popular.  Is there really a lot of difference between FD and Pegas.  Should I be making the change?

My go to blade has been the FD Ultra Reverse #5.  I also use the UR #3 for smaller intricate cuts.  I love cutting fretwork projects.  If I were advised to make the change over to Pegas blades, which ones would be similar to the FD's that I'm using now?  Or is there another type that would be even better for me?  I'm beginning to get low on blades and will be making an order very soon and am in need of some guidance towards what I should be getting.  Most of my projects are done with 1/2 birch or 1/2" plywood on occasion.  But mostly birch.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

/Oscar

[Scrappile]

Pegas blades are good, no doubt, if I were you, I would get a few different  to try.  I, like you was FD only for a long time, but I tried the Pegas blades and there are a few that I really like and use often.  I think in general, most like the Modified Geometry blades.  I have tried a few of them and I find them too aggressive for what I like to do. I do like Pegas Reverse Skip #3 and the Double Skip #1.  The other one I like is the #2/0 spiral.  The rest of my blades are FD.  I do think Pegas are worth trying and you may like some of or all of them.

[Denny Knappen]

Welcome to the forum from TN.  I use FD UR and Polar blades.  ArtCrafters is also a distributor for Pegas.  I just started using Pegas MGT blades.  You might want to give some a try, but blades are whatever works best for you.

[dgman]

I use mostly Flying Dutchman Ultra Reverse blades in sizes 1,3,5 and 7. I cut all styles of scroll work in mostly hardwoods and a little Baltic plywood. I have tried Pegas blades including the Modified Geometry blades. They are fine blades but not good enough to change over to them. My suggestion to you is to try different blades to find what works for you.

[Jim McDonald]

Like everyone else, find a blade you like. I have all three major brands and switch according to the job, but most of the time I fall back to FD-UR. 

It is all in how the driver feels about the blade/wood combination.

[trackman]

I switched from FD to pegas an first thing I noticed was that the pegas blades cut straight. You don’t have to adjust for drift like for FD. The MG cut better in my opinion. Mainly  use #3 & #5s

Edited November 10, 2019 by trackman

[Oscar Myer]

Thanks so much for the replies/suggestions!!!

I guess I should have mentioned that FD UR are the only blades I've ever used.  And so, as I'm cutting more and more I've become adjusted to the drift.  But, if there is something better or at least different out there - something that is used by a lot of experienced scrollers - then I'd really like to give them a try.  Like a lot of you suggested, I'm going to order a few Pegas blades and see how I like them.

Another reason for wanting to see what they're like is the fact that I can by Pegas blades and pay for them in Canadian dollars.  If in fact I do like them I would be saving money on the exchange rate.

Thanks again for all your wisdom!!!

/Oscar

[John B]

G'day Oscar,

 I'm glad you life is taking a turn for the better.

I'm going to throw another blade into the mix.
I mainly use FDUR blades, but for thicker timber such as 25mm or above I find the Olson PG blades make short work of it.
I have a very small selection of Pegas, bought about 10 years or more ago.
I get my blades from Wooden Teddy Bear along with other items and as they don't sell Pega I have not had the chance to try them out.
Have fun

[Oscar Myer]

Thank you for this, John...

Good to know.  At this point it is very rare that I would cut anything more than 1/2" hardwood - mostly birch.  But I will keep the Olson blades in mind when I want to cut anything thicker.

/Oscar

[RabidAlien]

I started on Pegas 3" pin-ended blades, then to their 5" flat blades when I upgraded my saw about 6 or 7 months ago.  I was running low on blades so I picked up a pack from Amazon of Flying Dutchman, 12-each 2/0, 1, 3, 5, and 7's.  I haven't cut much with them yet (just came in the mail on Monday), but I've noticed that the FD blades tend to pull to the left a lot more than the Pegas blades, so I have to get used to angling my work a bit to get straight lines.  The Pegas also seemed to make tighter corners, to me,  for the same sized blades.  Again, that's with about two hours' worth of cutting on the FD blades.  The FD blades cut smooth, though, and leave ZERO feathers on the bottom of the project (I use MG blades from both manufacturers).  I think its just a matter of me getting used to how a blade cuts, I really can't think of anything that I seriously dislike about either Pegas or FD.

[Heli_av8tor]

I’m a low time scroller having done a couple projects last summer and several in the first few months of this year. After laying off all summer I just finished 8 - 8x10 wall hangings to give as gifts. 

All of my cutting was with FD UR blades (mostly #3) until this project. I alternately used Pegas MG #3’s and the FD’s to stack-cut 2 1/4” BB plywood.

Initially I thought the Pegas was a little more aggressive. Some cut straight but most cut at an angle that seemed to change blade to blade. I had trouble getting straight lines off to a good start because of this. They also seemed to lose their set quicker than the FD’s.

These problems could very well be operator induced. Nonetheless I’m staying with FD UR blades.

Tom

[Woodrush]

I use the pegas reverse. I tried the mg and found them aggressive. They do cut straight, but I've never understood why that's an issue. I'm so used to blade pull that it's not a factor

[Sycamore67]

I.mainly use FD blades Polar.  I cut mainly thicker woods so a skip tooth blade is what I like.  I do not have any drift issues with the FD. They do have drift but I just do not really notice.

I have tried other blades.  I really like the PS Woods Super Sharps.  They are the best cutting blade in thicker woods that I have used BUT they are more expensive.  I am currently debating with myself about buying a bunch.  Glad nobody is in my shop during the debate as it is worse than Congress recently.

I also recently tried Pegas Modified Geometry and they cut well but I just could not get comfortable with them.

I keep reminding myself to try other blades from time to time.  I may find another blade that I like.

[Roberta Moreton]

I tried Pegas, went back to Flying Dutchman and Olson.  It’s a personal thing.