Forrest Manufacturing's Dampener Disks Eliminate Motor and Blade Vibration
Precision Ground Disks Improve Cuts and Reduce Noise
CLIFTON, New Jersey, April 24, 2008 - Forrest Manufacturing announced today that its dampener disks are still the best solution for reducing noise and eliminating motor and blade vibration in most table, panel, and radial arm saws. "Our dampener disks can actually improve the cut of any blade and reduce noise by 50 percent," said Jay Forrest, vice president, Forrest Manufacturing.
Designed to be mounted next to the saw blade on a saw's arbor, or shaft, a dampener disk holds the saw blade rigid so that vibrations are not transmitted to the rim of the teeth. The result is a better cut, a truer running blade, and significantly less whistling noise.
Engineered for Top Performance
Forrest Manufacturing's dampener disks are precision ground from the same steel as its award-winning saw blades. Also, like Forrest's blades, dampener disks are straightened by hand to ensure flatness and to keep side-to-side wobble to within .001 inch. The dampener disk is mounted between the saw blade and washer and nut to eliminate blade vibration.
Identifying the Origins of Vibration
Vibration originates in the saw mechanism rather than the saw blade. Motors may not be perfectly balanced and belt drives, running on pulleys from a motor arbor to a saw blade arbor, may not be uniformly thick. Either situation can create vibrations in the arbor that make the saw blade vibrate sympathetically as it spins.
"When you look straight on at the edge of a spinning saw blade, you should see a sharp clear outline," explains Jay Forrest. "If the edge appears fuzzy and wider than the actual width of the blade, then the blade is fluttering, or vibrating. Table saws with belt drives tend to run with the most vibration."
Eliminating Vibration
It was Jim Forrest, founder and president of Forrest Manufacturing, who developed the concept of mounting a disk on a saw's arbor to dampen vibration. "The idea was born when he was making test cuts with our blades on our own table saw and noticed evidence of vibration in the cut pieces," says Jay Forrest. The principle of eliminating vibration is simple. "Think back to high school physics," says Forrest. "Suppose you have a pendulum in a clock that swings back and forth. If you stop the pendulum halfway in its cycle, it will not swing back. The same principle applies to the side-to-side wobble of a saw blade. If you stop the vibration with a disk on one side of the blade's path, it will not vibrate on the other."
While some manufacturers sell dampener disks in sets of two, only one disk dampener is necessary because of the physics of how it works, notes Forrest. Plus, there's an added inconvenience to using two disks. "If you mount a disk dampener on either side of a saw blade, you'll offset its normal position by 1/8 inch and have to readjust the fence," says Forrest.
Although dampener disks are only 1/8 inch thick, they're not recommended for chop saws since a chop saw's arbor is short and can usually accommodate only the thickness of the blade. A table saw shaft is much longer. Also, disk dampeners are usually unnecessary for dado sets since the multiple blades naturally help to minimize vibration.
While anti-vibration cuts in saw blades can reduce vibration, Forrest doesn't recommend blades with a number of "fancy laser cuts." Those cuts weaken the blade's steel plate, making it less likely to withstand kick backs or jamming and more susceptible to warping and teeth damage. In contrast, the slots in Forrest's blades help control expansion and contraction that result from centrifugal force, produced by the spinning blade, and from heat at the rim, caused by cutting.
Sized to Fit
Forrest Manufacturing's disk dampeners are made in diameters ranging from four to 10 inches. Bores are available in 5/8 or 1-inch sizes but can be custom made to fit almost any table, panel, or radial arm saws.
About Forrest Manufacturing
For over 60 years, Forrest Manufacturing has been supplying high-quality saw blades to discriminating craftsmen. Made in America, Forrest blades are available direct from the factory or from fine-quality dealers, retailers, and catalogs. Every blade carries a full-refund, 30-day guarantee. For more information about Forrest Manufacturing's saw blades, disk dampeners, or other products, visit www.ForrestBlades.com.
Contact:
Jay Forrest, Vice President
973-473-5236
