Can you put a dado blade in most table saws?
I’m shopping online for an inexpensive table saw. Some of them say, “dado capacity 1/2 inch.” Others don’t mention a dado blade, but they usually say something like, “arbor size 5/8 inch.” If it has an arbor (blade opening?) size listed, does that mean that I will be able to put a dado blade in it?
Answers below in Comments Section
Yes.
you should make a 1/4 plywood thingy that fits in place of the meatel one that you remoove to change the blade
Yes, as long as the blade opening is wide enough and the shaft is long enough it will work. Mine has a removable hole plate and long shaft.
Yes you can. The arbor is the spindle that the blade or dado blade mount on to. If the saw you buy has a 5/8 arbor, make sure the dado blade will fit.
Safely?
If saw s/ accepts 1/2′ dado , it should have provision for a table insert which has a slot for the wider dado .
Diameter & arbor size do count.
The arbor size is the diameter of the shaft the sawblade mounts to.
Have both & would not use ( anymore) without proper table insert that allows for proper blade exposure.
Check the saw mfr for accessories.
Dado work is a common use of table saws & should be OK
Arbor size has nothing to do with whether the saw will accept dado blades or not. Arbor size is the size shaft that the blade goes on. What you need to look at is the plate that sits over the blade. It is normally removable and the slot left open decides how big of a dado set can be used. With a dado set installed, you would not usually have a plate sitting around the blade. If you are going to buy a dado, get the ones that go to 3/4″.
Something sounds strange about the fact the saw will only accept a 1/2 inch dado set. My guess is that the shaft (arbor) the blade attaches to is short and will only accept a dado set with a max thickness of 1/2 inch. You will be very limited at this size of dado so maybe you need to look at a different table saw that doesn’t have this limitation. a 5/8 inch arbor is pretty standard and are the most easily found blades and attachments.
go to http://www.ryobitools.com and look at the bts20 modle. it is a diecent lower end saw that runs at about $225.00. i recently bought one to make 3/4 daddo cuts and was satisfied with the results. diablo daddo blade set(up to 25/32) was right at $100.00 at home depot. hope this helps.