Diamond Blade Buying Guide

Segmented, Continuous Rim and Turbo Blades

Diamond blades are available with different rim or edge configurations including segmented, continuous, and turbo with the type of rim affecting how the blade cuts. The segments or rim are fixed to the blade through the process of brazing, laser welding, or sintering.

Segmented Blades

Segmented blades typically have medium to hard bonds for a range of wet and dry cutting applications. While these blades can offer a relatively smooth cut with a fast cutting speed, chipping may still occur. They are durable and have a long blade life compared to other blades.

They are ideal for cutting marble and granite slabs, concrete, asphalt, brick, block, and other building materials. They are available in a wide selection of diameters from small to large and particularly dominate the 12” diameter and larger market. These blades are commonly used with masonry saws, concrete saws, and circular saws.

The spaces of air that separate the segments are called gullets. The gullets are there to improve air flow, dissipate heat, and remove slurry from the cut, helping to maintain the blade’s cutting performance. The size and shape of the gullets vary from blade to blade and will depend on the type of material the blade designed to cut.

For example, blades for cutting asphalt tend to have wider, U-shaped gullets while blades for concrete tend to have narrower, U-shaped gullets. The more abrasive the material, the wider the slot should be to allow for better heat dissipation. Other gullet shapes include keyhole, teardrop, and angled. Segmented diamond blades with narrow slots are generally for marble and granite while keyhole shaped slot blades tend to be for general purpose.

Continuous Rim Blades

Continuous rim blades have softer bonds for cutting hard materials such as tile, porcelain, granite, stone, glass, and other materials that can chip easily. These blades don’t have individual segments but instead have a solid, continuous rim or edge. Most continuous rim blades are designed for wet cutting applications, providing the smoothest, chip free cuts.

These blades are most commonly available in 4” to 14” diameters. The smaller, 4” to 5” diameter blades are often used in hand-held grinders while the larger sizes are often used with circular saws and tile saws.

There are also variations of continuous rim blades. The J-slot design is one variation that has J-slots around the edge of the blade to help dissipate heat for increased durability, extended blade life, and faster cutting speeds. Additionally, there are J-slot continuous rim blades available for dry cutting applications.

Turbo Blades

Turbo blades typically have soft to medium bonds for a variety of general purpose to specific cutting applications. Turbo blades feature a continuous rim with an edge that is serrated. This serrated edge is designed to the give the blade faster cutting speeds while maintaining a smooth cut, combining the best qualities from both segmented and continuous rim blades.

These blades are typically available in sizes that range from 4” to 12” diameters. They can be used in grinders, circular saws, and tile saws to cut a variety of materials including tile, stone, marble, granite, masonry, and other building materials. Blades are available for both wet and dry cutting applications.