Choosing the best Diamond Blades for Tile

What is a Diamond Blade?

A diamond blade is used to cut hard materials like stone, ceramic, and glass. It consists of an engineered circular disc with diamond bits embedded on the outer rim. The diamond bits are suspended in a metal alloy matrix that is fused to the metal disc during the high temperature manufacturing process. The quality of the diamonds as well the properties of the metal alloy matrix determine how a blade will perform through different materials.

How does a Diamond Blade work?

This engineered diamond rim is designed to cut through hard materials by creating micro fractures in the material as it comes in contact with the rim. As the diamond bits wear down, the metal bond wears at a similar rate exposing fresh diamond bits. A high quality blade will wear evenly so that an even amount of diamond bits are exposed at the same time providing consistent cutting action.

Diamond Blade performance

There are many factors that play into diamond blade performance. Most diamond manufacturer's will not advertise a "life span" of diamond products due to the amount of variables that can affect performance. To get the best results, a diamond blade must be used in accordance with its manufacturer specs and recommendations, in addition to applying the proper end-user cutting technique.

Dressing stones

To get the best results, a diamond blade must be used in accordance with its manufacturer specs and recommendations, in addition to applying the proper end-user cutting technique. You will find over the course of using a diamond blade, that the performance may deteoriate faster than you expect. This is likely caused by a phenomenon known as glazing. The material being cut ends up fusing to the cutting matrix of the diamond blade which covers the diamond bits. This causes the blade to cut more slowly and it may result in additional chipping. Fortunaley, an easy remedy is to use a dressing stone to remove the glazing and restore the diamond blade. Simply cut into a dressing stone, or brick-like material, enough so that the entire cutting matrix on the outer rim comes into contact with the brick.