$170.00 to use a dado blade on a SawStop??? 

I’d never ever have a saw/stop machine in my shop. For what you pay for one a tech should come out for free$$ every time we need to use a dado stack. For gods sake who has that kind of time to tie up a shop. My powermatics and grizzly’s are just safe enough for us.

How about the logic of paying 3-4 thousand dollars to not have the option to use the saw the way you want? The bypass system should be a complete bypass turning it into a regular table saw. Instead the saw decides if it’s going to let you bypass.

I wanted to know if the dado brake was absolutely required. I didn't find anything on Y-Tube or in the manual on whether this would work or not. Was there something in the manual that I missed? My bad if I did. I wouldn't mind making dado cuts with the safety disabled and spend the extra $100 on wood or supplies. The fact that the saw detected no blade near the brake and errored out proved my point (to myself). I think I even tried it in bypass mode (brass key on side). Still, no joy. Once the $100 goodie was added, the saw works as expected. I have not had the saw trip on either brake, although after cutting 8/4 hard maple it just shut off, mid cut. I cycled the power and it worked fine for a couple of days. Then it did it again. I reset and finished the job and have not had the opportunity to cut anything that thick since. Things have slowed down since the p-demic. Thanx for watching, tho. It was a fun video to make!

@@DragonwoodDesigns Regardless of which brake you have installed, the saw will not start without a blade in it. You proved nothing. Put the standard brake in, put the dado blade on, put it in by pass and try to start it. To clarify, I have no idea if that will work... But that's what you said you wanted to try in the video but you didn't actually try it.

@@bswinter2 This was my thinking as well.

@@bswinter2 It wont I tried on my PCS. I wish I could run 7 1/4 circular saw blades on Sawstop because of the narrow kerf. But they won't work either even if I use the brake for 8 inch dadoes. Kind of a bummer for me.

I agree with you 100%! The SawStop is one of the finest pieces of equipment I own. It has no equal in the market, not even Powermatic comes close! The point is this: I was expecting to drop in the smaller 8 inch blade and run the bypass function. I don't mind giving up the safety feature for dados. I still needed to buy the zero clearance insert ($69), but another $99 for the safety feature was not planned. Know this: The safety feature is an invaluable asset I would never do without, even thought there is a premium to be paid. The major cause of injuries on a table saw is kickback! Thank the manufacturers for always including a riving knife. I think that is the most important safety device. So, people should know, if you dado, you need to plan ahead and get the extra parts you will need ahead of time. I would NEVER purchase a table saw without this safety feature. Also, the cuts and workmanship on this saw are amazing, worth the price even if there was no safety feature! Thanks for leaving the comment. Alan

The blades I used for the video were Freud (part number: D208M or SD208 depending on where you look on the label), 8" (printed on the blade), and they do measure 8-1/8 inch as you say. But the blade brake can handle the extra 1/16th (.0625 per side). Might have been tight, but in the end, required clearance was met. Probable could have handled blades 8-1/4? Just guessing but the dado blade brake (break!) works fine with Freud blades.

@@DragonwoodDesigns I agree with you. I found I could clear the brake, but am tight on the required clearance. My saw is the contractor model. So, I run in the bypass mode and it works.

@@williambullock6127 You're lucky! If you can run in bypass, you don't need to get the extra brake. That was the first thing I tried. Found the PCS 3 hp errors out if no blade. Would be the same thing as a smaller blade, ie an 8" dado, Yes, I did have to adjust the position, almost to the limit, but the supplied thickness gauge fit as required for proper operation. Just remember to set it back when putting on your regular 10" blade. If you don't, it will still run, but due to the increased distance, more teeth are going to pass before the blade stops and drops. Changing a possible scrape to stiches.

I use Freud and I just adjust the 1/16 inch (radius) difference. It works fine.