Dewalt BREAKAWAY Reciprocating Saw Blades – 2 Blades in 1

Dewalt has just released a couple new metal cutting reciprocating saw blades with a very unique feature.  You’ll notice these new blades have a strategically placed set of cutouts partway down the blade.  This is to facilitate a”BREAKAWAY” feature of these blades.

 

Why Would You Need a BREAKAWAY Recip Saw Blade?

These BREAKAWAY blades are designed to address a specific issue when cutting with a saw which has a fixed non adjustable shoe.  Most all of your cuts will be focused on a single one inch or so section of the blade.  See the images below.

As you can see above the worn blade has plenty of life left further up the blade but on a fixed shoe saw you have no way of cutting with those teeth.  With an adjustable shoe you would just slide out the shoe and get some fresh cutting teeth.  But with a fixed shoe saw tossing the blade and grabbing a new blade has been your only option in the past.  With these BREAKAWAY blades you will simply pull the blade, break it at the designated area and re-insert the freshly exposed blade tang.

Notice the worn section of teeth right at the shoe.

After breaking the blade you are ready with a fresh cutting teeth.

 

Breaking the Blade

To break the blade you can either use a couple pairs of pliers and bend the blade back and forth a few times to fatigue the breakaway material or use can use a thick pair of gloves as shown below.

 

Pliers Method

 

Glove Method

 

Available Blades

Dewalt has two models of BREAKAWAY blades and both are metal cutting.  These 14/18 variable tooth blades are ideal for most general metal cutting applications such as black pipe.  These BREAKAWAY blades are deaigned with a slightly thicker body for added durability.

Models:

6″ Blade – Breaks into a 4″ blade for cutting up to 1″ material.
DWABK461418P3 – 3 Pack
DWABK461418 – 5 Pack
DWABK461418B25 – 25 Pack

 

9″ Blade – Breaks into a 6″ blade for cutting up to 2″ material.
DWABK491418P3 – 3 Pack
DWABK491418 – 5 Pack
DWABK491418B25 – 25 Pack

 

Possible Concerns

Many prospective customers have addressed concerns about the durability of the blade at the breakaway point.  I’ve spoken to many guys who feel this area will be too weak and could possibly break prematurely.  Of course these are unfounded concerns right now since these blades are so new there isn’t any real world feedback out there to judge their robustness.  We plan to get our hands on demo units to put through the paces very soon.  Our planned test will be cutting black pipe and we will be sure to flex the blade as this is one situation people mention when discussing breakage.

 

More Information

Manufacturer: Dewalt
Web address: www.dewalt.com
Country of origin: USA
Estimated street price: Starting at $6 for a 3-pack of 6″ blades
Availability: Now