LENOX 14-Inch Diamond Edge Cutting Wheel (1972929) - High-Performance Metal & Concrete Cutting Tool for Construction & DIY Projects

I don't know why some guys have submitted reviews on this 14 inch Lenox diamond cutting blade which list complaints about how it cuts metal or claims about how it doesn't cut metal better than standard aluminum oxide chop saw blades do. I beg to DIFFER!!! I have a Milwaukee 15 amp chop saw that I've been using for the past four years for cutting mild steel, ( the typical and common A36 steel). Mostly steel angle "iron" 1/4" thick, and occasionally up to 3/8" wall thickness and up to 3" diameter steel tubing with .134" wall thickness. I also sometimes cut mild steel band "iron" too. With angle iron, (which is made of mild steel of course) with a wall thickness of at least 1/4", this 4,300rpm 15 amp chop saw I have, makes cutting a lot of pieces a big chore when I use the standard inexpensive aluminum oxide cutting wheels, because I have to cut one wall of the angle "iron" first, stop the saw, flip the piece of steel over, and cut the other wall, trying my best to line up the second cut with the first, so that I'm not left with a big step in the work piece where the two cuts meet up. It's very difficult and very time consuming to cut through the other wall of the angle iron which lays flat on the table of the chop saw. The standard blades just don't want to do it. You can stand the angle iron up so that both walls are at a 45 degree angle, but it still makes for very slow cutting, with the 15 amp electric motor of the chop saw being labored. I just received this Lenox metal cutting diamond blade, and immediately installed it onto my chop saw, and tried cutting another .250" wall piece of A36 steel angle "iron". And I noticed an immediate difference. Using this Lenox diamond wheel I was able to cut right through both walls of the angle iron without having a wrestling match and without having to stop the saw to flip over the work piece to make a second cut on the other wall. Yes, there was slag or burs left in the work piece just like there is when using a standard aluminum oxide blade, but this Lenox diamond blade cuts heavier steel a whole lot easier, quicker, and without having to lay on the chop saw with so much weight, that the motor begins to labor and the rpm slows down, ( as is often the case with the standard blades). So right away the first day I've used this product, I noticed a big difference, and I consider this blade to be worth every penny that I paid for it. And it's made for metal cutting chop saws with 4,300 maximim RPM, ( very important for safety reasons). I was going to buy a 14" carbide blade instead to avoid the metal burs on the work pieces, but NONE of the 14" carbide blades that I found are intended for chop saws since they typically list a maximum rpm of 1,600- 1,800. I'm guessing they're made for using on miter saws, NOT on chop saws. When I want to cut wood, I'll use a Miter saw. For steel, there's the chop saw. And the other complaint I read in some of the other reviews here about this diamond blade being "louder" or the claims of some guys having to wear hearing protection??? Nonsense. This doesn't make anymore noise than standard blades do. It simply makes a different noise. But not any louder. And it isn't even a high pitched annoying noise either. It's a lower pitched ringing noise. I don't find it loud at all. And I always have to use ear plugs when I use a Dremel tool for light grinding work, since the Dremel tool does make a high-pitched annoying ear piercing sound. But that has a 20,000 rpm motor, ( a whole different animal). So I recommend this Lenox diamond blade to anyone cutting steel with a chop saw.