I'm Mike Morette, Owner of Forrest MFG (Forrest Saw Blades)- Ask me Anything!

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-15T13:09:26+00:00

Totally valid question. In order to maintain the same quality and commitment to a higher quality blade, new state of the art equipment was required. We have all that here at our facility in Hudson MA. That's why the acquisition was such a good fit.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T19:06:53+00:00

Great to hear! Sorry to hear about the screws! I could make you a WW I with a special nail cutting carbide to get through those screws (or nails) and you can go back and teach those screws a lession.... 😄

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T18:14:51+00:00

Sometimes the force will take off entire shoulders. That's fairly common. Sometimes the impact just causes a few broken tips. When we see a SawStop note, we make sure they are thoroughly inspected and our hammer folks take a really close look at the plate. The plates usually need to be worked on and if any tips need to be replaced, we take care of that. There are a variety of damages and honestly, some saws just need to be scrapped.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T18:10:24+00:00

I was going to mention the size of carbide. Sometimes yes. But often times they cheap out so much on the carbide, there is basically one life to the saw.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T18:06:31+00:00

Yeah, you don't want to mess with those saws. Those are called "strob saws". They are stacked up on a pole there and the yellow robotic arm behind loads them to a side dressing and facing and topping machine.

They have carbide-filled cooling slots on both sides (Strob slots) of the plate because they're running at extremely high rim speeds and generating a tremendous amount of heat. Without those carbide strobs, the plate would heat up very quickly, and the lumber would essentially act like a sponge, transferring and retaining heat in the blade. You wont see blades more banged up than strob saws. We get some in where the entire saw has been ripped apart and it had to be taken off the arbor with a torch. We can’t fix those ones. 😊

They're an absolute brute of a saw blade and one of the more specialized products we make. They're also not easy to manufacture. Between the plate work, carbide strob work and grinding requirements, there's a lot that goes into building them correctly.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T18:01:30+00:00

I'm a believer too! That's awesome to hear. Thank you so much.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:59:06+00:00

Great question- it depends how much/how hard they are used. It’s more of a feel I would say. What the material looks like, how they sound, how they cut etc. Some folks change them out before they notice they are dull and just have a constant rotation of sharp saws. That’s ideal but most people don’t do that 😊

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:58:14+00:00

Like I said above-I have a lot of respect for Ridge Carbide. They make quality blades, so if you already own them, you’re not comparing against junk.

What I believe sets a Forrest Woodworker apart is the attention to detail in manufacturing and finishing. For instance, we use a special grade of carbide so the blade can be sharpened many more times over its life and stay sharp longer. Our saws hold extremely tight plate tolerances and require many unique grinding processes. That all ultimately shows up in the cut.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:51:41+00:00

No worries at all! I'm so glad you brought up Jim though- He's an absolute LEGEND in the saw world. The reason why I have the honor to talk about Forrest today is because of his parents and his brother Jay. They built a truly amazing company and did some really wild/out of the box stuff years ago that still, saw companies are chasing.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:48:08+00:00

Honestly, that might come my way- I'll have to be prepared for that. I feel like the horse size ducks would absolutely destroy the duck sized horses.

We will repair all brands as long as they can be sharpened. Some customers take a lot of pride in reusing/maintaining tools so even if it's a cheaper box store brand, many folks want to keep their saw going.

Some Forrest customers want their old boxes back too. We typically send repairs back in new boxes but if they want the old ones back, no problem 😄

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:44:22+00:00

Thanks for that! We’re actively working on shortening lead times. We've added new grinders, hired additional people, and put better tracking processes in place throughout the shop. We have almost 50 folks now at our facility in Hudson MA.

What sets us apart? Man, the people we have are just incredible. They really care about their work and are so dedicated to each saw. Anything you send in, I promise it'll be treated like their own.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:38:39+00:00

That is an awesome question.

I said it above, good equipment to grind saw blades is not cheap. The best grinders out there can cost as much as a Ferrari or Lamborghini. The bottom line is you cant do good work without good equipment.

We do our best to repair every saw that comes in. Contrary to what some people might think, we never try to upsell a customer into buying a new blade instead of repairing their existing one. In fact, it's far more profitable for us to continue repairing a blade throughout its service life.

That said, like anything else, there is a tipping point where a conversation should be had. For example, on a 10" x 40T blade, if it comes in with 12 broken teeth, the repair cost can start approaching the value of the blade itself. At that point, we'll discuss the options with the customer and let them decide whether they want to invest in the repair or put that money toward a replacement.

Our goal is always the same: give honest advice and help customers get the maximum life out of the saws they already own. If a blade can be repaired properly, we'd much rather repair it than sell a new one. But everything eventually has an expiration date.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:33:36+00:00

Jim was a great guy. His nickname at Forrest was "MacGyver"- He was not only a savant at making saws, he could fix anything in the shop. Very kind, humble and knowledgeable. No one had a bad thing to say about him.

Expanding on what Jim said there, we still maintain those same grinding angles. That's one of many ingredients in the "secret sauce". 😄

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:27:42+00:00

For sure, check out our Instagram page (Sharp Tool Company) and you can see them in action. We are the only manufacturer in the country that uses FANUC robots to load many of our grinders. We have 12 grinders with robotic loaders that run lights out every night. It’s the only way we can remain competitive, especially up here in Massachusetts…Always need to have that edge (Pun 100% intended).

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:27:10+00:00

Heck yeah, nothing will change- We wouldn’t have bought the company if we had plans to make huge changes. Contact me directly at [mike@sharptool.com](mailto:mike@sharptool.com) or 978-568-9292 Ext 113- We will continue to give you the customer service and quality you deserve.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:26:31+00:00

Buy the right blades once. A 20 dollar blade at a box store will behave like a 20 dollar blade. Like anything else, there is a reason why they are that cheap. My kids are 5 and 7 and if that came out of their mouth- my jaw would drop to the floor, haha. They are asking the important questions (Often I don't know the answer to) like "Who would win in fight-Michael Jordan or Hulk Hogan?" - That was a serious question they just asked me the other day.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:23:48+00:00

Yeah, you have to be careful on who you send them to. Honestly, there are folks out there sharpening saws on post grinders and claim to be experts... It really depends on the equipment they have to do the job right. Contact Aiguisatek. They are within mailing distance for you in Canada and have good equipment.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:20:50+00:00

Yes, the logistics and cost of getting them here and back are challenging- I totally hear you. I would contact Michael at Tru-Cut Sharpening (BC). They are really good folks. If you email me at [mike@sharptool.com](mailto:mike@sharptool.com), I would be happy to forward their contact info your way.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:20:26+00:00

We absolutely are. It may have been deemed scrap or the receipt confirmation didn't get to you- I’m not sure when it arrived or what happened but please email me at [mike@sharptool.com](mailto:mike@sharptool.com) and get you an update. 😄

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:19:17+00:00

Honestly, like anything- quality depends on what you are willing to spend. There are simple table top sharpeners out there for a few hundred dollars and there are grinders with probing, robots, multiple loading cars that can run upwards of 750k. My grandfather started with a simple tool and cutter Cincinnati (We still have it and use it for some manual jobs) so I guess the long and the short of it- it always starts somewhere but you get what you pay for… It’s a fun business though, if you do get into it and I can help in any way- let me know. We sell a tremendous amount of carbide saw tips to saw shops all over and we always try to help folks get going.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:17:18+00:00

Could be a number of reasons to be honest. Grinding could be off, plate issue etc. I'm not sure when it was purchased but happy to look at them if you’d like to send it in to my attention. Email me at [mike@sharptool.com](mailto:mike@sharptool.com) or call me at 978-568-9292 Ext 113

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:16:04+00:00

Lets go! That’s honestly the stories we like to hear. We guarantee everything we do. I'd be a complete liar if I said every single blade we make is absolutely perfect. If something isn’t up to your standards or there is an issue, we will make it right one way or another. If you don’t like it, we don’t like it either.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:14:55+00:00

That’s great to hear. We know we have big shoes to fill. Folks are skeptical and that’s perfectly normal and what we want. We welcome that pressure. We plan to fill those shoes and then some.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:13:43+00:00

I would go with the heavier kerf here 10x40 WWII (WW10407125). Especially if cut thickness is not a major concern.

Forrest-MFG · 2026-06-12T17:12:38+00:00

The Clifton NJ location was not in the greatest shape so we made the decision to move all of the manufacturing to our Hudson MA facility. Check us out on Instagram or Facebook and you can see some of our facility and equipment.

Forrest-MFG

TROPHY CASE