Diamond blade terminology can be pretty confusing. There are so many different diamond blade companies (and diamond blade salespeople) that use the same product descriptions for different products. This can lead to the diamond blade rep misinterpreting what is wanted or needed by the customer. The terms we often hear getting mixed up are combo diamond blades and general purpose diamond blades.

GENERAL PURPOSE – First off, the term “general purpose” can be misleading. If I wasn’t a diamond blade guy, I would think that I could use this blade to cut anything. So, if I was cutting asphalt, and maybe a little concrete or stone, I would think shopping for a general purpose diamond blade would do the trick. WRONGO. Diamond blade companies, including us, use the term general purpose to basically market cheaper priced diamond blades. So to be honest, “general purpose” usually just means a cheap blade. Very rarely are asphalt blades in the general purpose category.

So, when do I use general purpose? – If you’re cutting concrete, brick, block or stone and you’re on a budget, go head and order general purpose. Otherwise, try and be as specific matching the application to the diamond blade you will be ordering.

COMBO – A combo diamond blade is a little more straight forward. Simply put, it cuts a combination of things. Most notably, concrete and asphalt. Here is the one thing I want to point out. Combo blades are great for crossing over from concrete to asphalt, it is what they’re made to do. When it comes to brick, granite etc, combo blades cut that too, but in my opinion, I would get a specific blade for these applications. This is based on blade life, cutting performance etc.

So, when do I use combo? – Basically, if you’re a site work, demo guy etc, spend the extra money and get yourself a good combo blade so you don’t have to worry about switching blades on and off.