This is, at best, a brief overview of a modern precision saw blade.  It is designed to give at least some idea of the factors we take into consideration when designing a saw blade.

Advanced cermet saw tips can give 2, 5 and even ten or more times the life of ordinary grades of saw tips.  The reason for the differences in performance is that the saw tip is the single point where a huge number of varying factors all come together.

Tool Side

Machine type

Machine speed

Machine feed rate

Tool body material

Tip material

Design

Execution 

Material Side

Material being cut

Fixturing

Machine operator

Tool side  

The material being cut is important but the saw supplier usually only knows the theoretical properties.  MDF is medium density fiberboard but there are many varieties of MDF and, as with any product, there is a variation form board to board and shipment to shipment.  In addition MDF may contain metal such as screws just as logs may contain insulators and other foreign material.  

Machine type

At the very least you need to know what size to mare the bore and whether pin holes are needed.   In addition some machines are more solid when built and some machines are definitely better maintained than others. 

Machine speed & Machine feed rate  - Feeds and speeds

A good saw blade is a composite structure where the various components are designed and specified to work together much as the components in a NASCAR vehicle. 

Tool body material

In a saw blade this is steel that can be laser cut, ground, flattened, heat treated, brazed, tempered, flattened, ground, tensioned, hammered, repaired, reworked and retipped while maintaining the same, predictable properties.   Think of this as the frame the NASCAR. 

Tip material

This is the tires and there is the trade off between performance and tire life.  In saw tips it is often a trade off between impact strength and long wear. 

Braze alloy

The braze alloy in a modern tool holds the tip on the steel but it also serves as a critical suspension component.   The chemistry of the braze alloy, form of the alloy, joint thickness, filleting and the way the alloy is handled can make a difference as great as double in the service life of the tool. 

Design

Saw blade design is constantly evolving.  Besides diameter and number of teeth there are many other considerations. 

Execution

Execution - How well the blade is made.