How can I tell if I have a carbide tipped blade?

Question

I bought a miter saw about six years ago, and haven't used it that much over the years - however, I have worn all of the labeling off of the blade, leaving no trace of the manufacturer, blade type, or whether or not it is carbide tipped or not.

I now have a need to cut aluminum, which necessitates the use of a carbide tipped blade. Is there any way I can determine by looking at the blade itself if it is a carbide tipped blade, i.e. are all carbide tipped blades in a special shape or color or something like that?

Answer 1

Is there any way I can determine by looking at the blade itself if it is a carbide tipped blade

As keshlam pointed out

If the blade is carbide-tipped, each tooth will have a piece of carbide brazed/welded to the point of the tooth. That should be distinguishable to the naked eye, or with a magnifying glass if you're one of us whose close focus is no longer very good.

At date of writing, I do not know of any other commonly-encountered type of blade that could be easily confused with this.

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