Spiral Tooth blades saw in all directions with 360º cutting capability. There tends to be a much greater learning curve with the spiral tooth blade. Spirals are a specialty blade, good for some applications, but not necessarily a general purpose blade. You will not have the sharp corners, and straight cuts you have with standard straight blades. Fine for projects that are large and difficult to spin around in the saw. Being able to cut in any direction makes it easier to handle wood that is too large for the throat depth of the saw.Spirals will NOT cut as cleanly as a straight blade. Good for bevel cutting letters in names. Increase throat capacity and cut longer pieces without turning. 5 inch length, the ends are spiral.