Bandsaw questions?

[Hungry Horse]

Unless you are going to get into gun building full time, or have a lot of other uses for a bandsaw, I wouldn't buy a new saw. I'd tune this saw, put a narrow, fine tooth blade on it, and a step pulley ( so you can adjust the blade speed) and use it. I bough custom tires for mine, and went back to friction tape, because the blade heats up when cutting thick hardwood, and kills the tires pretty quick.

Hungry Horse

[sean69]

Unless you are going to get into gun building full time, or have a lot of other uses for a bandsaw, I wouldn't buy a new saw. I'd tune this saw, put a narrow, fine tooth blade on it, and a step pulley ( so you can adjust the blade speed) and use it. I bough custom tires for mine, and went back to friction tape, because the blade heats up when cutting thick hardwood, and kills the tires pretty quick.

Hungry Horse

Yea - this is a fun project, I won't be using it for much other than the occasional blank - doesn't make sense right now to drop $500 on a new saw.

Though, to cut thick, hard wood, we want a wide blade with very few teeth per inch, 1/2" with 3TPI - your fine narrow blade is most likely why it's heating up - sawdust builds up in the  kerf and behind the tooth. The sawdust can't clear until the tooth is out of your work, it just builds up causes friction and and won't let the tooth cut.

3-10 teeth in your work is what you are after.


~ Well, at least that's what google has been telling me. @!*%, I've picked up a lot of information on this!

[sean69]

looks a good deal like my old PowerKraft. The tires will have to be made, from what I have found with all my research. The only place I have found (I don't have my bookmarks on this computer) is in Florida.

Blades are not a problem. You should be able to have a good toolhouse order them to size for you.

I have mine as a project that I haven't gotten to yet.

If you have room a bigger saw would be better. I, however, do not have the luxury of room. Those small saws can fit on a rotation table a drop out of the way when you don't need it.

I found a place close by that will cut and make the blade while I wait - any size I want    

I found the same place in Florida [but can't find the URL again] for the size I need 10" x 1" - but again, there's another place close by where I can just get the length I needto cut and glue.  The 10x1 is a rare beast indeed - I'll just have to deal with the "bump"  If it's untenable, then I can order from Florida...

whatever works.

And I found a PILE of motors, one of my clients does Industrial Electrical, stopped by his shop today - probably about 20 motors he's pulled out of old equipment ... just need to dig for a suitable one.

[mattdog]

Yes get a new one (is there an echo?) but keep this one too.  Set the new one for heavier wood cutting and set this one up for metal like patch boxes etc.  I wish I had two bandsaws, would save a lot of setting up and tearing down from wood to metal and back again. 

[Hungry Horse]

 A wide blade on a bandsaw, turns it into a ripsaw, and makes cutting curves, and contours almost impossible. Wide blades also retain heat longer than thin blades. Skip toothed blades work fine on soft wood, or thin pieces of hardwood, but to cut hard maple, or even burl walnut, gunstocks, you need a lot of fine teeth. I use a 10 teeth per inch blade, and feed it very slowly. You do have to be careful that the narrow blade is cutting straight. Sometimes if you are feeding too fast the blade will cut at an angle, and get inside your pattern line.

   Hungry Horse

[P.W.Berkuta]

looks a good deal like my old PowerKraft. The tires will have to be made, from what I have found with all my research. The only place I have found (I don't have my bookmarks on this computer) is in Florida.

Blades are not a problem. You should be able to have a good toolhouse order them to size for you.

I have mine as a project that I haven't gotten to yet.

If you have room a bigger saw would be better. I, however, do not have the luxury of room. Those small saws can fit on a rotation table a drop out of the way when you don't need it.

I found a place close by that will cut and make the blade while I wait - any size I want    

I found the same place in Florida [but can't find the URL again] for the size I need 10" x 1" - but again, there's another place close by where I can just get the length I needto cut and glue.  The 10x1 is a rare beast indeed - I'll just have to deal with the "bump"  If it's untenable, then I can order from Florida...

whatever works.

And I found a PILE of motors, one of my clients does Industrial Electrical, stopped by his shop today - probably about 20 motors he's pulled out of old equipment ... just need to dig for a suitable one.

Not to sound like a "wet blanket" but do you really know what you need for a saw and blade combo? My dad had a Atlas 10" bandsaw in the 60's. I tried to use it to cut out rifle stocks from planks that were 2-3/4" thick X 18" wide X 68" long and almost cut my hand off. Just handling and moving that much wood through a BIG bandsaw is a chore. Sold it and bought a 14" Harbor Freight el cheap-o which worked better than the Atlas.
First that saw table is not big or stable enough to saw out a wood plank without being a danger to you.
Second a 1" wide bandsaw blade is a huge blade that is for industrial bandsaws like the BIG DoAlls and the blades are thick. That blade will never fit around your wheels and feed through your guides. The blade is just too stiff for your 10" saw. If you like a piece of a 1" blade I will send you a 8" or so piece of one so you can see what I am talking about.  I got a roll of it that I will sell you which is too much blade for my 16" bandsaw with a 1 HP motor.
Buy a book or go to the library (what's that?) and read up on bandsaws before you spend a fortune on something that will not work out for the job you want it to do Sorry for my negativity but I just want to save you some time & money. I'm on my 4th wood bandsaw - 1- 10", 2-14" and my great 16" which I LOVE -- I also have a Harbor Freight metal cutting bandsaw - works good with a GOOD Bi-Metal blade. I also buy Bi-Metal saw blades by the 100' coil and silver braze them together.

[sean69]

Aren't most of your cuts long rip cuts anyway?  - that's what I am going for....

[sean69]

Not to sound like a "wet blanket" but do you really know what you need for a saw and blade combo? My dad had a Atlas 10" bandsaw in the 60's. I tried to use it to cut out rifle stocks from planks that were 2-3/4" thick X 18" wide X 68" long and almost cut my hand off. Just handling and moving that much wood through a BIG bandsaw is a chore. Sold it and bought a 14" Harbor Freight el cheap-o which worked better than the Atlas.
First that saw table is not big or stable enough to saw out a wood plank without being a danger to you.
Second a 1" wide bandsaw blade is a huge blade that is for industrial bandsaws like the BIG DoAlls and the blades are thick. That blade will never fit around your wheels and feed through your guides. The blade is just too stiff for your 10" saw. If you like a piece of a 1" blade I will send you a 8" or so piece of one so you can see what I am talking about.  I got a roll of it that I will sell you which is too much blade for my 16" bandsaw with a 1 HP motor.
Buy a book or go to the library (what's that?) and read up on bandsaws before you spend a fortune on something that will not work out for the job you want it to do Sorry for my negativity but I just want to save you some time & money. I'm on my 4th wood bandsaw - 1- 10", 2-14" and my great 16" which I LOVE -- I also have a Harbor Freight metal cutting bandsaw - works good with a GOOD Bi-Metal blade. I also buy Bi-Metal saw blades by the 100' coil and silver braze them together.

Maybe that post was a little misleading - the wheels are 1" ~ that was about tires for it...  I did get a couple of blades made 1/2" 4TPI ~ $13 + another 1/2" 6TPI $13

Dad just picked up a motor at an auction last night $20 - so I am still under $150 for the project anyway

And no - that table is not big enough - cutting a blank [if it ever happens!] would be a 2 person job for sure & I would have to rig something up for infeed & outfeed tables...

[P.W.Berkuta]

Yes -- most are rip cuts. What I was getting at is that your 10" saw is is not sturdy, stable, powerful (I know you are looking for a bigger motor) and that it CAN be a safety issue when trying to cut large, thick wood stocks.
I'm not saying that your saw CAN'T work -- if you spend 1 week+ in labor then $150 in parts, postage, gas - etc. That $299 Home Depot Ridged Bandsaw is a real deal AND you get all your parts local - right now - no wait - cut wood tomorrow - start & finish your rifle in two weeks
Just saying ----- I'm done -- no more from me on the saw subject .

[sean69]

Been a while

I finally did get that bandsaw working a couple weeks back - cut that 12' chunk of maple into 5 blanks - then another 6' piece of poplar my dad wanted blanks from. NO PROBLEMS AT ALL!

I was a little bit surprised at how well it worked, and now I don't know how I ever did without a bandsaw.

So what I would up doing was getting a 1.2HP motor from my client [FREE! ] set that up and used some bicycle inner tubes & gorilla glue for the tires. A bit of tuning and it was off to the races.

Though, yes, cutting material that long and heavy was a two person job with a lot of co-ordination.

My Jaeger is now well under way.

-sean