82DeanZ Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 Hi, I was using my new band saw to cut down a blank and had trouble cutting a straight line. I set up the saw correctly according to the manual. That is, I made sure both upper and lower guides were set close to the blade and that both upper and lower "push back" bearing guides were within 1/32 of the blade. I also made sure that the blade tension was set according to the blade tension chart. I also had the blade guide assembly within 1/8 in of the top of the blank. Despite all this, the blade kept wandering to the left as I pushed the blank forward for the cut. In order to get a straight line, I had to push the blank throught at nearly a 45 degree angle. I was using a 1/4 blade to cut a nearly 2 in blank. Was the blade to thin for this cut? Thanks in advance for your advice! Best Regards, Mike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Rosenberger Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 Sounds like the blade was too narrow/thin. Also double check your blade guides. I know you said you adjusted them but you never know. Also make sure the blade tension is tight. A loose blade will wander even if the guides are correctly set Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 i had the same problem with a 1/4" blade which was starting to get dull i changed it out with a new 3/8" and that fixed it right up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarfrenzy Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 What does most people like to use with guitar work? 3/8" blade? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 What does most people like to use with guitar work? 3/8" blade? depends on alot...3/8" is the biggest my little bandsaw will take for bookmatching the bigger the better i think for cutting bodies i use a 1/4" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DannoG Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 Sounds like a tension problem to me. I'd crank it a bit tighter, cheap tension guages aren't known for being accurate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82DeanZ Posted May 27, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 Thanks everyone! I have a 3/8 that I can throw on and I'll crank up tension a little more and see if that helps. I'll give it a shot tomorrow and I'll let you know how it turns out. Best Regards, Mike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGM Guitars Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 1/32" is way to far off of the rear bearing push back guide, that is .0325", it should only be .005" max, I generally set mine to .003" on the push back guide bearing and the side bearings. Also, the jury still seems to be out on the size of blade for resawing, I know some master woodworkers who say a 1/4" blade is the biggest you should use for up to 10" resawing and then I know woodworkers who say the wider the better. My bandsaw will take up to a 3/4" blade and in all honesty, resawing works just as well with the 1/4" as it does with the 3/4". If your bandsaw doesn't have a blade tension scale, there is a good rule of thumb. With all your blade guides backed right off, tighten the blade to where you think it's tight enough, turn on the band saw, if the blade is not tight enough, the blade will flutter (vibrate back and forth), if it does that, tighten the blade until it runs smooth with no flutter, then turn the tension adjustment another 1/4 turn. If it is running smooth right from the start, loosen it off until it starts to flutter, then tighten it until it stops, and then another 1/4 turn. Then set your blade guides to .003 to .005" from the blade on both the side guides and the rear guide. 99% of the time a wandering blade is caused by not being sharp. I had always bought the regular stamped steel blades that were like $12, recently I bought a few that have milled teeth, not stamped, they are $30 for the same size blade, but the difference is like night and day. 2" maple cuts like it's balsa wood, I can resaw 10" maple tops with no effort, and cutting out 2" thick body blanks with tight radius's is effortless. Nothing beats a sharp blade, the blades I'm using now also last substantially longer than the cheaper ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Rosenberger Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 I use a 2" blade for resawing tops, but it's an actual resaw bandsaw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdguitars Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 1/4 inch blade to resaw, just don't think that would work, would need to see that, gosh imagine how long that would take I work at a wood shop where we have a resaw machine laguna 20. It has a 1 1/2 blade, my gramps a master craftsman, used a hitachie sp??? with a 3inch blade. I have a 14' delta with a riser block and I am still figuring how to set it up right, I spent the cash on a 3/4 carbide tooth blade, and I think it cuts a 1000 times better the the stock 3/8 blade. Also if you have access to a blade tension gauge use it or buy one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82DeanZ Posted May 27, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 Wow...you guys are great! Special thanks to Jeremy for the mini-tutorial. That's just what I needed. I found this article on the net: http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/pages/w00013.asp The author notes that the tension guides on all smaller consumer band saws are horribly inaccurate and even on the larger floor standing models. He recommends that the tension spring be nearly fully compressed with a 1/2 blade on a consumer model! Good stuff. Thank you all again. Best Regards, Mike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGM Guitars Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 I use a 2" blade for resawing tops, but it's an actual resaw bandsaw lucky man, I agree if you have an actual resaw then the bigger the better, I've had great results with the 3/4" in my bandsaw, I'm happy with that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Rosenberger Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 I use a 2" blade for resawing tops, but it's an actual resaw bandsaw lucky man, I agree if you have an actual resaw then the bigger the better, I've had great results with the 3/4" in my bandsaw, I'm happy with that Yeah but it's moving to Texas in 2 months. I'm gonna have to buy my own tools Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 I use a 2" blade for resawing tops, but it's an actual resaw bandsaw lucky man, I agree if you have an actual resaw then the bigger the better, I've had great results with the 3/4" in my bandsaw, I'm happy with that Yeah but it's moving to Texas in 2 months. I'm gonna have to buy my own tools or move to texas...it's hot here though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 I have a 14' delta JEEZ, a14 foot bandsaw?!! What the hell are you resawing here, entire trees on end?!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82DeanZ Posted May 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 28, 2004 Just a quick update, I put on my 3/8 blade and setup my band saw as Jeremy suggested and the thing cut my 2 inch alder blank like a champ! Beautiful. Just beautiful. You could actually see the flutter slowly disappear with each turn of the tension knob. Amazing. Thanks again! Best Regards, Mike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted May 28, 2004 Report Share Posted May 28, 2004 With all your blade guides backed right off, tighten the blade to where you think it's tight enough, turn on the band saw, if the blade is not tight enough, the blade will flutter (vibrate back and forth), if it does that, tighten the blade until it runs smooth with no flutter, then turn the tension adjustment another 1/4 turn. If it is running smooth right from the start, loosen it off until it starts to flutter, then tighten it until it stops, and then another 1/4 turn. Then set your blade guides to .003 to .005" from the blade on both the side guides and the rear guide. thanks jeremy, i just got my bandsaw and i haven't changed the blade yet, but i was starting to wonder how you're supposed to know how tight is tight enough Are there any other tension meters people have seen for sale, the one in that article Deanz posted said 300$. I'd just like to have something a bit more accurate then trying to observe the blade's behavior. Also are there any known values, or tables that show what tension to use with what saws and blades? even with that 300$ meter would i still have to use lgm's methode to get the the ballpark, then just use the meter to record that value for quick reference down the road?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truerussian558 Posted May 28, 2004 Report Share Posted May 28, 2004 ryobi (sp?) has a table top drill press ( 10 " i think) and a ( bandsaw (table top) each for about a hundred a pop, i myself got a scroll saw takes a while to cut out a 2" body, but is usefull for a lot of other things that a bandsaw would be too rough for. also I am kicking meself in the nuts for getting a usuless craftsman knock off the dremel tool (except its bigger) instead of a drill press (theres always the next project) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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