Resawing wood!

[skibum5545]

I just need to know some basic facts about resawing.

1) How big a bandsaw do you need to resaw 7" wood into a 14" bookmatched top?

2)What blade is best?

3) How thick a top can you expect to get out of 4/4 S2S boards? What about 5/4?

4) What is the risk of seriously messing up curly maple when doing this?

5) How much does it generally cost to have a piece of maple bookmatched and planed smooth for a top?

Thanks!

[Scott Rosenberger]

You need a saw with enough clearance to get a 7" board in it on it's side. My wood guy charges $10 to resaw and plane.

Plan on losing AT LEAST 1/8" of wood when resawing and planing possibly more depending on how good the saw/operator are

[Devon Headen]

I just need to know some basic facts about resawing.

1) How big a bandsaw do you need to resaw 7" wood into a 14" bookmatched top?

2)What blade is best?

3) How thick a top can you expect to get out of 4/4 S2S boards? What about 5/4?

4) What is the risk of seriously messing up curly maple when doing this?

5) How much does it generally cost to have a piece of maple bookmatched and planed smooth for a top?

Thanks!

I'll try the questions Scott didn't get to. He answered 1 but I'll give a little more detail.

1) Most 14" bandsaws have 6" clearance stock which isn't enough to resaw 7" wood (obviously). Riser kits usually take them up to 12", but the going is slow if you've only got a 3/4 hp bandsaw. If you put a new motor in (maybe 2 hp), it should work well, but by the time the price is that high you could get a better bandsaw. I'm looking at the Grizzly 17" model. Looks to be a very nice machine for a VERY reasonable price.

2) Resawing is best with the widest blade possible on your bandsaw, and a 3 tpi hook blade is probably your best choice without going up to insanely priced bimetal or carbide tipped blades.

4) That depends on your experience and skill. Definitely practice and make sure your machine is well adjusted before trying on expensive wood.

I recommend "The Bandsaw Handbook" (don't recall the author) for a wealth of info on bandsaws. Check your library, mine had it. It really helps to have a properly set up bandsaw.