Thread: Advice: Good Rip blade for 17" Bandsaw ?

Ring Henrys Bros, they'll sort it out.

BrettC,

Have the same Bandsaw, and the first extra blade I used was a XXXXX-XXX 1" 3TPI resaw blade. Worked well but just couldn't quite keep up with resawing 12" boards. Went to XXXXX Bros, and I think it was a WoodSlicer? (it's etched as Wood something "Woodmaster" perhaps, I will check tonight if you want) 1 or 1.25" 1.5TPI and it does the job. The only difference in setup was the XXXXX-XXX blade is quite thick (and stiff) so it didn't wander as much, the WoodXXXX blade is thinner, and more flexible, so wandered quite a bit until I cranked up the tension. Even though it is a thinner blade, the slight wander because of the "thinness" makes for a slightly rougher cut, but I live with that since I can resaw 12" boards with relative impunity.
I just quoted the same length you gave, can't remember whether I had to do a lot of adjustment, but it fitted and I was happy.

Good Luck,

Chris

I have an 18" Jet. For re-sawing I use a 1" bi-metal with 1 tooth per inch. Big teeth too. It is a fabulous blade - looks scary - but actually cuts much cleaner than you would expect. It is also relatively stiff, but tracks and cuts very straight with only the recommended tension for this width of blade. Some issues to consider:
1 - the big problem with thick rip cuts is clearing the cuttings - big teeth widely spaced are the key here.
2 - if you can't clear the cuttings it will bog. You mightn't even particularly notice. When it isn't properly clearing the cuttings, apart from not cutting well the blade will heat up and you'll lose the set on the teeth. You'll end up pushing harder which induces warping which results in cuts that aren't straight. Then even though your thin kerf notionally means less wood wastage in the end you lose more wood thicknessing out the non-straight cut.
3 - As a rule, if you find yourself wanting to to use more tension than the recommended, then don't. Look to this as the problem.

Hope this helps. Not sure which brand my bi-metal blade is.

Qw

My saw (17" 4300 Leda variant) is fitted with a 3tpi 1" blade for resawing. I've cut some 10" logs with no problem but haven't got to 12" or over yet.

Thanks for replies.
I tried to get hold of a 1" 3 TPI this week-end but just happened to be the one type of blade with the vacant spot on the wall .
The 1TPI blade sounds interesting, I guess that is what they call a skip tooth blade.

Still am not sure about he WoodSlicer blades but might make a few calls this week.
Cheers.