Thread: Bandsaw

Wait till you get a good bi-metal blade then you will be really happy

Good to hear it worked out for you.There is a 6x4 bandsaw group on Yahoo you might like to join.There is plenty of mods on that forum that can be done to these saws. Most of them put hydraulic cylinders on the down feed, to help out with the down feed, like the bigger bandsaws.
Dave

Ok cheers for that Dave. I did a bit of research on mods before it arrived but in the end didn't get too focussed on what they were saying until I actually played with my own in the flesh.

Is it a common problem that the down feed is too heavy and that's why people put gas struts on them? I thought about modifying the spring tensioner to pull more on the spring if it was giving problems but haven't had long enough with it yet to tell.

Pete

The little bracket that holds the eye bolt in position between the long silver rod thing and the spring, if you flip it so that the long silver rod thing is ~15mm further from the spring you can apply enough spring tension to make the bandsaw arm hang in mid air above a cut. Still not perfect but better than stock.

You will not get bi-metal bandsaw blades from Hare & Forbes . You need to take the blade you have to a saw works and they will make up bi-metal blades for you.
I payed $39 each last time for bi- metal .
The standard carbon steel blades at H&F are ok and at $12 each are a good value as you can afford to trash a few .
Remember the teeth pitch must be correct for the thickness of the work. At least 3 teeth must be in the cut at all times.
If the blade is grabbing then switch to a finer blade.
However if you want to cut harder stuff like stainless etc then a bi-metal will be required .

I know when I bought bimetal blades they could not supply fine tooth as they are not available in bimetal from them (Newcastle saw service) I think they were 14 tooth but I had troubles cutting thin stuff as it would just rip the teeth off because they were so hard.After paying $30 at the time for a good bimetal blade it was disapointing,I think they are more suited to solids.I now only buy the starratt blades from H&F because there cheap and do the job, if one breaks it's not big money and you can afford to have a few spares in the cupboard.
With the spring you can add a spacer or some washers to get extra tension.
Dave

A word of warning Pete F. Don't wander too far away from the saw while it's cutting. The blade can/does jam occassionally and if you're not around to turn it off then there goes the motor.
I bought a bi-metal blade from Gasweld once. From memory it was around $50. It lasted a lot longer than the normal blades but I nearly cried when it decided to break. I'm just using the normal blades now.

Yes I've had it jam a few times already when it's gone through the vertical sections of the SHS. I backed off the pressure as much as I could and increased the tension but a few times it still looked a bit dodgy.

I asked Gasweld about bi-metal blades at time of purchase and they said they didn't do them. I didn't realise until RM pointed it out that the Starrett ones weren't bi-metal, guess I just assumed. I'll probably get a few Starrett ones and see how they go as they're cheap enough not to get too concerned if they were to get trashed for some reason. Maybe a BM blade if required at the time.

Pete

I bought my Bi-metal blade from Gasweld about 12 month ago so maybe they don't sell them now.
Another thing I learnt the hard way is that if the blade jams don't try just lifting it out vertically with a bit of force. You put a kink in the blade and if it doesn't break then you've created a weak point and it will eventually break at that point. I've learnt the best way is to turn the pulleys in reverse while lifting gets it out cleanly without kinking it. Guess how I kinked and eventually broke my bi-metal blade!!!

Sometimes grabbing can be because the blade is too fine for solid bar stock and the teeth become clogged and heat builds up. The thicker the steel cross section the wider the tooth spacing that can be used .
A lot of people forget that a square tube is a solid bar for a while until it cuts through the top then its a thin cross section. A coarse blade starts out good but starts to grab the teeth as soon as the thin sides are met.
Round tube is also similar .