Thread: Looking for Bandsaw Service - Onsite in Brisbane

Hello
First off, one presumes this machine has cast iron wheels, is somewhat modern, and that you expect perfection, since you're wanting to cough up for it.
BTW, IMHO, you want something done right, seems you gotta do it yourself, unless perhaps you've got a
machine with a foot mounted motor, like you'd see on some Centauro's, which ain't so common these days.

So let's see what you could theoretically do with the mula, for an honest job, that is...

Most important of all for starters.
Clocking the face of the wheels, which on my 24" machine needs to be better than 0.2mm at the least.
I chased my tail with that, as I presumed my wheels were accurately machined, and not some sprung mounted grinder to knock of the casting dross.

That is critical for wheel alignment, to put things into perspective if the upper bandwheel has 0.5mm of error,
this translates to over 4mm on the base of the chassis on my sized saw.
So Unless...you have got a Centauro, or similar Italian wheels with a groove, and can somehow? accurately reference off that,
should that groove be accurate, ???
then I'd like to see it.
Should the wheel not have a groove, or you can't think of a real good method of checking with honesty,
then you can dress the faces with a file instead,
If I were doing this again, I'd either buy a file from somewhere if possible, which was as thick as it were wide, or cut & drill a very nice second cut fine file so you can mount it to a block, for the last pass.

Once again presuming the saw is of modern style build, with hub adjustment on the lower bandwheel.
In which case the upper bandwheel is non adjustable in terms of skewing like the lower one.
This is/can be your reference, unless you wish to make the carriage mounting adjustable, which I've not seen before.
(Tis optional, depending on your motor mounting)

The lower wheel needs to align to the upper wheel for lots of reasons, if one is looking for perfection and not misery, i.e wheel bore issues,
& blades which the set gets compressed quickly rendering unuasable.

Once that's done, i.e the lower adjustable bandwheel is aligned with the upper one,
then you can check that the motor aligns with the markings, and also in-line with the chassis.

Then you can play around with tires, either dressing or replacements.

I wouldn't expect anyone to do this work, since I've not seen it done, and I had to learn the hard way.
Easy to do all that now though,
I was kicking myself in the knees trying to avoid everything, as I like to do things as minimalist as can be.
(not when it comes to safety though)

So much mis-information out there, any wonder I'll unashamedly mention I spent years figuring it out.
If I had the logistics, i.e space and transport wot's better than a bicycle, I'd be on the hunt for more old bandsaws,
and I reckon I'd give any manufacturer a run for their money.
Lots of strange things I see with new machines on youtube, from every manufacturer that will make a promo video,
or indeed from reviews of such.

Just some food for thought, as it seems you ain't got the time to fix it yourself,
Easy to spot a chancer when you see things done right.

All the best
Tom

Thanks so much for your response. Yes definitely don't have the time to do it myself. It's an 18" Jet, that's had about 20 minutes of use in its life but been siting idle for a few years and the tyres have degraded.Thinking that paying $450 for an hours work plus parts is a little on the steep side.

This short video is worth a watch for some ideas on how to do it easily.
Changing Bandsaw Wheel Rubber Tyre. - YouTube

But I think checking how well the faces of the wheels have been machined beforehand would be worth it,
should you be installing the tires flush with the face of the wheels.
Don't forget masking tape to protect yer paintwork.
SAM_7820-01.jpegSAM_7786.jpg

And if you have a file handy, you could make a custom handle to suit the wheel, and dress them.
Not sure if the Jet wheels what are spoked IIRC,
would lend themselves to this, but should something like a ply offcut affixed to the handle be possible to do the same thing, you could do a dry run with some flat stock instead of the file.
and worth mentioning, you kinda want a finer file to finish, cuz the draw filing creates grooves pretty quick.
SAM_7822.jpgSAM_7791.jpg

Just incase you decide to service it yourself, or are finding a tire not happy about lining up with the face, of for whatever reason,
I've documented all that in a log running thread which eventually got put to bed.

All the best
Tom

Tom, I think you've talked me into doing this myself. The first task is removing the hold tire, which has largely crumbled. I've managed to remove this with a scraper but it looks like there is a residue of some form of adhesive from where the original tire was glued in place. Any tips for removing this - im assuming chemically to avoid too much scraping?

I haven't changed a bandsaw tire before, nor have experience or an inventory of solvents,
but had a look for a member on Sawmill Creek by the name of Van Huskey for suggestions
and stumbled across someone doing the same with a Jet machine, and suggesting using acetone.
Changing bandsaw tires

All the best
Tom

I changed the tyres on a Jet about this size a couple of years back.
Bought the tyres direct from the maker in the states, he advertises on eBay.
Excellent quality blue urethane, cheaper than what was then on offer here in Oz even with the Postage.
The tool which was supplied to fit them on was useless.
I got a mate who although an elderly old fart like myself was a scuba diver in a past life and built like a brick sh!thouse.
Using a couple of tyre levers and clamps we wrestled the bustards on.
No glue required if they are the correct size.
H.

I agree with Clear Out. If the tyres are a true fit no need for adhesive. The tool provided with the urethane tyres works ok if you lubricate it. I just rubbed it with some dry soap. A one man job if you've got strong hands.

One tip though before ordering urethane tires (tyres) ..... accurately measure the real diameter of the band saw wheels not the "stated" specification.

I installed replacement urethane tires of the closest size available on an old Ezycut band saw only to have them "walk" in use. - a real PIA, eventually solved with some adhesive but not recommended.