Thread: Meat saw - Are tyres neded ?

Well, here's my opinion and - considering I cut both meat and wood on my BS - the basic reasoning behind why I hold it. At least it'll get the ball rolling, eh?

I'm not sure what "requirements" a meat-specific BS needs to meet... but I know they don't need to work anywhere near as hard as when cutting solid wood. For the average home woodworker I believe that you want tyres on both the upper & lower wheels to minimise the risk of blade damage from over-tensioning. I think of the tyres primarily as "blade life extenders" although they also provide a bit better grip on the wheel to prevent blade slip if under-tensioned.

Most woodies I know guesstimate the initial tension set after a blade change by "feel" or "plucking the blade" to get a nice, clear note, then do a test cut and tighten a bit more - if necessary - to get a clean, straight cut. I do it myself. There are blade tension measuring tools available, but they cost an arm and a leg; the ones I've looked at cost more than my has BS cost me in the entire time I've owned it!

Under-tensioning is easy to pick: the blade cuts like crap. Over-tensioning, not so easy to pick unless it's way overtensioned. Like, enough to snap the blade. So rubber tyres act as buffers, allowing the teeth on that side of the blade to "dig in" a bit rather than have their set flattened by the metal wheel.


I also believe that a crowned tyre is superior to a flat tyre (esp. for setting the tracking) but that's moving into a different argument.

Woodworking band saws have rubber tires and meat saws don't have. I guess you can just a ran the band right on the wheels.