Thread: Re-saw Band Saw

Hopefully I'll leave you alone after this query!....

With metal ball rollers, are you worried that they will leave a mark?

I ask as I was just taking a quick peak at the bunnings website so I can steal your idea. They have some dead simple fixed castors that have 55mm rubber flat wheels. Not having seen them, but gauging from the picture they look pretty flat. (they aren't really castors, they are wheels with a fixed carriage assembly)

Given that the wheels you have are essentially giant ball bearings, would you make your next model with a rubber wheel?

I suppose given how chuffed you are with that last Camphor Laurel, maybe not, but maybe Mk2 is around the corner....

Originally Posted by Evanism

Hopefully I'll leave you alone after this query!....

With metal ball rollers, are you worried that they will leave a mark?

I ask as I was just taking a quick peak at the bunnings website so I can steal your idea. They have some dead simple fixed castors that have 55mm rubber flat wheels. Not having seen them, but gauging from the picture they look pretty flat. (they aren't really castors, they are wheels with a fixed carriage assembly)

Given that the wheels you have are essentially giant ball bearings, would you make your next model with a rubber wheel?

I suppose given how chuffed you are with that last Camphor Laurel, maybe not, but maybe Mk2 is around the corner....

That's very funny ... déjà vu ...

I bought those wheels from Bunnings (only a bit over two bucks each) to use them in the jig because Bunnings is five minutes away and Carba Tec is 30 minutes away. But when I got them home the base of the wheel that gets fixed to the riser of the jig stands so far from the blade that I could not fit the beast together and keep the riser far enough over the table to allow the T bolts to be fitted into the mitre slots (behind the riser). The space simply was not there ... off to Carba Tec to buy the smaller ball rollers. So, now I have six small wheels stashed away. The critical measurement is the distance between the blade and the mitre slot into which the jig is fastened. That is fixed. Nothing much we can do about it unless another approach to clamping the jig in place is used.

The ball rollers have not marked the timber so far. You don't need a lot of pressure. For the first couple of cuts I put on a lot of pressure, like the Irishman who wore two condoms ... to be sure, to be sure. But then I backed it off because the more pressure is applied by the rollers, the greater is the resistance as you push the board through. It transpires that so long as all balls are in contact and apply just a little pressure, all is well. That is the only thing you need to be careful with ... ensure all balls are in contact when you lock the fence.

You will note from the pic that two edges of the jig hang over the table, and that works fine. It was necessary to do two things:
1. provide enough space for the clamps used to be pushing on MDF rather than thin air.
2. keep the two columns of ball rollers as far apart as possible to create stability (in my case, 215 mm, which works well).

So mate, is it "great minds think alike" or "fools never differ"? By my reckoning we can be forgiven this small oversight. After all, we were designing something from scratch, and the path of creativity is never a straight line. Nearly always, there are a few twists and turns.

Have fun!

John

Originally Posted by pjt

Good result John.


Pete

Thanks Pete.

I am as happy as a dog with three tails. Its so nice when a plan actually works.

Want to play with my new toy when you are here later in the month?

See you soon!

John

Originally Posted by pjt

Good result John and once you do that a few times and recognise the signs of when the blade goes off you will find yourself not bothering with adjusting for drift or where the blade is sitting on the wheel or coplanar, these things do need proper attention but you'll just sharpen or change the blade and continue cutting and be a whole lot less frustrated, that's my experience anyways.
Pete

Exactly!

Bought another blade from Henry Bros, so as soon as the current blade shows signs of needing sharpening it can be replaced. Any saw is only as good as the blade. The rules for cutting seem to be:
RULE 1. Use a good quality, sharp blade.
RULE 2. Use a sharp, good quality blade.
RULE 3. Change/sharpen the blade as soon as it starts to get dull (or to drift/chip etc).

Dengy and I both bought new Laguna saws ... we both had trouble setting them up and getting them to run well ... and we both had to go through two crook blades before we got a good one ... once we had good blades on, we were set like a jelly. At last report Dengy was cutting 0.2 mm veneers off a 70 mm pine stud with a bimetal blade. Sweet!

The problem was never the saws. It was the blades. But now we have the saws running well, as soon as they dull or start to drift it is a safe bet we will replace/sharpen those blades in a flash rather than fiddle with our machines, exactly as you suggested. It is a lesson we have learned the hard way, but it has been learned well.

My old Trade Tools saw is the same. Just put a new bimetal blade on it and carefully adjusted guides/fence (drift). The improvement in performance was something else. It might be a cheapie, but if set up well, it does a perfectly good job.

Have fun!

John

Originally Posted by Evanism

Perhaps I can send you a list of stuff for your next order and we can hide it in this magic credit card for me?

Wish I had one like this. My wife is like the Eye of Sauron...she sees all!

Sure ... but can you handle my commissions and interest rates?

Cheerio!

John