Thread: Blade selection

I use a 1/4", 6TPI blade, std teeth. The narrower the blade, the tighter you can make your curves, so if your bandsaw can take a 1/8" blade, that would be even better.

Try the 1/8th in 10 tpi and 14 tpi. You have to be very precise in the set up, make sure the teeth are clear of the guides, even use hardwood blocks as guides. It may be that the blades break very quickly. If this happens it is probably because of the 12 inch wheels. I remember that 14 inch used to be the minimum but it is still worth a try.

Hermit and Toymaker Len, appreciate your insight and expertise. Currently I have a 3/8th blade 6 TPI, am in the middle of my 1st box, and between my inexperience and 'perhaps' wrong blade choice, got some wavies in the cutouts. I shall sand away and keep trying.....

1/4" ,3/16" and 1/8" are the width sizes that are commonly suggested for cutting curves or radius cuts. I'll recommend the 3/16" and keep on 6- 10 TPI.

Originally Posted by bosox

1/4" ,3/16" and 1/8" are the width sizes that are commonly suggested for cutting curves or radius cuts. I'll recommend the 3/16" and keep on 6- 10 TPI.

bosox, Thank you, appreciate all the good advice. Just finished my 1st box, its not bad, using a 3/8 6tpi, used 4 pieces of 1 x 6, glued them together then cut profile. Need to stain and coat now.

Glad to hear that!Looking forward to see your band saw box!

Me too.

Decided no stain, the Spar Urethane is drying, will post pic, Be Kind...Lol

Tried to post a few pics of 1st box, the pics/files are too large, no means of re-sizing them.

Originally Posted by ptofimpact

Tried to post a few pics of 1st box, the pics/files are too large, no means of re-sizing them.

You don't need fancy software to resize - MS Paint works well. Just open the image file using Paint, then >Image >Stretch/Skew then in the 'Stretch' group box, under Horizontal and Vertical, enter the percentage value of the reduction. Make sure you enter the same value in both boxes or it will distort.

Alternatively, in your camera menu, you should be able to set a lower resolution value. I find that 3.1MP works well, uploads OK and still shows heaps of detail.

If you have a problem, let me know.

Edit: Actually, first have another go at uploading your current pics. For about a day, nobody could upload pics to the forums due to an internal error that's now been fixed. You might have just been a victim of that when you tried to upload.

Hermit thank you, I am going to try and upload again, here goes

Originally Posted by ptofimpact

Hermit thank you, I am going to try and upload again, here goes

Success.
Not bad for a first box, especially with a 3/8" blade.
A little more rounding of the sharp edges might have been better, but otherwise it looks good.
Planning on making another? I get the bug every couple of months.

Hermit, TY for the kind words, and agreed, a bit more sanding would have been good, but I kinda' like the rough look for the scrap pine box. And yes, I have the 2nd box glued up ready for cutting, received my 1/4 6TPI blades yesterday, so I may do some cutting later on. Appreciate the help and expertise. Pete

You really worked hard on that.! Wow, that band saw box is fantastic. Band saw boxes are quite addictive. Keep it coming.