Hi All I have a General 15″ bandsaw and it is acting up now. I try resawing a small piece of maple and it does not cut straight at all. it is not the fence, I have a picture that I made up a drawing of what it does. When I feed the stock in the blade cuts straight for about 1 inch then it the blade starts going to the left forcing the stock into the fence until it starts to bind. I have taken all the cool blocks out and inspected them and reinstalled them. I took the upper and lower thrust bearings out and checked them. When I reinstalled the cool blocks I left just enough clearance ( the thickness of a dollar bill )between the blocks and the blade. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks Mark
Have fun woodworking but respect your tools
Replies
Mark,
Dang band saws. It could be one of a number of things. Check that your band saw tires are crowned. If the blade won't track right, then it won't cut right. A crowned tire will let the blade run true without moving in and out on the wheel. Very annoying when it does not track right.
Make sure the blade is tensioned enough but not so much that you're twisting a weak frame. I tension by sound, by plucking the blade to hear if it sounds dull or pings just a little. I like it to ping. You'll have to play with your tensioning on your saw to get it right.
Then check to make sure that your rear thrust bearings are just touching the back of the blade or are a hair off. One can't be pushing on the blade and the other a mile away. Next I set my side guides close but I don't find that this is very critical to my blade cutting success. Finally make sure that you're using a sharp blade at a slow feed rate. I use a 3 tpi hook tooth blade which cuts aggressively. But if you feed too fast no blade will cut straight.
Please don't get sidetracked by all the talk you'll hear about blade drift and resetting your band saw fence to adjust for it. This is only an issue on lousy band saws which is what the market has been flooded with. A stout band saw, when tuned properly, won't need any adjustment for blade drift. Those of you who want to argue with me on this point can come to my Studio and I'll let you use my Yates American 16".
Every blade, including whatever off the rack blade I get for my Y-A exhibits some kind of blade drift. Many folks suggest that you see what kind of angle the saw wants to cut at and then adjust your fence parallel with that angle. But with a good saw that's tuned properly you can ignore blade drift, move the fence over to rip or resaw and there is no such problem.
So, try tuning your saw, get a fresh blade, tension properly, and slow down your feed rate. Let me know how it goes. Gary
Thanks Gary for the tips I will try it shortly I did take the thrust bearings and cool block out to inspect them then I will reinstall them.I read a article on sharpening your own blades on the grinder but I am not sure about that. I also am using a 3 tpi hook. MarkHave fun woodworking but respect your tools
Thanks for your thoughts on blade drift, Gary. Validation! I, also, don't adjust the fence on my bandsaw (Jet 18") for drift and have never had a problem. One guide bearing spins more than the other--at least with the current blade--but the cut is straight. My thought is that, even if there is some tendency for the blade to "drift", the set of the teeth is ususally adequate to alow the body of the blade to pass through the work in a straight line. Want you to know I've enjoyed your videos. See you around!
HI Gary I just bought a new blade 3/8 hook I put it on and I bought some new cool blocks for it . But when I put the blade on and added the tension the bade seems to be hugging one side of the blocks more than the other. So I left it for tomorrow so I can take a fresh look at it. Thanks for the advice and I must say that I have followed your video on mortise and tension and I waned to take a cabinetmaking class. I have been making furniture for about 21 yrs just as a hobby, my wife says what more could I learn taking classes at a local Collage. I was actually thinking about going down and taking your program but I live in Canada. I can really relate to your style of teachings. Thanks again MarkHave fun woodworking but respect your tools
Hey Woodman,
I just put a new 3/8" blade on my band saw and it's close to one side of the guides and you could drive a Buick through the other side and it cuts like a dream. Been cutting white oak all week long. Don't worry too much about those thousandths there. I think it's more important to get the rear thrust bearings working right and working together so the blade doesn't do a giddy up going through the cut. Good luck with this. And may I so that we get a lot of Canadians to come down to Portland for a class. Check us out. I'd love to show you my band saw collection. [My new obsession, cast iron.] All the best. Gary
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