Replies

1. 
   forestgirl | Oct 17, 2005 01:39am | #1

   First make sure the wheels are adjusted properly and that the blade is riding in the center of both the upper and lower wheel.  I've noticed that if my blade (TW also) starts riding off center of the crowned wheel, it causes the blade to twist just a little bit (in other words, it's not pointed exactly north-south) and boy, does that cause drift.

   "Should I increase the tension past the line on the scale in back? "  Sounds like you didn't read the directions for tensioning these low-tension blades.  No, you do not use the guage in the back  You should be using the "flutter test."  Give me a minute and I'll find the link and add it.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
   Another proud member of the  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

2. 
   forestgirl | Oct 17, 2005 01:49am | #2

   OK, here's the explanation of how to tension Timber Wolf low-tension Swedish Silicon Steel blades.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
   Another proud member of the  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   redrock2 | Oct 17, 2005 02:28am | #3

   check out Michael Fortune's article in FWW#173 it's the best, and if I would swear, I would swear about it. What the hell, I will swear about it!

   Len

1. 
   Rich14 | Oct 17, 2005 03:09am | #4

   redrock and mvac,Excellent advice. That article is a must read for anyone who operates a bandsaw. If anyone, after reading it, still has any lingering notion that a bandsaw must suffer from drift, then read it over and over until the information sinks in. Also his advice about blades and tensioning.It's a shame that the myth of bandsaw blade drift has persisted and almost every authoratative book on the subject describes ways to find the "natural drift" of the saw and methods to "compensate."A bandsaw need have no drift. Getting the band to ride absolutely on the top dead center of the upper wheel's tire is the "secret." As if making the blade's fore-aft dimension parallel to the direction of cut is any kind of a mechanical secret!A bandsaw adjusted as he advises is a joy to use. Low tension, not only for Timberwolf blades is a revelation.Rich

2. 
   mvac | Oct 18, 2005 03:45pm | #5

   Len,

    

   I've looked all over my back issues and of course can't find issue 173. The I lookead all over the FWW archives, and couldn't find the article, using key words, author, issue #, or anything else.

   Any advice on how to get to the article? Should I contact SYSOP?

   Thanks,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

1. 
   mvac | Oct 18, 2005 03:47pm | #6

   P.S. - If you had the aticle name, that might help. Also, if you could check the issue # that would be great too.

   Thanks,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

3. 
   mvac | Oct 18, 2005 04:49pm | #7

   Len,

   I called Cut. Svc. and it's not in the archives yet, so I boaught another copy. Guaranteed, by the time it shows up, I'll find the original!!!

   Thanks,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

1. 
   EdHarrison | Oct 19, 2005 06:19am | #8

   Mitch, I've got a duplicate #173,  If anything goes wrong with the purchase transaction, lemme know, it's yours.

    

1. 
   mvac | Oct 19, 2005 04:23pm | #14

   Thanks, Ed. I appreciate the offer. It should arrive in a couple of days.Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

4. 
   Patto | Oct 19, 2005 08:56am | #10

   Absolute revelation, wasn't it.

   Of course - I also had to learn how to open the sporran for new blades.

3. 
   WhatKnot | Oct 19, 2005 07:08am | #9

   I didn't read all of the posts thoroughly so forgive me if I repeat someone elses suggestions.

   1. Its important to know what blade width you are using and if it is a hard back blade or standard.

    2. The cool blocks won't help at all if you are trying to cut straight lines with an 1/8 in blade.

   3.  You want to use the least amount of teeth per in. A minimum of three teeth in the material is the rule of thumb. More will produce a smoother cut but it will also be slower and produce a greater tendancy to wander.

   4. Hardback blades are stiffer and will run truest generally speaking.

   5. Roller guides are much better than blocks but if all you do is straight lines then consider European style guides.

   6. Keep the upper guides a maximum of 3/8 inch off the workpiece.

   7. Finally, patience, materials will respond differently, accept it and learn from it.

1. 
   forestgirl | Oct 19, 2005 10:02am | #11

   "The cool blocks won't help at all if you are trying to cut straight lines with an 1/8 in blade."  Could you go into that in a little more detail, plz??forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   philip | Oct 19, 2005 01:57pm | #12

   I am chuffed when folk in the know dispel the same myths that I read-as M.Fortune has done.
   Now, to put the cat amongst the prize canaries: what is all this talk about wheels having to be crowned for "tracking"? I have yet to see a medium to big saw with this "feature". My beast pictured has flat wheels, whch means that when I run few big teeth I can choose to set them over the edge-thus they don't eat the tyre material and keep their set longer. And the set remains equal on both sides-one more cause of the drifts bites the dust.
   Maybe, in those far off days when that machine was made, they were not bothered with crowns-or flexing frames?
   Apologies to those who have seen these pics previously posted.Philip Marcou

   
1. 
   WillGeorge | Oct 19, 2005 07:58pm | #16

   OH geeeeee THAT WAS a FOOLER! Good one!

2. 
   mvac | Oct 19, 2005 04:22pm | #13

   Whatnot,

   Thanks for the input. I'm using a 3/8 standard blade, something like 10-12 TPI. Which begs the question - isn't 3 teeth generally thought of for resawing (I know you said minimum)? I had the thought that the more TPI, the easier to both move and keep on track. As it is, the 3/8" blade doen't take tight turns (say, 90* over a 3" radius) very well.

   Maybe I just need to swith to the hardback blades. But I'd like your thoughts on the other questions.

   Thanks,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

1. 
   WhatKnot | Oct 19, 2005 07:27pm | #15

   The 3/8 blade should be just fine for straight cutting on a 14" band saw. A hardback blade certainly would not hurt and 6tpi would be appropriate for your situation. 3 teeth would mean that your must be cutting wood at least 1" thick and you are correct in that they are used primarily for re-sawing. I don't remember if you said you were using a fence or not but if you are, try switching to a re-saw bar. Its a vertical bar that attaches to your fence. When you guide against it, it is much easier to hold a line and compensate for drift.

   For FG - Ceramic Cool blocks, hard blocks, fibre blocks, etc. all perform just the basic function of attempting to hold the blade in a somewhat straight fashion. It is nearly impossible to get a perfect alignment between the upper and lower blocks. Because of this, there is almost always some blade twist under load. 

   Of course the quality of the roller guides and the construction of the bandsaw are also huge factors but in general most of the bandsaws today are comming out of the factory with roller guides. Jet still distributes the 16" saw with Euro guides and has now classed that saw as best for resawing.

   I recently upgraded my 18" Jet with a new set of Carter guides that have the thrust bearings turned 90 deg and grooved. This really makes a huge difference in keeping the blade straight and I was able resaw a veneer off an old chunk of Hem Fir 2x4 that you could see through.

   Steve