Carter guide question

[Jason White]

I installed a Carter ball-bearing roller guide kit on my old JET bandsaw a few months ago and have been very pleased with it.

However, I've noticed that these guides are much noisier than regular "block" type guides that come standard with many bandsaws. I only realized this a few days ago after assembling a new Delta bandsaw at work and noticed that the block guides that came with it run much quieter than the Carter guides that I use at home.

Is it normal for new, high-quality roller guides to be noisy? Or, am I adjusting the rollers too close to the blade? I generally use a piece of paper or some masking tape on each side of the blade when snugging the rollers up against them. I know that's supposed to reduce friction between the blade and rollers, but the rollers do spin with the blade, whether I'm feeding wood through it or not.

Jason

[Kyle Iwamoto]

No one? I'll give it a shot. I would think that this is not normal. Do the bearings make noise/feel rough when turned by hand? Also, you should be setting your guides a hair away from your blade, so they should not be spinning all the time, just when cutting. My bearings make little to no noise on my PM. My SS saw makes a lot of noise with the vintage guides.

[Jason White]

The bearings are pretty new and high-quality, so I don't think that's it. Plus, they're not grinding when I turn by hand.

Sounds to me like I'm setting them too tight against the blade.

Thanks for the input!

Jason


No one? I'll give it a shot. I would think that this is not normal. Do the bearings make noise/feel rough when turned by hand? Also, you should be setting your guides a hair away from your blade, so they should not be spinning all the time, just when cutting. My bearings make little to no noise on my PM. My SS saw makes a lot of noise with the vintage guides.

[Tom Hintz]

I have always noticed a bit more noise with roller guides. I think when we have metal on metal, even now and then as we put side loads on the blade, there will be more noise. I doubt the bearings themselves are making much noise but I have to wonder about their mounting and the blade running through the rest of the system.
I have had band saw bearings making that noise for more years than I can remember and everything still works fine. Pay attention to setting them right and carry on!

[Ryan Hellmer]

Everything I've heard (no pun) is that the rollers are noisier. It's just the fact that now you've got a lot more moving parts and they make noise. Otherwise how is the performance. I've been on the fence a while and am thinking it's really not worth the money.

Ryan

[Jason White]

I've only ever used the rollers (the stock guides were toast when I got the saw). I have no complaints. Expensive buggers, though.

Jason




Everything I've heard (no pun) is that the rollers are noisier. It's just the fact that now you've got a lot more moving parts and they make noise. Otherwise how is the performance. I've been on the fence a while and am thinking it's really not worth the money.

Ryan

[Butch Edwards]

I don't know if they're Carters' or not, but my Grizzly 14" machine has rollers... they ARE noisey. they work great, but I can tell if the pressure is too high(set too close to blade) by the increase in volume. I got tired of adjusting/re-adjusting the rollers after I changed blades, so now I use only 1 blade. when it gets dull, I'll replace it with an identical blade and forget it. Adjusting rollers can be a pain, at least for me...too loose/bad cuts...too tight/worn bearings( replaced a few already).
sometimes I think the old guide blocks were good enough....

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Jason,
The blocks that came with your saw don't move. They are made with a reduced friction material that allows the blades to move quietly over them. The bearings have lots of moving parts, not the quietest of which are a bunch of balls spinning between races as your blade powers them. They are made for that job so unless the noise is a dry squeal or dry rub, don't worry.
fmr

[Mitchell Garnett]

I noticed the same problem when I put the Carter guides on my Grizzly 14" bandsaw several years ago. I first thought I had improperly installed and adjusted them but after lots of tweaking and testing I finally came to the conclusion that they are just noisey.

I've not noticed any unusual blade wear or other issues over time.

[Van Huskey]

IF you are only used to block guides then bearing guides are indeed noisier, my guess is you are hearing normal noise...

[Jason White]

Yeah, I spent quite a bit of time last night re-adjusting the roller guides in an attempt to make them quieter. It's a little better, but I think I'm always going to hear "some" noise, even if I'm not pushing any wood through the blade. The sound of the blade moving past the rollers isn't that bad, just quite a bit louder than regular guide blocks.

My wheels are co-planer have new bearings. Everything runs smooth as silk and my cuts look great -- just a little noisy is all. I'll just keep my ear-plugs in when using the bandsaw! ;)

Jason


I noticed the same problem when I put the Carter guides on my Grizzly 14" bandsaw several years ago. I first thought I had improperly installed and adjusted them but after lots of tweaking and testing I finally came to the conclusion that they are just noisey.

I've not noticed any unusual blade wear or other issues over time.

[Howard Acheson]

Yes, roller bearing guides are noisier than standard solid guides. It's one reason I ordered my Grizzly with guide holders for Cool Blocks. The Cool Blocks are much quieter and do a better job of controlling the blade. Couldn't wait to get the roller guides off.