Best Brand for Bandsaw Blades?

[Julie Moriarty]

I have a JET 18" bandsaw. It requires 133" blades. I started out with Olson blades. I wasn't impressed. Then I saw a Wood Slicer ad and bought their 1/2" blade. I was very impressed. But they only make 1/2" and 3'4" wide blades. I have both widths and when they wear out I buy new ones.

When I needed a narrower blade I decided to try Carter. I had heard some good things about their other products so I figured they make decent blades too. The first blade I tried was so twisted it became impossible to use. The other blades cut but it's a very sloppy cut, maybe twice the thickness of the blade. And some, like the first one I had to throw away, jump forward. The problem seems to be a poor weld joint.

I've seen ads for Lenox bandsaw blades. We use Lenox a lot in construction for hole saws, hacksaw blades, drill bits, etc and I've always been happy with their products. I was thinking of giving their bandsaw blades a try but I thought I'll ask here before wasting any more money.

In your experience, who makes the best bandsaw blades?

Thanks,
-Julie

[Jacob Muldowney]

I have had good luck with Timberwolf blades.

[John Lanciani]

Lenox diemaster bi-metal. I get mine from woodcraftbands.com. Skip the sizzle, go for the steak.

[Phil Thien]

Some things to consider.

First, the Woodslicer blades are thin-kerf rip/resaw blades. They are not ideal for curves. They have a very narrow kerf, meaning they cut a thin line.

The Carter blades are, I believe, made by Olson. The packaging is too similar, IMHO, for any other explanation.

The wider kerf of the Olson and Carter blades allow you to cut tighter curves. If the kerf is too narrow, then there is no room for the back of the blade when you turn the stock.

Finally, don't keep buying new Woodslicers when they dull. I sharpen mine using a diamond burr in a Dremel. You don't even have to remove the blades form the saw. Just start at the weld, and use the burr to sharpen the bottom of the tooth into the gullet. Move onto the next tooth. When you get back to the weld, you're done.

[Jim Stewart]

I like Lenox and Starrett. The bi-metal that John refers to are great.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Julie, contact your local blade supplier and let them know what you're cutting.

They'll custom make the blades for you at reasonable prices......Rod

[Bruce Wrenn]

Lenox diemaster bi-metal. I get mine from woodcraftbands.com. Skip the sizzle, go for the steak.Well spoken! Woodcraftbands is my go to supplier. Order in the morning, and UPS delivers next afternoon. Of course they are in NC, just like me. I ran a Lennox diemaster for almost TWELVE years. It was still sharp, but broke (not at weld.)

[Peter Kelly]

http://www.spectrumsupply.com/band-saw-blades.aspx

[Mike Cutler]

For resawing, the Lennox TriMaster, in 2/3 varipitch, is about as good as it gets.
The Lennox BiMetal's, in the correct tooth configurations, are as good as they come.
I've used Olson's, Woodslicers, Timberwolve's, but for me the Lennox made blades have worked out better in terms of cut quality and life of blade.
No matter which manufacturer you go with, having an incorrect tooth configuration for the required task isn't going to yield good results.

[Curt Harms]

Lesser know but I have a few and they seem to work pretty good:
http://www.supercutbandsaw.com/

[Jay Rasmussen]

I have had good luck with Timberwolf blades.

Depends a lot on what you are cutting and the cut condition but for general wood sawing I also have had good success with Timberwolf.

[Gus Dundon]

I've been using Haltbar blades from www.sawblade.com for more than 3 years . So far so good.

[Herr Dalbergia]

Lenox Woodmaster CT and HEMA Ikarus work well for me:

https://picasaweb.google.com/115793185519493121307

[ian maybury]

Can't speak from experience on most of the US brands as i buy mostly from the UK - except in the case of a single order of carbon steel blades from a very high profile one that didn't at all live up to its reputation. The original batch and the replacements all had misaligned welds.

My impression too is that while its easy to get sucked in by the hype that perhaps some of the high profile 'named' blades may be using cheaper and much more ordinary stock than the marketing might suggest. There are good and not so good brands of blade stock so far as I can see (and in the end there's not that many factories producing it) - apart from the metallurgy the cheaper stuff seems at times to suffer from uneven tooth sets and the like.

Consistency of welds seems so often to be an issue too.

My strategy has been to search for and settle on a committed smaller outfit with expertise that doesn't do much else. The big chains/corporates/sellers of everything and anything must struggle to maintain focus. Plus the small guy probably isn't blowing all his margin on marketing (is more reliant on word of mouth), and hence isn't seeking to get by on the cheapest of blade stock.

While I've not bought in the past year this guy in the UK is that sort of profile http://tuffsaws.co.uk/index.php?main_page=page&id=3 - he's a one man band, has an excellent reputation and has for the year or two i've used him never put a foot wrong. Plus his blade stock is excellent.

It's maybe a bit like buying a good quality off the peg suit from a shop versus one from a tailor. The off the peg will tick all the boxes, but in order to maximise profit and pay for at least two extra mark ups and for advertising the fabric will be junk. A tailor if he knows his job will cost about the same, but even ignoring the tailored fit your money will go into his time (should buy a caring maker) and into paying for a top quality fabric.

Lenox is definitely good stuff, but it costs. I've had good luck with M42 tool steel blades from Tuff too which is definitely a step in precision - but don't know who makes the blade stock.

ian

[Paul Phillips]

I've had excellent results with these guys for years, we use them for wood cutting and non-ferrous metals, industrial grade blades.
http://www.doallsawing.com/products_detail.aspx?idcategory=saw%20blades&idsubcategory=carbon%20steel&idproduct=DOALL036

Paul

[Peter Quinn]

Olson MVP's work pretty well and last a long time, wish they made them long enough for my present saw. I've been happy with timberwolfs for most things, they now offer a Bimetal resaw that may be a good value, haven't tried it yet. I've dealt with Suffolk machine direct for timberwolf blades, never a problem.

[Jay Rasmussen]

I ran a Lennox diemaster for almost TWELVE years.

WOW :eek: That must be record

[Julie Moriarty]

I've been looking at the websites and brands suggested here. I think I paid around $25 for the Carter blades. The first website I saw prices close to twice that for Lenox DiMaster blades. But woodcraftbands.com had them for around $30. (They price per foot but there's no mention of inches so I just used 11' to get that price.)

The issue I had with the Carter blades was with the irregularity in tooth set. Even with ball bearing rollers and the guides set snugly, I would see the blade hop at certain spots. This made it very difficult to cut close to the line and left a lot of hand work if I wanted to make sure I didn't cut past the line.

Thanks for all the info! Another quandary resolved. :)

[Julie Moriarty]

I went back to woodcraftbands.com to check it out again and saw they require your order to use up a 100' coil. That's $275.00 for each type of blade I'd want. So I'd have 9 bandsaw blades for each type. I'll be dead before I use them up.

[Michael Gaynes]

Julie,

I believe that only applies if they have to order a non-standard tooth configuration.

"We can order any tooth pattern you want but you have to buy enough blades to use a 100 ft coil."

[Alan Schwabacher]

Woodcraftbands has good prices, and you do not need to buy an entire 100' coil. That's only if you special order something they don't normally carry. The prices they list apply if you get 5 blades, but it's only a dollar a blade more if you don't, and that's lower than most. I have had good experiences with woodcraftbands, both for the standard blades and the bimetal ones: all the blade have had good welds.

For wider bimetal I've also used the 1/2" 3 TPI Olson MVP because they are 0.025" thick rather than the 0.035" thick stock of the Lenox.

I've also found (resharpened) woodslicers to work well, and to be best for resawing clear dry stock: they don't last as long as bimetal, but they cut more easily through very thick stock.

So I guess I agree with almost everyone.

[Pinwu Xu]

Call the 800 # for woodcraftbands , and see what recommendation you get, also how much the cost is

They may not open on Friday, though

[Gus Dundon]

Check this page http://www.facebook.com/pages/SawBladecom/271802289542841?fref=ts . They posted their prices for their band saw blades.

[Thomas love]

Thanks for tip on resharpening Phil, I have a pneumatic dremel type tool ... I went and purchased some 5/32 stones from Lowe's ... worked like a charm . Just tested wood slicer resharpened on some white oak cuts better than new.

[Dave Lewis]

I bought blades from BC Saw and Tool - Toronto, Ont for an ~ 18-inch Bridgewood. They've worked fine.

http://www.bcsaw.com/