Bamboo Question...

[Jon Wilson]

I got some bamboo stair treads from the local ReStore the other week and thought... hmmmm... I'll cut it up and make a band saw box for the wife.

Now, mind you, I thought that having never worked with bamboo before.

I bought a couple treads, cut'em up, glued'em 'up, made a pattern that I liked and went to cut into this stuff...
I think they mislabeled the treads, they mean to have described them as concrete that looks like bamboo.

My question is simple, the block I glued up is about 8" x 6". How many blades am I going to go through trying to make this box?
Is there a trick to cutting bamboo that will go easier on the blade?

Should I just stop because it's not worth it.

For the record, I have a craftsman 14" BS, and at the moment, I have a 1/4" blade, a 3/8" blade, and a 3/4" Woodslicer resaw blade.

[Bill Space]

Hi,

I can't really answer your question, but I do know that bamboo in its natural state saws real easy. I have a lot growing at my place.

The stuff you are sawing is likely somehow processed and glued together to make flat planks. Even the 8" plus diameter bamboo that I have seen in Japan would not offer enough material to make a very wide plank, as bamboo is hollow, and mostly air inside.

So my guess is that the glue used is the issue, not the bamboo wood itself.

More than this I can not really add...

Hope this may be a starting point leading to the answer...

Bill

[Ethan Melad]

I think bamboo for flooring and stairs is super hard both because of the glues/resins and how compressed it is. You can get 'flat sawn' and 'strand'- types, i believe the strand usually has higher glue and resin content. I installed bamboo throughout our entire house when we built it, and its definitely tough to work. its practically impossible to drive a nail through the face with a finish nailer - i had to pre-drill and hammer a nail through by hand where needed. I might be leaning towards scrapping your project...(although i have no idea what a bandsaw box is..)

maybe look into getting some bamboo or sorghum ply instead?

[Jon Wilson]

Scrapped!

Didn't take into consideration the glues and resins.

Thanks for pointing out the obvious to the obviously unable to see the obvious crowd!

[Don Huffer]

I've made quite a few cutting boards out of bamboo flooring planks. Not sure what the rub is here.

When they process bamboo into planks it's just glued together then resawn and glued together again. Bamboo is not wood, it's a grass. It's hard and very stable, which is why it does well in flooring.

I ran it through my planer on both sides and glued the planks together. They're of good size and only 1/2" thick. They stay flat and don't have an ounce of finish on them.

[Bill White]

Were the planks pre-finished? If so, the standard finish is an aluminum oxide floor finish which is VERY hard as you found.
Bill

[Shawn Pixley]

I installed the Strand Bamboo floor in our bedroom. We selected it over the other bamboo material as it was much harder / denser than the others. This made t much more resilient to dog toenails etc... We needed to rent a high end floor nailer to install it. There is alot of resin in that product. I think it had the same specific gravity as Cocobolo.

[william watts]

I have never used it, but remember reading that its steam heated and then pressed together under a powerful hydraulic press. That makes it really dense and heavy, very difficult to work like ordinary material.

[Don Huffer]

Were the planks pre-finished? If so, the standard finish is an aluminum oxide floor finish which is VERY hard as you found.
Bill

I didn't notice having any trouble. I didnt run much of it and haven't for a long time. Wouldnt make a practice of it. But the bamboo is a good material for cutting boards.

[Don Huffer]

I have never used it, but remember reading that its steam heated and then pressed together under a powerful hydraulic press. That makes it really dense and heavy, very difficult to work like ordinary material.

I must not have that kind of bamboo.