Re-Sawing, how big of a band saw

[Scott Brandstetter]

What is the recommended HP for re-sawing all types of hardwoods. I buy slabs from the sawmill and need to cut down to useable sizes. I get 4/4 and 8/4

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Are you resawing 8/4 wides into 8/4 narrows? Like a rip cut?

The HP thing matters when you are taking 8/4 and slicing it to 4/4 - and then the question is: how wide is th3e bulk stock? Or, what is the max resaw height you want to be able to resaw? The thickness of the bulk stock mox nix.

Resawing 4" boards is one thing, Resawing 12" boards is a completely different critter.

[Matt Day]

There have been soooooo many threads similar to this, that likely it will just be rehashing.

Some will say a 14" saw with riser and 3/4" hp and a good blade will do it. Some will say an 18"+ saw with 3hp or more is required. Depends what you want to do, speed, size, etc.

I suggest you do some searches and spend a few days reading through them.

[John Lanciani]

If time is money there is no such thing as too much HP. Bigger is always better; resawing or worse slicing veneer, gets boring fast. I have found that with faster feed rates I actually get much more consistent results; I attribute this to not getting tired or bored while I'm shoving wood through the saw.

I need to make a video, but I'm certain that my feed speed when slicing 12"+ veneer would shock more than a few guys here (mostly the same people that will claim that 1hp or so is plenty of power). For the record, my MM20 has a 4.8hp motor and I've not once felt like it was too big for the way I use the saw.

[John TenEyck]

Agreed, you can never have too much HP. I have a 1.5 HP motor on my 14" Delta with riser, and regularly resaw 10" stock as well as slice veneer. More HP would be better. But for ripping 4/4 and 8/4 stock, 1 HP is more than enough. Speed with those will depend as much on what blade you are using as HP.

John

[Allan Speers]

Scott, this topic is near & dear to my heart. I just agonized over this for months, and came to some conclusions.

Here's a brief rundown of how things went with me, and maybe it will help you.

First, what I need in a band saw: Primarily, I just need to turn 8/4 into 4/4, but I will be milling a LOT of lumber this year, and fairly long boards, plus much of it is highly figured Hard Maple, which is tough to deal with.

I originally had no plans to make my own veneer, which requires a much better saw, but now that I've bought a better machine (see below) I realize I have a great new use for all those blocks of burl and exotics on my shelf. - And cutting veneer from 12" of Ambronia burl is quite a challenge.

I should mention that I have NEVER mounted anthing but a resaw blade on my old machine. I'm heavily into hand tools, so curves and such, even table legs, are typically done with those. I don't expect that to change in the future.
------------------

What I had:

Arguably one of the best 14" saws you can get, short of the Laguna: (Heck, maybe INCLUDING the Laguna) A Delta X5 with riser, and a 2 HP motor. This is the last All American-made saw from Delta, and built like a tank. Cast trunnions, fantastic guides, excellent frame & a high tenson spring with quick-release, etc.

When I bought it, I THOUGHT I was going to be doing a lot of curves a legs on it, and it excels at quick blade changes due to the quick-release and the "veri set" multi-tension gizmo. So I opted for this instead of a larger saw. I installed the Kreg fence, with the micro-adjust, and also got their 7" resaw attachment. (That is basically a 1-point pivot fence, but it attaches to the main fence so you still have the micro-adjust.)

Well, for basic resawing it's really not bad at all, I just have to feed slowly - not because of "only 2 HP, but because if I push too hard, the blade will flex. Also, with tall stock, using the pivot fence it a must. - But it gets the job done.

This saw tensions a 3/4" WoodSlicer blade just fine (most 14" saws will not, you'll want to use a 1/2") and the wheels align perfectly, etc. With the 2 HP motor, it does a pretty good job of turning 10" of 8/4 White Oak into 10" of 4/4 White Oak. Any machine snob who tells you it can't be done is just full of himself. - But you do have to go slow, and everything has to be set up ABSOLUTELY dead-nuts on. Also as I said, forget about using a flat fence, it has to be the pivot fence, which means scribing your cut line on top, and feeding the stock very carefully.

And note: I doubt you'd get the same results on a lesser machine. If you need a small footprint, and want to sometimes use 1/8" blades, get the best 14" saw you can: The X5, the Laguna, or maybe the top-end Grizzly.

You don't need 2 HP, though, with the WoodSlicer blade (3/4" or 1/2") as it has a very thin kerf. 1 HP would probably do it if you feed slowly. (I guess.) - But also realize that if you work with pine or other resinous woods, (or if you envision cutting your own small logs) you need a thicker blade, and preferably one specifically designed for that task. - But it CAN be done. (And it's fun.)
----------------

So why did I upgrade?

That bloody figured Hard maple ! The first time I tried to cut it was the last. I decided that I really "needed" larger wheels, so I could run a wider blade at high tension. I just snagged a used 21" Grizzly with a 5 HP motor. This is overkill for my needs, but why not? The price was reasonable and it was 10 miles away.

Now that I will be using the 21", I can also cut thin slices of veneer from those burl blocks. I got a Laguna Drift Master fence as well, even though the Griz comes with a nice resaw fence, because the best way to slice veneer is with the cut piece on the outside of the blade.

- And really, that's the sum total of the performance benefit I'm getting, because I had such a good 14". Being able to work faster, and with less attention to the cut line, are nice additional benefits, but I didn't NEED them. Being able to make the burl veneer was not on my mind, but now that I CAN, it's a big deal.

And there was one other factor: I really wanted a foot brake. The only way to get that on my Delta was to retrofit a 3-ph motor and use a VFD with extra braking resistors, then wire a footswitch into it. That would have the extra benefit of letting me slow the machine down, to at least cut aluminum & copper, but that is such a minor thing that I crossed it off my "important factors" list. As far as the foot brake, though, HUGE factor for me. When I weighed the extra cost, vs upgrading, it became pretty clear which way to go.

I really don't have the room for this new saw, but I'm sure I'll find a way to make it all work.

[Allan Speers]

One more thought:

I really do wish I had a way to slow my Grizzly down. Bigger saws run at faster SFPS, which is great for cutting wood, but I can forget about copper and aluminum with my 4600 SFPM Grizzly 21".

What I might do (It's only a problem of having the room in my horribly small shop space) is rig up a 1940's Craftsman 12" that I recently aquired in a "bundle" deal, and dedicate that machine to curves work and metal cutting. It has cast iron wheels and a great little frame. I would put a Carter stabilizer on it, and a 1/8" blade, then get a smallish 3-ph motor and VFD so I can drop the speed from its stock 2100 SFPM to about 1,000.

- The VFD also acts a a mag starter, so it's a smart way to retrofit many machines.

I would also make a small sliding table for it, to cross-cut copper pipe and such.

Again, I really don't have the space, but this is an inexpensive option, vs trying to make one machine do everything. There are usually too many trade-offs with the latter idea.

[John Lanciani]

...because the best way to slice veneer is with the cut piece on the outside of the blade...

Absolutely not. Why mess around moving the fence between every cut? Set the fence once, slice away...

Look in this thread (post #11 I think) to see how I do it; http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?178546-Veneering-Resawing-questions

[Rod Sheridan]

What is the recommended HP for re-sawing all types of hardwoods. I buy slabs from the sawmill and need to cut down to useable sizes. I get 4/4 and 8/4

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Hi, it depends upon the depth of cut.

I built a band saw mill with a 3 HP motor, it cuts 24 inches deep at 1 inch per second in green wood.

My resaw band saw is 2 HP, plenty of power..........Regards, Rod.

[Allan Speers]

Absolutely not. Why mess around moving the fence between every cut?

Because then you are always referencing your initial, jointed surface against the fence.

When you do it your "baloney slicing" way, the cut you just made becomes your next reference surface, so any errors start to add up with each successive cut. The potential is there to need extra sanding or planing, which affects the look of your bookmatching. This is the whole point of using the Drift Master or Kreg fence.

I've read arguments for both ways, but I'm convinced of the Laguna method. If I had a power feeder, or some other way to keep the stock pressured against the fence, (like your amazing jig) I might consider slicing baloney, but I still think the Laguna way is best.

And if you don't have a fence that can dial-in the cut, you can just do it (carefully) with a spacer in-between your stock and the blade.

[Rod Sheridan]

Why don't you adjust the blade so it tracks properly and leave the fence alone?

Regards, Rod.

[Cody Colston]

Why don't you adjust the blade so it tracks properly and leave the fence alone?

Regards, Rod.

What he said.

As for what size bandsaw for resawing...get the biggest you can afford.

[ian maybury]

Think the big benefit a generously specified machine (as in a heavy duty Italian or equivalent) is that for heavier work like resawing it moves the bandsaw into the sort of space we expect from most other machines. That's a nice straightforward cut and go scenario.

There's no doubt but that with fine tuning/creative set up some can get jobs done on a light saw that others can't - but (a) there are still definite limits (especially depth and speed of cut) imposed by the basic saw spec, and (b) it makes the whole affair a very touchy matter. e.g. if the chassis is inclined to twist, or the blade may deflect or vibrate because it's not tensioned enough then it pitches set up into a chase at best after some elusive sweet spot where all the planets are lined up well enough for the saw to get the job done.

[jack forsberg]

I vote for 5 HP. i had a Hitachi resaw that came with the tiny 2 hp motor and put a 5 HP 3 phase on it. The Wadkin 30" has a 5 hp an my 16" bursgreen has a 2 HP and my 16" SpeedXa has 1.5 HP. So i got use of a few with this range. RE sawsing takes power. here is the Hitachi
http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad111/tool613/wadkin/600004_zpsa5b35b3a.jpg (http://s927.photobucket.com/user/tool613/media/wadkin/600004_zpsa5b35b3a.jpg.html)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZP-eDA51Nhk

if you think you needs special blades to re-saw watch my video below of the wadkin and carbon blades. there is no replacement for displacement boys:D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3v02KWA7my8

[John Lanciani]

Because then you are always referencing your initial, jointed surface against the fence.

When you do it your "baloney slicing" way, the cut you just made becomes your next reference surface, so any errors start to add up with each successive cut. The potential is there to need extra sanding or planing, which affects the look of your bookmatching. This is the whole point of using the Drift Master or Kreg fence.

I've read arguments for both ways, but I'm convinced of the Laguna method. If I had a power feeder, or some other way to keep the stock pressured against the fence, (like your amazing jig) I might consider slicing baloney, but I still think the Laguna way is best.

And if you don't have a fence that can dial-in the cut, you can just do it (carefully) with a spacer in-between your stock and the blade.

I suspect that when you stop reading and start actually cutting wood that you won't feel the same way. If you follow my posts you'll see that I go directly from "baloney cutting" to the vacuum bag. Just like on the table saw, the keeper should be between the blade and the fence to maintain accuracy and consistency. My total deviation on veneer thickness is typically less than .005" on 12" to 16" wide veneer cut at 3/32".

[John TenEyck]

Lots of good info. there Allan, but you are dead wrong that you have to use a pivot fence with a 14" saw. What your saw is telling you is that it needs a new blade, or the blade needs to be moved on the wheels, or the wheels need to be aligned. My 14" Delta with riser cuts beautifully straight as long as I do those three things. I use a 7" shop made straight fence set parallel with the miter slot and regularly baloney slice nice straight veneers or resaw stock. 10"+ hard maple, oak, etc. I often get tolerances of no more than 0.005" on 3/32" slices 10" wide and 3 to 5 feet long. A bad day is a deviation of 0.010".

Moving up to a bigger saw will make it easier because you can run higher tension (compared to a CI Delta), but the basics are still the same.

John

[David Kumm]

313819313820313821 If the saw is decent you shouldn't need to move the fence. Handfeeding is the real issue and it is a problem either way. This is cut on both sides, about .04" thick with a deviation of about .005 as John says. Dave

I made a real effort to get the light so it shows the saw marks and you can see which is the second side.

[jack forsberg]

I am seeing a lot of short length in these cuts on the small saws and i think longer cuts will generate heat and the blades will dull more rapidly and the set lay down with long cuts and that when all hell brakes loose . So in that case the tipped blades may offer a better cut when you have to feed slow because you are under powered and running short blades. What would impress me is the last cut boys

[Scott T Smith]

What is the recommended HP for re-sawing all types of hardwoods. I buy slabs from the sawmill and need to cut down to useable sizes. I get 4/4 and 8/4

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Scott, are you resawing as a hobbyist or resawing as a business? If as a hobbyist a couple of HP should work. If as a business you need 15 - 30 hp.

How wide of a cut do you need to make? Resawing boards into veneer or simply resawing a 4/4 board into a pair of 2/4 boards? How frequently will you resaw - hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly? How accurate of a cut do you need to make? Modern production resaws can maintain tolerances within a few thousands of an inch across the resawn board or alternatively provide a very fast feed rate albeit at a slightly lower quality.

All of these factors would influence a recommendation.

[Allan Speers]

Lots of good info. there Allan, but you are dead wrong that you have to use a pivot fence with a 14" saw. What your saw is telling you is that it needs a new blade, or the blade needs to be moved on the wheels, or the wheels need to be aligned. My 14" Delta with riser cuts beautifully straight as long as I do those three things. I use a 7" shop made straight fence set parallel with the miter slot and regularly baloney slice nice straight veneers or resaw stock. 10"+ hard maple, oak, etc. I often get tolerances of no more than 0.005" on 3/32" slices 10" wide and 3 to 5 feet long. A bad day is a deviation of 0.010".

Moving up to a bigger saw will make it easier because you can run higher tension (compared to a CI Delta), but the basics are still the same.

John

That's good to know. And yeah, that was my sole reason for upgrading - so I could use a wider, thicker, higher tension blade for less deflection. Also because I wanted a carbide blade, and they are all kind of iffy on a 14" saw. I'm probably going to get a 1.25" Laguna Resaw King. Expensive, but you can resharpen it up to 5X, so ....

[Alan Lightstone]

Absolutely not. Why mess around moving the fence between every cut? Set the fence once, slice away...

Look in this thread (post #11 I think) to see how I do it; http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?178546-Veneering-Resawing-questions
Another convert here to John's method (and awesome sled, which I built during that thread). I still use it all the time. At the woodworking show I saw someone demonstrate a sled made to cut baloney style. It looked impressive at the show, but I didn't bite. The biggest problem I have this way is the top to bottom thickness. Getting the Driftmaster perfectly square to the table is sometimes the issue. That being said, I'd love to have more room and get a MM20 or such. While my Laguna has a 3 or 3.5HP motor, a beefier saw would be better.

[Roger Pozzi]

Why don't you adjust the blade so it tracks properly and leave the fence alone?

Regards, Rod.

Plus 1 !! Works for me. ;)

[Dan Hintz]

Absolutely not. Why mess around moving the fence between every cut? Set the fence once, slice away...

Look in this thread (post #11 I think) to see how I do it; http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?178546-Veneering-Resawing-questions

That veneer jig is pretty slick, John... adjustable tension, plenty of surface area pushing the stock flat, etc. Wish I could buy something like that relatively inexpensively.

[glenn bradley]

I am an "enthusiastic" home shop guy. I have a 17" with 2HP and wish it were more powerful. It does a beautiful job but, I feel I am right on the edge of the capabilities of the machine when resawing 12" stock moving about 1" per second.

[Erik Loza]

I am seeing a lot of short length in these cuts on the small saws and i think longer cuts will generate heat and the blades will dull more rapidly and the set lay down with long cuts and that when all hell brakes loose . So in that case the tipped blades may offer a better cut when you have to feed slow because you are under powered and running short blades. What would impress me is the last cut boys

Bingo ^^^^... The number one issue I see with guys in this situation is thinking, "Oh, I have this fancy carbide blade, so I can feed super-fast with it". The blade will last a long time and give the results you want, but will also easily burn and dull if you push it too hard. Does not seem to matter the size of saw, by the way.

Erik

[ian maybury]

:) To John. Jig? This is a JIG!!!!!!!

That was one of my favourite threads. It's pretty complex, but it addresses the million dollar question of absolute flatness that gets overlooked so often in woodworking, and that results in inaccuracies the source of which isn't always obvious. It's so often the case that the stock isn't quite flat, the table and the fence ditto and the pressure we apply to hold the work down variable so it springs back and forwards - next thing we know something is 0.5mm off and we don't know why.

Just looking at the photos of it again. This is probably my being a PIA, but I wonder if it might not be possible to make a quick and dirty version?

Hinge two rectangular boards in very roughly 12in h x 24in long x 3/4in thick ply from one vertical edge - having cut multiple parallel slits in one for about 3/4 of the 24in/horizontal dimension and fitted a roller like yours to each 'finger'. (or maybe a nicely rounded and waxed end would slide on the work without too much friction/making feeding too stiff and avoid the need for rollers? - not a big deal) Drop a sausage shaped inflated bag, a trip of soft polyurethane or some other form of long spring in the gap between the boards so that it acts to tend to pivot the two boards apart at the hinge. The combination of the air spring and the elasticity of the fingers would act to apply the required pressure, with the air pressure/spring position adjustable and each finger to a fair degree independent.

Maybe even fingers alone would have enough spring do the business much like a featherboard - a highly elastic material like GRP could be used if needed. The fingers presumably wouldn't need much travel - not unless the stock was highly irregular. It'd take a bit to figure out to how to mount the whole deal properly, to sort out the details of the layout and to dial it in...

[Scott Brandstetter]

Wow guys, since I am new at re-sawing, I had no Idea what this thread would do. Good debate for sure. Not knowing what I should have included in my original thread, I will tell you that right now I am simply going to use the band saw to cut 11 inch (varies) wide 4/4 boards into 8 inch wide pieces so I can then clean up on the jointer, planer, etc. I will also be doing the same with 8/4 lumber. From what I'm reading, for my purpose, my current Jet should be fine, make sure the saw is set up correctly, and obviously a good blade.

Thanks for all of the help......now, continue to debate LOL

[Art Mann]

I have just read through all these posts and they are interesting. However, they may not properly address the original poster's question. When he says "resaw" does he mean he is turning one 4/4 slab into two 7/16" thick slabs for example (my definition of "resaw") or is he really trying to rip a straight edge on a board with raw edges? What does he mean when he says "slab"? When I worked in a giant sawmill 3 decades ago, slabs were pieces of lumber that hadn't been run through the edger yet to eliminate the bark and provide parallel edges. From his very brief post, it doesn't seem to me that he is talking about making veneer at all but I could be wrong. My resaw requirements are to slice a 4/4 to 6/4 board into thicknesses that can be drum sanded easily to 3/16", 1/4", 3/8" or 1/2" lumber for boxes and CNC carvings. The board has typically already been sawed roughly to length and is seldom more than 2 feet long and never more than 12 " wide. For my requirements, the Laguna 14/twelve does a great job. Additional power and speed would not make much difference since resawing is a tiny fraction of the time I spend on a particular project.

Conclusion: The requirements for a bandsaw depend mostly on how the tool is to be used. The OP hasn't provided enough information yet, in my opinion. Maybe he will return with a few more detail.

[John Lanciani]

Bingo ^^^^... The number one issue I see with guys in this situation is thinking, "Oh, I have this fancy carbide blade, so I can feed super-fast with it". The blade will last a long time and give the results you want, but will also easily burn and dull if you push it too hard. Does not seem to matter the size of saw, by the way.

Erik

The other side of that is that feeding too slowly prematurely wears out a blade just as fast, or faster. The ideal feed speed for any blade (circular, band, etc.) is achieved when the gullets are just about full when the tooth exits the stock. Too slow of a feed (either from lack of power or just feeding too slowly) "uses up" tooth sharpness without achieving the maximum amount of work. Any given tooth only has a finite number of passes through the stock in it before it dulls, regardless of whether it is taking a full gullet's worth of swarf away or only 25% of it. Friction kills blades through both abrasion and heat cycling, and taking twice as long to make a cut as is neccessary adds significantly to the friction and the wear.

My experience is that the retail branded carbon steel bands that lots of folks use and swear by are junk in less than an hour of hard use. HSS blades are good for 10 times that or more and good carbide blades last an order of magnetude longer still. If purchase price is all that matters buy cheap and replace often, but if total cost per cut is what is important carbide becomes really cheap really fast.

[Art Mann]

Wow guys, since I am new at re-sawing, I had no Idea what this thread would do. Good debate for sure. Not knowing what I should have included in my original thread, I will tell you that right now I am simply going to use the band saw to cut 11 inch (varies) wide 4/4 boards into 8 inch wide pieces so I can then clean up on the jointer, planer, etc. I will also be doing the same with 8/4 lumber. From what I'm reading, for my purpose, my current Jet should be fine, make sure the saw is set up correctly, and obviously a good blade.

Thanks for all of the help......now, continue to debate LOL

I must have been writing my last post while you were also writing yours because I didn't spot it. As it turns out, only a small part of the discussion has anything to do with your original inquiry. I would call what you are wanting to do as parallel ripping rathr than resawing. It is still interesting though.

[Scott Brandstetter]

Yes Art, as it happens I guess, because I am asking a question about something I'm not sure about, I probably called it the wrong thing.

This question started because in a different thread I mentioned I was using my table saw to cut (example) 11 inch by 100 inch 4/4 poplar. In that thread, I was told I really should be using a band saw. That is why I asked and I seemed to have opened a can of worms. LOL


I must have been writing my last post while you were also writing yours because I didn't spot it. As it turns out, only a small part of the discussion has anything to do with your original inquiry. I would call what you are wanting to do as parallel ripping rathr than resawing. It is still interesting though.

[Erik Loza]

The other side of that is that feeding too slowly prematurely wears out a blade just as fast, or faster...

John, I 100% agree with you but will add that, at least in my experience, 9/10 times, the owner burns the blade by pushing it too hard. The whole "Moar Powarrr" thing, LOL.

Erik

[Allan Speers]

I also depends on the blade thickness.

The WoodSlicer is incredibly thin, so you get a lot more "effective" HP, and if you want a carbide blade, the Laguna "Resaw King" is significantly thinner than other top brands.

[Jim German]

Just another data point to further confuse people. I was trying to do some resawing last night with a brand new Timber Wolf 3/4" x 2/3VPC M42(Bi-Metal) blade on my 20" Northfield which has a 2HP motor. I was cutting some ~6" wide Maple and was able to bog down the saw prettily easily if I pushed a little to hard. I'm no expert, so the saw might not have been setup the best for resawing, and that may not be the best blade, but if I wanted to do this frequently on wider boards I'd want significantly more power, probably 5HP.

[John TenEyck]

I also depends on the blade thickness.

The WoodSlicer is incredibly thin, so you get a lot more "effective" HP, and if you want a carbide blade, the Laguna "Resaw King" is significantly thinner than other top brands.

That's true as long as the wood behaves well, but if the kerf closes just an ant hair a Woodslicer will come to a screeching halt. As good as those thin kerf blades cut when everything is perfect, my wood almost never seems to be perfect. I get a lot more consistent results with a blade that has enough tooth set to handle less than perfect wood. And then we are back to needing HP to drive the blade.

John

[John TenEyck]

I've had similar results and maple seems to be one of the worst offenders. I'm guessing it's caused by interlocked grain; rather than being a pure ripping cut, the blade encounters grain running in all kinds of directions when it hits those areas. In any case, it sure bogs down my saw and more HP would be helpful in dealing with it.

John

[Art Mann]

Scott,

I didn't read your previous thread, but I don't agree with the advice that a bandsaw is a better tool than a table saw for creating straight edges. I have owned both for many, many years and I almost always use rough cut lumber from the sawmill. I would not normally choose a band saw for ripping long boards over a table saw. The tool table is too small and the outfeed table would have to be quite tall and large. To me, that is incredibly clumsy and error prone compared to a table saw with an outfeed table and a straight edge jig. If you are having trouble with not enough power on your table saw, go buy a quality thin kerf ripping blade (not glue line rip) if you aren't already using one. It will increase the performance by approximately double and they aren't very expensive.

[Gary Herrmann]

More HP is always good. My MM16 has 4.8hp and it hasn't choked on anything yet.


Jack - always a pleasure to see your vids.

[Art Mann]

More horsepower is not always good when you have to sacrifice the purchase of some other equally necessary piece of equipment in order to get it. I know it is hard for some to believe but there are good woodworkers who have furnished their entire shop for about what a MM16 costs.

[Allan Speers]

John, I'm glad to read that, since I agonized over whether to get the 5 HP, 21" Grizzly I'm about to bring home (tomorrow.)

I'll be resawing a LOT of figured hard maple, as well as cutting custom veneer from various blocks of burl. It's looking like I didn't really need 21" wheels, since everyone is telling me NOT to install a 1.25" blade. (That was my main reason for going with larger wheels) but 5 HP is part of the deal, so I'm feeling better!

- But a related question: I was planning to get the Laguna Resaw King, instead of the Lenox WoodMaster. Both are excellent, carbide-tipped blades with low TPI, but the Lenox has a slightly wider kerf. Most people say the Laguna is the better blade, but do you think that, specifically for figured & squirrely wood, the thicker Lenox would be better?

[John TenEyck]

Sorry, Allan, I can't offer any advise on that. Maybe someone else with direct, comparative experience can help you out.

John

[Mike Heidrick]

I own a woodmaster ct, trimaster, and resaw king. All are amazing and have cut all I have thrown at them. Some say they cannot get the woodmaster ct sharpened but I have no experience with that yet as I have not dulled it. I had a resaw king sharpened by laguna and it came out great. I had a trimaster sharpened by sanders tools (it was bought by someone else since) but I had not used it before that because they also cut and welded it to length.

So if sharpening a woodmaster ct is an issue get the resaw king.

[Jim German]

Just another data point to further confuse people. I was trying to do some resawing last night with a brand new Timber Wolf 3/4" x 2/3VPC M42(Bi-Metal) blade on my 20" Northfield which has a 2HP motor. I was cutting some ~6" wide Maple and was able to bog down the saw prettily easily if I pushed a little to hard. I'm no expert, so the saw might not have been setup the best for resawing, and that may not be the best blade, but if I wanted to do this frequently on wider boards I'd want significantly more power, probably 5HP.

I have to retract this statement. Turns out that I wasn't stalling the motor, the belt was just slipping. I had just installed an adjustable twistlock belt which was great for vibration, but it always seems to slip no matter how tight I make it. Not sure what to do about it.

[David Kumm]

Link belts are a bad choice for a bandsaw. Fractional HP belt and prone to slipping. Get a VX and your Northfield will be happy. Dave

[Allan Speers]

I own a woodmaster ct, trimaster, and resaw king. All are amazing and have cut all I have thrown at them. Some say they cannot get the woodmaster ct sharpened but I have no experience with that yet as I have not dulled it. I had a resaw king sharpened by laguna and it came out great. I had a trimaster sharpened by sanders tools (it was bought by someone else since) but I had not used it before that because they also cut and welded it to length.

So if sharpening a woodmaster ct is an issue get the resaw king.

Mike,

we're slightly off-topic again, but since you've used all of the "big three," can you described when / why you select each?

One thing I'm particularly on the fence about is which blade to et for resawing, because I also need to rip stock over 2.5" thick. If money was no issue, I'd get the resaw king, 1.25" This is documented to tension well on my Grizzly 21". However, I can't afford a second carbide blade right now, so I'm thinking maybe the TriMaster instead, and just use a slower feed. I have 5 HP, so that should work, and give a better finish as well. - or will it?

The last part of the puzzle is kerf width. Many say that a wider kerf is better for difficult woods, like the figured hard maple I will be resawing. The Lenox CT is wider than the Laguna, so maybe THAT's my best bet? (Except it has even less TPI, so not a good general ripping blade.

If you can even understand my questions, what do you advise?