Green Wood Gumming Up Bandsaw Blade and Bearings

[Nathan Craver]

Hello all. I haven't posted here in a while, been too busy turning. I have a question for the more seasoned woodworking pros regarding cutting green wood on the bandsaw. Lately, I've noticed that when cutting green wood, basically cutting down logs and branches into turning blanks, that the blade wants to gum up and the bearings get coated with a wood/resin residue that hardens and is a pain to get off. This has happened with red oak, live oak, pecan root, and various other green woods I've tried. I have been able to scrape the residue off the bearings by rotating them with a razor blade held against them (not scratching the bearing edge), and similarly with the blade, but this is becoming ridiculous if I can only get a few cuts in before the bearings start squealing like crazy, and I shouldn't have to keep readjusting the bearings to accommodate for the build-up. Lately, I've been wondering if I should replace the bearings with cool blocks, or if that would even matter. For the record, I am using a 14" Powermatic and I do have a dust extractor hooked up to it. I just replaced the blade today and had the same issue cutting the gorgeous pecan root I cut off an uprooted tree (thanks Hurricane Matthew). Would lubricating the blade help? If so, what kind of lubricant?

[Andrew Hughes]

I have the same problem on my smaller saw with the bearing guides.I had a Laguna saw the ceramic guides and they did a fine job scraping the blade when I was resawing Teak.
Careful with using a lot of lube on your blade I've heard it could cause the blade to slip off the tires.
Early this summer I was Resawing White pine and used Spray pan to help with the pitch.
Lots of cleaning between cuts.

Aj

[Bob Bouis]

Clean it real good then keep it wet with pam, and the problem with go away. JUST BE CAREFUL SPRAYING IT. Pam fizzes when it's sprayed and that can push a moving bandsaw blade off the wheels. Ask me how I know. It's not the lubricant but the fizzing that's the danger in my experience.

[Reed Gray]

This has come up on the turning forum a couple of times... Some woods, no matter what you do, will gum up your blades. I have tried Pam, Boeshield, Top Coat which is now Glide Coat, WD 40, and probably a few other things. The gumming up is just some thing you have to live with some times. A good blade helps, I use only Lennox Diemaster Bimetal blades. Long thread about them over in woodturning, but they just work better. If your blade comes off the wheel, that is a set up problem, and not the lubricant. The blade needs to be centered on the wheel, and Carter Bandsaw products has an excellent video on how to properly mount the blade on your bandsaw, which to me is a 'must' for every one getting and using a bandsaw. A brass bristle brush can clean off the bearings while they spin, but I usually use a standard screw driver. For sure, not OSHA approved method. Some times I have to scrape down the blade and wheels as well.

robo hippy

[Van Huskey]

First, for the blade you need a band with a lot of set, depending on what they are cutting some people get away with something like a Lenox Diemaster II but for the really "nasty" stuff Carter and Highland Woodworking sell green wood blades that do a great job clearing all the wet stuff out. Not being a turner I have never tried to track down the source band material but it is almost certain these are made from band material from a major band manufacturer and could likely be found cheaper.

Second, which Powermatic do you have they have made more than one type of 14" saw over the years. I personally hate the use of "standard" bearings on bandsaw guides, bandsaws should make skateboards not share bearings with them. If I cut a lot of green or highly resinous wood on a bandsaw I would swap the bearings for ceramic. Space Age ceramic sells retrofit kits for most saws and while the round pieces still roll like bearings (and thus won't scrape the blade clean) they won't have to be cleaned or replaced all the time like regular bearings. In the end solid guides from metal, wood, impregnated phenolic laminate (Cool Blocks) or ceramic (Laguna and Felder) have a lot of advantages over standard bearing guides but the market has demanded the latter.

[Robert Hayward]

When I owned a 14" Powermatic and cut a lot of green wood into lathe blanks I replaced the bearings with Cool Blocks. If I am remembering correctly I used the block holders from a Jet bandsaw. Bought the Cool Blocks on Ebay. Blade loading with crud almost completely eliminated.