Need some help with bandsaw

[Dave P Weaver]

I have broken 2 bandsaw blades. The first one I thought it was just Poor construction weak spot. The second one just surprised me. I figured I am doing something wrong. I would like a little help getting me back on track so I don't break another bandsaw blades. Hopefully it's not operators ?.
My bandsaw is grizzly model GX 555 LX with a riser bar blade is 105 inches blades. I am trying to make a sled And reindeer for Christmas out of a 4 x 4 pieces 2X4 pieces of pine I am using a Carter stabilizer guide.
My blades are 105 inches long. The blade is : width 0.125. The thickness is 0.025. The tooth is regular 14 TPI.I am also using a Carter stabilizer on my bandsaw
I would appreciate any help on trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong. Hopefully it's not me trying to go too fast or some other operator problem ?
Dave
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[lowell holmes]

I would go to Lowes or Home depot and tell them your experience and see if they have a suggestion. I have a Lowes blade on my bandsaw and have no issues.

A local wood working club can help as well. Also your attachment is not working.

[Andrew Hughes]

I think your problem is a very thin blade with a lot of teeth cutting a thick piece of wood. If it’s regular Douglas fir construction lumber if it’s wet or high Mc. That’s a problem
Good Luck

[Jim Morgan]

Your photos are not showing up - try again.

Regardless, 14 tpi is not well-suited for 2" lumber. The gullets (spaces between teeth) are small and shallow. Most likely the set of the teeth is also quite small. Unless your feed is very slow, the gullets will quickly get jammed full of sawdust. This causes the blade to overheat. The teeth rapidly dull, and you (unconsciously) push harder, which causes the blade to overheat even more. Voila, a broken blade. Try a coarser blade.

[John K Jordan]

Your photos are not showing up - try again.

…

All the photos are displayed for me if I click on each “Attachmentxxxx” link.

I also think the blade might need coarser teeth. I rarely use 1/4” blades and cut curves that tight but always use fewer teeth for thicker wood. Use correct tension, cut slowly, should guide the wood, never have to push. Might be helpful to get someone else with some experience to watch.

[andy bessette]

...your problem is a very thin blade with a lot of teeth cutting a thick piece of wood...

This. WAY too fine a pitch on WAY too narrow a blade.

[Lee Schierer]

I agree that you are using the wrong blade for what you are trying to cut. Here is a link on blade selection. (https://www.dakin-flathers.com/blog/bandsaw-blade-teeth-per-inch-tpi-chart)

[Alex Zeller]

Can someone who is making their first post include pictures? I can't see them, maybe just moderators can. 14 TPI sounds like a metal cutting blade.

[Lee Schierer]

Can someone who is making their first post include pictures? I can't see them, maybe just moderators can. 14 TPI sounds like a metal cutting blade.

The photos were not visible at first. The OP has fixed that. You should be able to see them now. To answer your question, I think that members can post photos but cannot view them.

[Jim Morgan]

Photos are showing up this morning - thank you moderators.

There do not appear to be any really tight radii in the pattern, so a ⅛" blade is narrower than necessary, and a ⅛" blade 105" long is quite delicate. Here is a chart of blade widths needed for different curvatures: https://www.dakin-flathers.com/blog/how-to-select-bandsaw-blade-width. OP could probably move up to a ⅜" wide, low-tooth-count blade, which would be much more robust.

[Phil Phelps]

I made a living with a bandsaw and scroll saw starting in 1968. I cut up to one inch wood, MDF, Plexiglas, etc. with a 6 tooth, hooked 1/4" x 11' blade. You can buy them local or on line. Your work should "glide" through 3/4" plywood. Never force your work into the blade. Sometimes you need to file the weld smooth on the back of the blade.

[Alex Zeller]

Even a 6 tpi blade cutting 3 1/2" pine would require being careful. The pine will fill the gullets before they exit the wood which will still cause problems. My suggestion would be 3 tpi so you can cut both the 4x4 and the 2x4.

[Larry Frank]

A 1/8 inch blade is dicey on that bandsaw with a riser. Also, the Carter stabilizer allows the blade to twist very easily. I had the stabilizer on a 10" Rikon and had trouble with 3/16" blades. Cutting that thick of wood with a 1/8" blade is asking for issues in my experience.

[John K Jordan]

... Also, the Carter stabilizer allows the blade to twist very easily. ...
I bought a Carter stabilizer and after giving it a good try gave up and passed it on to someone else. My best tightly curved cuts with 1/4" blades (on a 14" Delta with riser block) was with embedding the blade within the faces of two wooden blocks in place of the normal guides.

JKJ