Getting uneven resaw cuts with my bandsaw?

[Josh Goldsmith]

Hello everyone. Yesterday i was playing around and decided to use some of the walnut i got. I was resawing it down from 1 1/4 to 1/4 pieces. I used a featherboard to keep pressure against the fence. I still got a wavy cut. It seemed like it was going okay and then it would drift and take a chunch out. It was really frustrating me. I have a G0555 with a riser kit, 1/2 blade. It was tensioned to the 1/2 mark on the back. Is it technique or is this normal when using a larger piece of wood. the wood was 8" tall. Could it be my guides? Thanks for the help!

[Chris Barton]

Hi Josh,

First, a 14" BS is a great tool and with a riser block it can tackle some tough jobs but, it is not ideal for resawing. But, using the right techniques and blade tension it can do the job. Try using a resaw piviot instead of a fence, this allows you to move the axis of the wood to compesate for blade drift. Second, crank up your blade tension some. Most 14" saws lack the strength on their tensioner springs to adequately tension for resawing.

[Ron Robinson]

Josh,

I am no expert for sure, but I've found I get the best resaw results using my 14" Delta when I tension my 1/2" blade to the maximum the machine will allow. When not resawing I generally set the tension to the next highest blade width setting. I am also considering getting an aftermarket tension spring to replace the stock one.

Ron Robinson

[Jamie Buxton]

I find that the only way to tell whether a bandsaw blade is dull is to watch its performance. I can't tell by looking at it or feeling it with my thumb. Resawing is about the most demanding task for a blade. It has to track straight and smooth while cutting a very tall kerf. Because resawing is so demanding, it is the first thing to fail as a blade dulls. This all is a long way of saying that if you're having trouble resawing, try a new blade.

BTW, when I was resawing on a 14" bandsaw, I found that the Woodslicer blade from Highland Hardware worked well.

[Sam Salter]

I don't know your bandsaw, but do you (can you?) adjust the fence for drift. I much prefer to eliminate the drift than to try & work around it.
sam :-)

[Josh Goldsmith]

My blades are new! So i don't think it is the blade. The more i think about it, the more i think it is the tension side of the bandsaw. Is it bad to over tension your blade like that. I don't have a tension measurement tool to find out if it is to loose. Is there any other ways? Thanks Josh

[Dennis McDonaugh]

My blades are new! So i don't think it is the blade. The more i think about it, the more i think it is the tension side of the bandsaw. Is it bad to over tension your blade like that. I don't have a tension measurement tool to find out if it is to loose. Is there any other ways? Thanks Josh

There are ways, depending on the blade. What brand are they?

[Doug Ketellapper]

I have a Delta 14" with a riser block. While certainly there are other saws that will do better, the 14" saw is just fine for most people. I've done a lot of resawing in 6 or so years since I bought my band saw. First thing to do is to tune up your Bandsaw. I have Mark Duginske's Bandsaw Book, and I understand he has another out now too. He goes in to some detail in making sure everything is set up properly. Wheels coplaner etc. Once I have my blade guides and thrust bearings set and the table square, I tighten everything well, especially the table trunnions. Most of the time I use a curved fence, I think it's the 7 inch fasttrack one. I use my Veritas wheel marking gauge and mark my cut, then just follow it with the blade. Some people call the blade wandering drift, but I think it has to do with where the blade sits on the crowned tire of the wheel. I've thought of trying to find or make some flat tires to experiment with to see if I'm correct. I've also used a high flat fence corrected to the "drift" of the blade with success as well. I personally don't think you need to overtension the blades as mentioned earlier, but there are lots of opinions on that as well. I tend to go around the mark referencing the blade width, and adjust it if I feel it needs it. I have no scientific method, but I just go by my own experience. I'd like to get a tension gauge to measure it once I get it set up. It would be interesting to see how close the tension is each time. When everything is going well I can clean up the face of a resawn board with a 1/64" pass through the drum sander. Oh, and I use the Woodslicer blades from Highland Hardware. Some day though I'd like to get a carbide tipped blade for the longer life.

[Cecil Arnold]

If you are using a new blade (hopefully 3-4 tpi) then my guess would be either tension or drift, maybe both.

[Vaughn McMillan]

Josh, it sounds to me like your fence hasn't been adjusted for drift and/or the tension is too loose. For adjusting the tension, there are several schools of thought on how it should be done, but if you search SMC for "flutter method" you'll likely learn a lot. Also check the blade manufacturer's website...come companies have pretty specific recommendations that you should read. (Then you can decide to follow them or not.)

To debug your resawing problem, start with the tension adjustment, following the method that seems best to you. (Note that a number of the very experienced guys here don't use a tension gauge, and instead tension by look and/or feel instead. Also, it seems to be the consensus that the gauge built into the saw is only a rough guideline, and not a very accurate way to adjust the tension.)

Even with the tension set exactly right, it's quite likely you'll need to adjust the fence, too. In my limited experience, very rarely will the fence be actually square to the table (or the miter slot) when it's been adjusted for drift. I'm not as experienced as a lot of the guys here, but here's what's worked for me to adjust for drift. Do these steps after you've got the tension set and the guides adjusted:

1. Get a piece of scrap wood (I usually grab a piece of 3/4" thick pine...something cheap) that's a bit longer than your table is from front to back. In other words, for your 14" table, find a piece of wood about 16" long or so, and somewhere around 2" to 4" wide.

2. Draw a line on the face of the board, the full length of the board, parallel to the edge...doesn't really matter where, just as long as it's straight and the same distance to the edge of the board. I usually draw two or three lines, in case I want to repeat the steps. (It'll make sense in a minute.)

3. Without using the fence at all, cut the board along the line as straight as you can guide it. When you get about halfway through the cut, stop. Turn off the saw, but do not move the piece of wood at all.

4. Carefully, to avoid moving the board, clamp both ends of the board to your bandsaw table. There's a good chance that the board will not be square to the rest of the table. Close, but not quite. No worries.

5. Move your fence next to the board, and loosen the four adjustment screws on the top of the fence (assuming your Grizzly fence is like the Shop Fox fence I have). Move the fence as necessary to match the same line as the edge of the board that's clamped to your table. In other words, slide the fence up next to the clamped board and tighten up all the fence adjustment screws. Here again, the fence will quite possibly not be square with the table.

6. Unclamp the board, set the fence to whatever thickness you want to resaw, and try a test cut. (Here again, cheap wood works fine.) If the saw cuts straight, you've got it. If you still see the blade wandering as you cut, go back to step 3. (There's a good chance you moved the test board a bit when clamping it. DAMHIKT) Or, go back to step 2 if you didn't draw enough lines the first time. ;)

When it's all set right, you should get a smooth enough cut that it can be finished with just a bit of sanding or scraping. Keep in mind you'll need to do this every time you change the blade. Once you've done it a time or two, it only takes a minute or two.

I've seen posts saying a 14" saw just isn't big enough to resaw, but I guess nobody told my saw, because I've done it with acceptable results. Is it as fast as something bigger? No, I'd imagine not. But properly set up, the cut will be just the same. It'll still go from one end of the board to the other, with the same amount of surface roughness (or lack thereof). Would I want to resaw enough wood to do a kitchen? Probably not unless I had a lot of time. A table, maybe yes. A box? Most certainly. (Sorry for the mini-rant, but I'm tired of reading posts that say a 14" bandsaw with a riser block can't resaw. Yes it can, and with good results.) YMMV.

- Vaughn

[Wayne Gauthier]

I have the same BS you have, and find that with the 1/2" blade, resawing is a problem. When I resaw now, I use a 3/4" blade with 3tpi, properly tensioned and it works much better with virtually no drift.

I buy my blades from Suffolk Machinery. Timberwolf blades. http://www.suffolkmachine.com/silicon_steel_pricing.asp Call them and they will help you with the size blade you need.

[Ken Massingale]

I just have the HF :( 14" BS, no riser. I'd been having the same issues resawing, using 1/2" Timberwolf 3 tpi blades.
I recently broke down and paid Highland Hardware $30 for one of their 1/2" Woodslicer blades.
I thought it unusual that they recommended setting the tension to 3/4" and fine tuning from there. (I have a tension spring from Lou Iturra)
But I did that and the resawing of 5 3/4" Maple was great, the best the HF has ever done.
Soooo, I put a TW blade back on and tried it set at about 3/4, way more than they recommend.
The resawing was very good, not as clean as with the Woodslicer, but better than ever before.
So, based solely on that, I would suggest that you try jacking the tension up and see what your saw does.
What seems to be working for me may not be the solution for your situation.
Ken

[Lee Schierer]

I agree with the higher tension settings for resawing, Ido the same thing on my Delta 14". Just be careful with your adjustment not to compress the spring to solid height. This is bad for the spring and even worse for your saw. You can damage your saw if there is not give at all in the wheels. Better to switch to a higher spring rate spring than compress to solid height.

[Ted Christiansen]

Just wanted to mention that the Woodslicer blade is designed for resawing dry wood only. The kerf isnt wide enough for resawing green wood. I didnt notice that fact on the website when I ordered it, but learned the hardway.

Ted