trimetal, bimetal or carbide tipped?

[Harley Lewis]

I am thinking I need a better/new bandsaw blade for resawing. I am currently running a 1" timberwolf on my Grizzly 17" saw, and it does fine but it is starting to show signs of dulling. I have done a search and I have read what I can find regarding blades but I don't see direct comparisons

The Lenox trimetal blade is about the same cost (about $150) as the carbide tipped Lenox from Grizzly, which is the better way to go -- or are they the same blade?

Thanks, Harley

[Bartee Lamar]

These people were at IWF. Their stuff "looks" good and the prices seem really good.

http://www.supercutbandsaw.com/ (http://www.supercutbandsaw.com/)

If anyone has any info or has used their blades it would be interesting to know.

[tod evans]

harley, what do you want the blade to do? and what`s your budget? i have a lennox trimaster that gives fantastic cuts in kiln dried wood but i don`t run it all the time because of cost. if i just need to split a board in two i`ll use a timberwolf bandmill blade. they take a bigger kerf and wear out quicker but replacement is much cheaper......it`s really a balancing act as to what you`re doing and what results you need vs cost.....02 tod

[Harley Lewis]

This is a repeat of what I told Tod in a pm. I resaw only about 200 lineal feet of material a year, none for veneers. Wood varies from poplar on the soft side to hickory on the hard side. I did resaw about 40 feet of 6 inch rough hickory last night and that is when I noticed the blade having trouble. The blade has done probably 100 feet of oak and about the same with walnut. Bottom line is I do not mind spending $150 for a carbide tipped or a trimetal blade if it will outlast several timberwolf blades. Is spending that much money on a blade going to pay in the long run, and what is the difference between a trimetal and a carbide tipped blade regarding longevity?

[nic obie]

Harley,

I don't think that there is such a thing as a trimetal blade. Probably what you mean is 'trimaster' which is Lenox's name for carbide tiped blades. They are very good blades.

[Harley Lewis]

Nic, thanks. I have a big opps in my typing and reading. Do you have an idea of longevity of the trimaster in comparision to the regular blade? Tod evidently doesn't use the trimaster for every day use and that says something!

[tod evans]

harley, given what you`re using a bandsaw for a trimaster would probably be a one time investment.......if you don`t hit a nail-rock-ect. i use the cheaper resaw blades when i don`t go through my lumber prior to sawing, in otherwords, i`m likely to hit staples, wharehouse debris and so forth when i pull a unit off the truck and shove it through the saw, for this reason alone i use the cheaper blades. if i`m sawing something i care about i`ll put the trimaster on every time the cut quality alone justifies the cost of the blade and nobody can argue about the life of carbide over hss.......again it all depends what you`re doing and what results you`re after.. given your post sighting quantities i think a trimaster would last you several years if not over a decade......now the cost difference between a timberwolf and the trimaster is something only you`ll be able to justify.......or not? .02 tod

[Mike Spanbauer]

Hi Harley,

I own an MM16 w/ a trimaster on it. It is a great blade and reportedly lasts 10x the time of a standard blade. however, something no one has mentioned is that these blades are seriously high tension required to get the performance everyone talks about. What saw do you plan on mounting this on? I know of no 14" units that can tension these, and very, very few 16"ers. Also, Lenox themselves suggest that a 20"+ saw is best for the blades due to fatigue, but I haven't experienced any cracking or issues with mine that has been installed for 15 months now (many, many bdft).

However, realize that the carbide bands are wider kerf than standard bandsaw blades for the most part. David Marks used a Lenox bi-metal for many, many years on his 20" delta and was capable of crafting masterful pieces with LOTS of bandsawn veneers. Plus, they are much, much cheaper.

Just food for thought, feel free to pm me if you've additional questions.

mike

[Jake Helmboldt]

I don't know if it is better, for I have not tried the Timberwolf, but I've been using Lenox bimetal blades from a local supplier that makes them cheap. And I like the results I get. I need to try a Timberwolf and Woodslicer just to compare, but I don't want to spend the extra money.

Jake

[Jamie Buxton]

I've been using a Resaw King (from Laguna) on my 16" Laguna 16HD for a couple of years. It is expensive, but worth it. It does last much longer than steel blades, and is resharpenable. Over the long haul, it is less expensive than steel. The quality of cut is much better than steel, because the teeth have no set -- just like the carbide teeth on your table saw. I cut veneer with it, and just glue down the sawn face without any fussing. I suspect a Lennox Trimaster would have the same characteristics, but I've never used one.

One advantage of the Laguna blade over the Lennox is that Laguna does the resharpening. I've asked on this board and elsewhere, and nobody has been able to point me to a resharpener for the Lennox.

[John Fry]

I've been using a Resaw King (from Laguna) on my 16" Laguna 16HD for a couple of years. It is expensive, but worth it. It does last much longer than steel blades, and is resharpenable. Over the long haul, it is less expensive than steel. The quality of cut is much better than steel, because the teeth have no set -- just like the carbide teeth on your table saw. I cut veneer with it, and just glue down the sawn face without any fussing. I suspect a Lennox Trimaster would have the same characteristics, but I've never used one.

One advantage of the Laguna blade over the Lennox is that Laguna does the resharpening. I've asked on this board and elsewhere, and nobody has been able to point me to a resharpener for the Lennox.
What Jamie said! I have the same saw with a power feeder and I slice a lot of shop sawn veneers (but I still run them through the drum sander before pressing). I have three of the 1" Resaw Kings and then send them in for sharpening two at a time whenever I put the third one on the saw. (maybe once a year).

[Shaun Wilson]

FYI, The Lennox Tri-Master was originally designed for cutting titanium alloys, tool steels, etc., but it just happens to do a fantastic job in wood. With a good setup your finished cut often looks like it has already been sanded (really!). A side benefit for those that cut re-claimed wood (old barns, etc.) is that it won't hurt the blade at all if you hit a stray nail. Blade life typically runs 5-10 times that of a standard blade and it can be re-sharpened multiple times. Kerf is 1/16" (0.063").
Shaun

[Mike Cutler]

Harley.

I use the 1" Lennox Bi-Metal blade, and the 1" Lennox Tri-Master on my 18" Rikon. Both blades are the 2-3 varipitch blades.

Like Tod. I only use the Tri-Master for the exotic(expensive) stuff. The Bi-Metal has a cut that is just slightly less in quality to the Tri-Master. When new they are virtually identical in cut quality.

I have resawn quite a bit more than 200 linear feet on the Bi-Metal, including turning some hickory, and black cherry logs into usable lumber, and it's still giving excellent results. It's not a cheap blade for me, about $55.00, but that's a third the cost of a Tri-Master.

You may have to drop down to 3/4" or even 1/2" for your 17" saw. IIRC my 18" was close to the limit for bend radius for the cross sectional thickness of these blades.

[Alan Turner]

Shaun,
Where do you get the Trimaster resharpened? I have several, and would be much interested.

[Harley Lewis]

Hey guys, thanks a lot for all of your comments and assistance. I appreciate your experience and commitment to help those of us that have not done much resawing. I think I will try the bi-metal next and maybe move up the the tri-master if I get into more exotic woods.

Harley