Al Navas
11-17-2006, 8:12 AM
Several members have been wondering about using narrow blades on the larger band saws.
I purchased the Carter stabilizer for use with 1/4-inch and narrower blades. In addition, I also bought the Carter upper and lower guides that use the bearings, to replace the stock Euro-style disk guides that came with my Grizzly 17-inch band saw.
I have not had a chance to use the large upper and lower guides to do some resawing, but will be doing just that very soon. I may post a follow-up when I do use them.
I had to modify the stock blade guard to allow the larger upper guide to fit properly while still having the blade above the guide buried in the guard.
NOTE: I am currently testing the stud shown in the photos below. I have been working with the Carter Products engineer on the re-design, to get away from the machine screws in the original design. The screws had a tendency to work loose, which usually meant having to re-align the upper guide.
Now to some photos to illustrate:
1. Upper guide, front shot:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Upperguide-frontshot.jpg
2. Upper guide, with side of blade guard cut out - I prefer the support that the thrust bearing provides in this guide, in contrast to the blade riding on the "flat" edges of the bearing on the stock Grizzly guide:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Upperguide-sideshotwithcutoutguard.jpg
3. Rear shot of the upper guide, showing how much of the guard I had to cut out to allow proper installation of the upper guide:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Upperguide-backshotwithcutoutguard.jpg
4. The Carter stabilizer, which works extremely well with the narrow blades to allow close to scroll saw performance:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Stabilizerand0.jpg
I am very pleased with the stabilizer, which allows use of the very narrow blades on my 17-inch band saw. I know that several members have wondered whether they could use the very narrow blades on their large band saws - the answer is YES!!
My initial impression is that the Carter upper and lower guides will be very useful for general work with the wider blades, and will truly show their usefulness during resawing. These things are massive.
Thanks for looking.
I purchased the Carter stabilizer for use with 1/4-inch and narrower blades. In addition, I also bought the Carter upper and lower guides that use the bearings, to replace the stock Euro-style disk guides that came with my Grizzly 17-inch band saw.
I have not had a chance to use the large upper and lower guides to do some resawing, but will be doing just that very soon. I may post a follow-up when I do use them.
I had to modify the stock blade guard to allow the larger upper guide to fit properly while still having the blade above the guide buried in the guard.
NOTE: I am currently testing the stud shown in the photos below. I have been working with the Carter Products engineer on the re-design, to get away from the machine screws in the original design. The screws had a tendency to work loose, which usually meant having to re-align the upper guide.
Now to some photos to illustrate:
1. Upper guide, front shot:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Upperguide-frontshot.jpg
2. Upper guide, with side of blade guard cut out - I prefer the support that the thrust bearing provides in this guide, in contrast to the blade riding on the "flat" edges of the bearing on the stock Grizzly guide:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Upperguide-sideshotwithcutoutguard.jpg
3. Rear shot of the upper guide, showing how much of the guard I had to cut out to allow proper installation of the upper guide:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Upperguide-backshotwithcutoutguard.jpg
4. The Carter stabilizer, which works extremely well with the narrow blades to allow close to scroll saw performance:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y136/Sandal_Woods/Shop%20Tools/Stabilizerand0.jpg
I am very pleased with the stabilizer, which allows use of the very narrow blades on my 17-inch band saw. I know that several members have wondered whether they could use the very narrow blades on their large band saws - the answer is YES!!
My initial impression is that the Carter upper and lower guides will be very useful for general work with the wider blades, and will truly show their usefulness during resawing. These things are massive.
Thanks for looking.